Suroye Christians reject ‘guest status’ in Syria, demand constitutional guarantees

18/09/2026

BRUSSELS — Suroye (Syriac–Aramean–Assyrian–Chaldean) Christians in Syria are not asking to be protected as a vulnerable remnant of the past. They are demanding constitutional guarantees that would make them equal citizens with a meaningful role in deciding Syria’s future, the European Syriac Union’s (ESU) foreign relations head Metin Rhawi said after a conference at the European Parliament two weeks ago.

“We do not want Christians to be guests in the future of Syria,” Rhawi stated. “We want them to be full citizens and full partners in shaping and building the country’s future.”

Rhawi’s remarks followed the 8 September conference in Brussels, titled The Future of Christians in Syria, hosted by European Parliament member Bert-Jan Ruissen of the Dutch Reformed Political Party (SGP).

Organized by the ESU, European Centre for Law and Justice (ECLJ), Sallux–ECPP Foundation, Syriac Cross of Belgium, and Jubilee Campaign, the conference placed the future of Christians within a broader debate over Syria’s constitutional order, citizenship, and political representation.

Its central message was direct. Physical security and symbolic representation are not enough.

For Christians and other historically rooted communities to remain in Syria, participants called for enforceable legal protections, meaningful political participation, protection of property and heritage, accountability for abuses, and conditions that would allow displaced people to return safely and voluntarily.

Rhawi, who moderated the conference’s second session, said the future Syrian constitution must recognize the country’s religious, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural diversity without turning those communities into separate categories of citizenship.

“Equal citizenship, religious freedom, property and heritage protection, meaningful political participation, accountable institutions, cultural and linguistic rights, and justice for violations are all necessary,” he said.

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The proposed framework would guarantee historically rooted communities the right to preserve and express their identities, use and teach their historical and native languages, maintain cultural, educational, religious and media institutions, and participate in decisions affecting their future.

Such rights, Rhawi emphasized, would not constitute a demand for privileged status.

“This recognition should not be understood as a threat to Syria’s unity or as a demand for privileged status,” he said. Rather, it should serve as “a democratic guarantee that protects Syria’s diversity within a united state.”

Beyond Symbolic Representation

Rhawi also rejected a sectarian model in which Christians would be represented primarily through Churches or treated as a collection of separate religious blocs.

“The future of Christians in Syria should not be determined through a millet-system-like approach in which Christians are treated only as separate Church communities, sectarian groups, or regional minorities,” he said.

Christian representation, he argued, must include political, civic, religious, cultural, and social actors. Representation must also translate into influence over decisions concerning security, education, property, local administration, cultural life, and religious freedom.

“Representation should not be merely symbolic,” Rhawi said.

That distinction lies at the heart of the ESU’s position. Recognition without political influence would leave communities dependent on the goodwill of whoever controls state institutions.

The organizers called for a democratic, pluralistic, and constitutionally neutral state; equal citizenship; freedom of religion and belief; equality before the law regardless of religion, ethnicity, or language; and equal access to public office, including the presidency.

They also called for constitutional protection of the identities, languages, cultures, institutions, and heritage of Syria’s historically rooted communities.

Return Requires More Than an Announcement

The conference also placed the right of displaced Syrians to return at the center of the discussion.

Rhawi said returns must be voluntary, safe and dignified, supported by security guarantees, property protection, access to basic services, livelihoods, schools, places of worship, and functioning local institutions.

Without such guarantees, he argued, calls for return risk remaining political declarations rather than viable options for displaced families.

The organizers also called for Syria to confront abuses committed during the conflict, including forced displacement, unlawful property seizure, forced assimilation, demographic change and collective punishment.

“Syria cannot achieve lasting peace without confronting violations committed in the past and present,” Rhawi said.

The conference further highlighted women and young people, arguing that employment, education, political participation, and opportunities for a dignified life are central to Syria’s ability to retain its population.

Pressure on the European Union

Rhawi called on the European Union to use its political, diplomatic, economic, and institutional tools to support an inclusive and democratic Syria.

He urged the EU to support a Syria that is not defined by a single religion, ethnic identity, language, or political identity, and to maintain direct communication with Christian political, religious, civic and, social representatives inside the country.

He also called on the Syrian Christian diaspora to support the voices and priorities of Christians and other historically rooted communities who remain inside Syria.

“We do not want the question to be, ‘How can Christians be protected after they leave Syria?’” Rhawi said. “The real question should be, ‘How can the continued presence of Christians in Syria be made safe, free, dignified, and productive?’”

The distinction is fundamental to the ESU’s message. The issue, Rhawi said, should not be framed simply as how to protect Christians as a vulnerable group, but how to build a state in which citizens do not need special protection because of who they are.

“We do not want a Syria that only protects minorities as weak groups,” he said. “We want a Syria in which no citizen needs special protection because they are different, and no historically rooted community is forced to abandon its identity in order to enjoy equal citizenship.”

The demand, he said, is for “privilege, equality, guardianship, partnership” — and above all, constitutional guarantees rather than symbolic recognition.

“Christians are not remnants of Syria’s past,” Rhawi said. “They are part of Syria’s present and should be full partners in shaping its future.”

For the ESU, protecting Christian presence therefore means more than preserving churches or religious sites. It means securing citizenship, political participation, property, cultural and linguistic rights, accountability, and the right to remain in and contribute to the country.

“We want a Syria for all Syrians,” Rhawi said, “a democratic, pluralistic, and constitutionally neutral Syria that respects religion, conscience, ethnicity, language, culture, and difference, protects individual and collective rights, and guarantees the right of Christians and all historically rooted communities to remain in their homeland and participate and shape the future.”