Former Syrian Member of Parliament Denounces Violent Crackdown
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KARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty Images(DAMASCUS, Syria) — A former member of the Syrian parliament has accused President Bashar al-Assad of being responsible for “blood in the streets.”
Imad Ghalioun defected with his family to Cairo where he has broken his silence about the ongoing government crackdown on pro-democracy dissidents that has reportedly left more than 5,000 people dead over the past 10 months.
While a member of parliament, Ghalioun represented the city of Homs, one of the flashpoints of al-Assad’s attempt to crush all dissent.
Ghalioun knew that no reforms were coming to Syria when a fellow member was forbidden to talk about the opposition in parliament, with others claiming that there was no opposition movement in the country.
It all became too much for the Syrian to remain in his homeland, declaring, “Blood is in the streets, the whole country is bleeding. I do not think there will be any reforms because the young people have taken their decision, this is a revolution and there is no going back. The regime will use the security solution till the end.”
Yet despite the violence, Ghalioun believes that a popular revolution, not foreign military intervention, will finally drive al-Assad from power.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio