Essay over Social Action Project for Raising Awareness for Syria
Between 2011 and 2012, Syria has experienced protest which was enhanced by the Arab Spring in Libya, Egypt and Tunisia. The protest was extreme challenge to the government to the extent that military gunfire, tank and mass arrest were deployed in the state in effort to mitigate the situation. The protest became more aggressive when the opposition used the military backup against the existing government. As the year 2012 grew older, the situation developed into civil war, with support from the government leaders symbolizing the fall of central government.
The version of the Syrian protest was escalated by the Sunni Muslims which were against the rule of the government elite, Alawites in Syria due to perceptible disparity among classes. According to human communication theory, Syrian needed give opinions in their judgment and believes. The government elite included the president in authority, Bashar al-Assad. Assad had earlier backed down following the promises that reform and peace talk could be enacted and as a result opposed the protest using forceful authority (BBC News, 2012). However, the military personnel, which were government elite begun to fight against the protestors. Consequently, this accelerated to the emergency of the civil war in the country.
The situation in political and economic aspect of the Syria state has worsened following the aggressive protest. The political power, which for a long time had been under control of Alawite elite, is being challenged by the hot civil war in the state (BBC News, 2012). The economy of Syria has been under-performing as it experiences the effect of the conflict. Internationally, the state has change into a battleground raising competition among the Middle East countries particularly between the pro-government Iran and Gulf monarchies.
Recent revolutions of Syria facts are that U.S and Europe had warned the Syrian regime against application of chemical weapons. This has followed the U.S statement that the regime had prepared to use Sarin gas to attack the opposition regions. The rebel has extensively overwhelmed Damascus airport and Agraba airbase forcing for the termination of the operations in the airport for the second time. More massacres were experienced in Damascus as 65 people were killed by the regime forces.
The war in Syria led to the following mortality statistics: 47,750 Syrians were killed, 3572 children, 3603 females, 5,201 soldiers, 1256 protestors who were killed under torture, 76,000 people went missing. The protestors who are currently in prison are 216,000. The Syrians who got injured were 137,000 in total. The number of Syrian refuges was 468,782 since March this year.
What your project entailed in trying to raise awareness
Social Action Project for Raising Awareness for Syria entailed various methods. This includes the use of social media, organizing public gatherings, use of posters, and organizing workshops for the community leaders. These methods are the major ones that are were used to raise awareness to create a sensitive community in Syria. The project aimed at spreading the situation of Syria so that people could be part of the team that will promote a peaceful coexistence.
The use of social media is a powerful approach that is applied to the social project. The messages about the situation of Syria are posted in facebook and in twitter since this will reach a larger population in Syria. According to communist theory of communication, the public would be also expected to provide feedback to enable the media to cater for the public’s interest.
The public gatherings are also conducted in the process of creating awareness. The masses are gathered together and then they are told about the overview of the situations of Syria. Peaceful messages and the implications of wars are the main topics that are discussed among the Syrian residents so that the population can be aware of the conflicts in Syria. As the development communication theory suggests, the development of a country is associated with effective communication.
The printing of posters consist the art display of all the things that takes place in Syria and also about the activities in the refugee camp. I will therefore make the posters available to the population and this creates an image on their minds. I will also organize workshops for the local leaders to impact them with knowledge because they are an important factor in the success of my project.
Agenda setting theory is defined as the ability of social media to influence about a public issue to the population. The theory is tied to the project because of the use of social media and printed posters top create awareness to the audience. The spiral of silence theory is whereby individuals are not willing to express their views and opinions if they come from the minority. The ones who form the majority part are more vocal in giving their opinions. From my project, the minority did not come out in large numbers to express their views because of fear of isolation from the rest.
The public sphere is defined a component of social life where human beings gathers to freely discuss the society problems that faces them so that they can influence the politicians to take action. The theory is tied to the project in that; it was concerned on issues about the social life of Syrian citizens. They will negotiate about the matters of mutual interest that will lead to the betterment of their lives. Rhetoric is defined an as art of discourse that deals with the improvement of speakers that will be used to inform and persuade the listeners about the expressed issues about the Syrian situation. The applications of the rhetoric theory as an art lead to the purchase of speakers that I will be using to raise awareness among the citizens.
Reference
Zirulnick, Ariel (5 October 2011). . The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2 November 2011.
Sarah Trenholm, (2010). Thinking through Communication .New York: Allyn & Bacon, Incorporated
Syria Profile. BBC News, Middle East. Retrieved on 24 October 2012
. Syrian Martyrs. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
Sharmine Narwani (28 February 2012). . Al-Akhbar. Retrieved 17 March 2012.
