"Most Syrians view Islamist-affiliated or US backed opposition groups, with distrust ..."

Via FLC

"... Exiled opposition members are planning to gather regime opponents in Cairo this month, several of these people said Monday...including activists affiliated with the country's banned Muslim Brotherhood. Exiled opponents to Mr. Assad's regime face stiff challenges. For years, Syria's opposition has been a disjointed grouping of the Muslim Brotherhood, Kurdish parties,...Opposition members, in their individual capacities, have been meeting in small groups for weeks in European capitals including Geneva, Hamburg and Brussels. But in many cases, they failed to agree on a way forward, people familiar with the meetings said. The Cairo conference, which still requires the approval of Egyptian authorities, would be the first large-scale gathering of Syria's opposition in an Arab capital in more than a decade, according to one person involved in the plan.... ... But activists within Syria, mobilized by their government's increasing violence against protesters, have so far struggled to identify with those beyond their borders. Many Syrians worry whether political platforms decided abroad will reflect the range of their society's demands. "How can they represent our views when they are not even here?" asked a young woman in Damascus...

'The Potomac Bozo'

Opposition figures have already announced key demands, including a new constitution, presidential and parliamentary elections and the release of political prisoners. They remain farther apart on others, including possible engagement with the Muslim Brotherhood. The main hurdle will be to win the confidence of the apparently large chunk of Syria's population that is antiregime but won't identify as opposition, or join the protests, out of fear of the unknown.....

Opposition members said Bouthaina Shaaban, an adviser to Mr. Assad, last week approached and met with one of Syria's leading opposition activists, Michel Kilo. Activists who spoke of the meeting say they didn't know what was discussed... Opposition members abroad say Ms. Shaaban hasn't tried to reach them. Some of these people say they believe the regime isn't extending an olive branch, but rather attempting to divide the opposition by wooing back into the fold those it sees as more moderate.... Most Syrians view Islamist-affiliated opposition groups with distrust. They also don't trust opposition backed by the United States, either groups funded under the administration of George W. Bush or individuals who have lived in the U.S. for so long they're seen as having lost touch with their country...

"The big joke right now is this scenario where the regime is toppled and yet the opposition still isn't united," an opposition member abroad said. "That's the case we're seeing in Tunisia and Egypt."

Posted by G, M, Z, or B at 6:36 PM

River to Sea Uprooted Palestinian