Arts & International Affairs: Volume 2, Number 2 | Page 155

Culture Wars: Syria
Abdulkarim Ekzayez
Abdulkarim Ekzayez is a Syrian medical doctor and an epidemiologist. He graduated in 2010 from
Aleppo University in Syria with Advanced Surgery Training at Munster University in Germany.
When the Syrian conflict broke out, he was resident neurosurgeon in Aleppo but swiftly moved
to provide surgery assistance in field hospitals in north-west Syria. With the situation worsening
in the war, he joined Save the Children International to lead their efforts in public health and
immunization. He was selected for the prestigious Chevening scholarship and has studied a Master
of Epidemiology at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Dr. Abdulkarim is a regular
contributor to several medical and civil society institutions in Syria. He is a trustee member of two
Syrian NGOs, and he is also a talented poet.
Societies with multiple cultural identities should ensure a space of expression
for each group that allows them to translate their culture in aesthetic
expressions such as exhibitions, worships, traditions, and arts. Otherwise,
these groups, if feeling restricted and marginalized, would express their
cultures in aggressive ways and display intolerance rather than pride.
Syria is an example where most ethnic, religious, and social constituencies
have experienced this marginalization. After four decades, marginalization
has turned into feelings of persecution (Callahan et al. ����). All cultural
expressions in Syria are driven by the country’s established political powers.
Poets, musicians, and artists have been detained or exiled when they did
not conform to political expectations and directives. However, when these
groups tried to raise their voice in ����, the response by the Syrian regime
was more aggressive than expected. While anger was initially directed against
the Assad regime in the beginning, escalating violence and ideologically
driven cultural threats turned groups into enemies of
each other. What had been coexistence turned into
animosity.
Unless it conveys a political view or incites violence,
the sound of art is inaudible in conflict. Media in Syria
are politicized vehicles for legitimizing conflict-based
art. There is limited reaction against this as people
trapped in conflicts tend to focus only on the most
basic necessities; art is an interest they cannot afford.
Consequently, most art forms live in alienation and
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