Cartoons as way of dialogue in the virtual world

SMN No. 11, November 10, 2010 Through the internet, the well-known Syrian cartoonist Ali Farzat is turning caricature from a passive art form into one encouraging interaction and participation amongst the growing Syrian online community. Farzat’s website - which displays cartoons mocking aspects of Syrian and Arab political, social and economic life - as well [...]

YouTube Video shows abuse in Syrian school

SMN No. 9, September 14, 2010 With the rise of video-sharing and social media sites such as YouTube and Facebook, it might be more difficult today to hide abuses happening behind closed doors in Syria. The latest scandal follows the posting of a short video showing two schoolteachers using physical violence against their students. The [...]

Scandals at Syrian Universities Raise Eyebrows

SMN No. 7, August 11, 2010 A number of Syrian bloggers have criticised alleged corruption at Syrian universities, including claims of a trade in exam questions at some faculties. A number of stories have appeared in the media related to teachers allegedly leaking exam questions or blackmailing their students. In reference to an online article [...]

Syrian students ask for values, not religion

SMN No. 3, June 12, 2010 A new group on Facebook is advocating the replacement of religion classes at Syrian schools with courses teaching “universal moral values”. The administrators of the group, which attracted more than 1600 members a few days after its recent launch, called for schools to remain secular institutions, arguing that religious [...]