{"id":27676,"date":"2026-09-15T16:37:05","date_gmt":"2026-09-15T16:37:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/uit-ci.org\/?p=27676"},"modified":"2026-09-15T16:41:47","modified_gmt":"2026-09-15T16:41:47","slug":"no-to-fuel-price-hikes-wealth-belongs-to-the-people","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uit-ci.org\/index.php\/2026\/09\/15\/no-to-fuel-price-hikes-wealth-belongs-to-the-people\/?lang=en","title":{"rendered":"Syria: No to Fuel Price Hikes. Wealth Belongs to the People!"},"content":{"rendered":"

From <\/span>Movement for Freedom and Dignity<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n


\nThe new fuel prices were announced on Saturday night through a circular issued by the Ministry of Energy. The price of a litre of diesel rose from 125 to 175 Syrian pounds, while the price of 95-octane petrol increased from 152 to 195 pounds and 90-octane petrol from 142 to 185 pounds. This decision triggered a widespread wave of protests, with protest activity recorded at more than 80 locations.<\/span><\/p>\n

From Sunday onwards, people began gathering in several areas of Hasakah, Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor. The protests took various forms, from strikes in the transport sector, roadblocks and burning tyres to preventing fuel tankers from passing through some areas. The protests quickly spread to include Idlib, Aleppo, Hama, Damascus, Manbij and elsewhere.<\/span><\/p>\n

The demands were clear and direct: roll back the new prices and hold those responsible accountable, foremost among them Minister of Energy Mohammed al-Bashir. The decision does not merely mean an increase in the price of a litre of petrol or diesel. It threatens to have a direct impact on transport fares and the prices of goods and basic necessities, particularly flour and bread, imposing new burdens on the popular classes that they cannot afford to bear.<\/span><\/p>\n

Several organisations, party groupings and independents have also called for a sit-in today, Tuesday, at 7 p.m. in the public square in Salamiyah.<\/span><\/p>\n

Faced with the widening protests, the transitional government rushed to announce that it would review the prices, speaking of the possibility of restoring them to their previous levels or settling for a smaller increase. The People\u2019s Assembly also decided to summon the Minister of Energy to a session on 17 September to discuss the decision, following a request signed by more than 59 MPs.<\/span><\/p>\n

But these promises have so far failed to quell popular anger, as demonstrations and sit-ins continue at several locations. Those taking part in the sit-ins have every right to view these statements with caution, after government promises have repeatedly remained mere words on paper. The people do not want promises of action at some later date. They want the decision actually reversed and an economic policy that protects their right to live with dignity.<\/span><\/p>\n

Over the past year, the government worked to win over the public, particularly in the eastern governorates, ahead of the process of integration with the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). At the time, it was said that the liberation of Jazira would return its wealth to its people, and that residents would benefit from their region\u2019s resources, free from the SDF\u2019s \u201ccorruption\u201d and policies.<\/span><\/p>\n

Under SDF control, the price of a litre of petrol did not exceed 80 new Syrian pounds. Today, just one year later, the price in Jazira has reached 195 pounds.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So what happened to the promises to return the wealth to the people?<\/span><\/p>\n

Changing the party that controls the resources is not enough if the wealth itself remains outside the people\u2019s control. There is no meaning in liberating resources from one authority only to transfer them to another if the people remain deprived of their right to decide how those resources are extracted and managed, and how their revenues are distributed.<\/span><\/p>\n

Through its official media, the transitional government is promoting the idea that rising product prices are linked to higher shipping and insurance costs worldwide, resulting from the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz and shipping conditions in the Red Sea and Bab al-Mandab.<\/span><\/p>\n

These factors may have real effects on import and transport costs, and global economic shifts cannot be ignored. But using them to justify making the popular classes alone bear the cost of the crisis is no solution.<\/span><\/p>\n

Since the transitional government came to power, it has relied heavily on external economic support and on opening the market to imports, while domestic production, the agricultural and industrial sectors, and the protection of national resources have not received the priority they deserve.<\/span><\/p>\n

An independent economy cannot be built through a market open to capital and imports while Syrian producers, workers and peasants are left under the pressure of prices and poverty.<\/span><\/p>\n

Syria\u2019s wealth is not a commodity to be handed over to foreign companies. Oil, gas, wheat, water and land are not the property of the government or investors. They belong to the Syrian people, who have paid an enormous price over sixteen years of revolution and war, and who did not emerge from them only to find themselves facing more poverty, higher prices and economic insecurity.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

We stand alongside the popular protests and demand the following:<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n