Islam Online (Washington DC) - The change in presidency is not the only important change taking place in Syria. With the spread of the Internet age spanning the four corners of the globe, talk of Syria introducing the Internet to its society could become a reality very soon.
A small step in this direction seems to already be in motion, with the director of a computer school being at the center of the buzz. Hani Al-Khoury met President Bashar, an information technology buff who heads Syria's computer society, last month at a trade fair and spoke to him about printing a local computer magazine.
Al-Khoury, the director of the Reda Computer center in Thawra Street, had sent a proposal to Bashar encompassing his plans to increase the computer literacy of Syrians. The day that Hafiz Al-Assad died, Bashar sent Al-Khoury a reply to his proposal.
Bashar leans heavily towards introducing the Internet to the Syrian culture, a drastic change in attitude compared to his late father. Hafiz Al-Assad was clever in screening information that went into and out of Syria. By doing this, he was very successful in maintaining a steady flow of what information he wanted people to be exposed to. Obviously with the reality that Syrians travel outside of the country all the time, people are exposed to thoughts and ideas outside of their culture.
However, the opportunity of the Internet being in the homes of every person living in Syria marks the advent of what could be a revolutionary change in development. "Doctor Bashar has gone on the record saying that we need change and that we need it now and that he believes in the principle that every individual should be allowed to see everything," Khoury said. "The more we see, the more we develop," Khoury said picking one of his favorite Bashar quotes.
The four computer centers that Al-Khoury runs offer people a wide variety ofopportunities to advance their computer savvy, an asset that is already a gem to many people. Around 5,000 students graduate each year from the centers along with an army of young computer teachers in Damascus - home to around 70 other such schools. Students vary from children as young as eight to civil servants employed in several government ministries, including industry, economy and power, oil firms and banks.
Although these new developments bring about a buzz of positivity, the reality of the current situation dealing with the Internet is alarming. Currently, unofficial estimates put the number of computers nation-wide at a mere 300,000 and say there are around 10,000 Internet users in Syria compared to 400,000 in the United Arab Emirates, 250,000 in Lebanon and 300,000 in Saudi Arabia.
Internet access is limited, with Syrians using a Lebanese-based provider for about 100 dollars subscription and four cents a minute. Along with that, the cost of a computer with a remotely up-to-date system is very difficult for the average Syrian to purchase. Amal Buqari, recently spent $160 to get a used Pentium 450 computer, a price that is three times the minimum monthly salary of $60 dollars. A new one would have cost her $500, with an extra $100 for a printer.
In the end, the development of Syria seems to be a pressing issue to the new president. However, as well as technologically sound computers, a lot of work needs to be done in the economy in order for all of the people, both wealthy and otherwise, to have the ability to use the Internet. It will be interesting to see where the newly appointed president goes with this
