Renowned

Author & Public Intellectual

 

Working towards democratic and pluralistic Syria

“Ziadeh is not so much a person as an institution,”
The Washington Post, September 2, 2011.

 

“Mr. Ziadeh is a prominent political figure in Syria”
New York Times, June 23, 2017.

 

“He is a secular liberal activist who not only dreams of a Syrian democracy, but also for years did his best to promote one through organizations he founded”
The Washington Post, Editorial Board, June 29, 2017.

 

“He is the most prominent, respected, and trusted Syrian dissident in the Washington, D.C., area”
Foreign Policy, July 25, 2017.

Ziadeh Photo HR (5b856dfb-6469-48a0-b628-878a6e8e2509)
Radwan_Ziadeh_HD_photo

Dedicated to Making A Difference

Hello, I am Radwan Ziadeh. I am a renowned author, public speaker, and activist. I have dedicated my life to making a difference through my activities and my writing. I have a focus on Syria, not because it is my home country but it also because Syria today is the tragedy of our times.

 

My areas of expertise and interests: Syria, Arab Spring, Democratization, Political Islam, Middle East Politics, U.S Foreign Policy, Human Rights, Religion, Development and Governance.

I am a public intellectual, political scientist, activist, and author.

I have been the managing editor of the Transitional Justice Project in the Arab World.

The Head of the Syrian Commission for Transitional Justice that was established on November 14, 2013, by the Syrian Opposition Interim Government.

The Commission tasked to work on the transitional justice file, including investigating crimes, considering means for prosecution, and building a national reconciliation program, among other items.

  • Since the Syrian uprising started on March 15, 2011, I was involved in documenting the ongoing human rights violations in Syria and testified at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva twice and in front of the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission in the U.S Congress.
  • I was also involved in the Syrian political opposition. I was elected in October 2011 as the director of the Foreign Relations Office of the Syrian National Council until I resigned from the position in November 2012.
  • Late in 2012, I established the Syria Experts House (http://syrianexperthouse.org), which is a combined group of approximately 300 human rights activists, academics, judges, lawyers, opposition leaders, and diplomats. All of the members were committed to holding periodic meetings to build a final vision of the transitional period and produce considered, deliberate recommendations for Syria`s political future.
  • At the end of 2013, the Syria Experts House developed the “Syria Transition Roadmap” http://syrianexperthouse.org/archives/775), which was considered as the most comprehensive vision for the democratic future of Syria and endorsed by the Syrian opposition, the Friends of Syria coalition, and the U.N.
  • In 2016, I participated in the Syria Peace Talks in Geneva as a representative of the Syrian civil society and engaged with the negotiations to implement the UNSC resolution 2254, especially in the issues of drafting a new constitution and elections. In 2017, I became the legal adviser to the Syrian opposition delegation to Astana talks in Kazakhstan with the focus on the issues of political prisoners and the missing persons of the Syria war.
  • I decided to devote my time and energy to building a vibrant and robust civil society in Syria. After a prolonged armed conflict, I founded the Ghiath Matar Foundation (http://ghiathmattarfoundation.org) to honor the Syrian activist Ghiath Matar who is a symbol of peaceful resistance in the Syrian Revolution.
  • Ghiath Matar was tortured to death by the Syrian government in Sep 2011. I then created the award for the winning documentary movie “Little Gandhi” that focused on the life of Matar and the aftermath of his death on the Syrian uprising and became the first Syrian movie ever to be nominated to the Oscar.
  • As a part of my work and vision on transitional justice in Syria, I established The Association for the defense of the rights of the victims of the Syrian Revolution (http://advrsyria.org/en). The Association’s primary goal is to fight for justice and accountability and defend the rights of the victims in the Syrian conflict.
  • In 2013 and after the increase of the humanitarian crisis in Syria, I helped with establishing the Syria Relief Network (http://syriareliefnetwork.com/en/), which is considered as the largest network of Syrian NGOs working on the humanitarian crisis in Syria.
  • In 2015, I established the Syria Democracy Foundation to focus on preparing for democratic transition in Syria, building massive democratic parties in the future.

I am a visiting fellow and a scholar at many prestigious universities and think tanks in the United States and around the world.

  • I was editor-in-chief of Tyarat magazine in 2001 & 2002 when the Syrian regime banned the magazine and detained three of the editorial members. 
  • My op-ed appeared in the New York Times, Washington Post, New Republic, and New Yorker.
  • I am a frequent political commentator on several U.S., European, and Middle Eastern media outlets such as BBC, CNN, Al-Jazeera, Al-Arabiya, and Al-Hurra.
  • I also write a bi-monthly op-ed for the leading Arab daily, Al-Hayat and New Arab
 

I was named the best political scientist researcher in the Arab world by Jordan’s Abdulhameed Shoman Foundation in 2004. In 2009, I was awarded the Middle East Studies Association (MESA) Academic Freedom award in Boston.

In 2010, I accepted the Democracy Courage Tributes award on behalf of the human rights movement in Syria, given by the World Movement for Democracy in Jakarta, Indonesia.

In 2008, The Encyclopedia of the Most Important Contemporary Arabic Thinkers and Intellectuals included me among the most essential and effective Arab thinkers in the contemporary Arab world today.

I was one of the major players in the “Damascus Spring,” a period of intense debate about politics, social issues, and calls for reform in Syria after the death of President Hafez al-Asad in the year 2000.

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About the “We Are Syrians” Book

My biography featured in a book called ”We Are Syrians: Three Generations. Three Dissidents” that was edited by Adam Braver and Abby DeVeuve. The book gives an insight into the “courage and defiance,” and “tells the larger story of the Syrian conflict and the conditions that brought about the worst humanitarian crisis in recent history.”

I have written more than thirty books in English and Arabic.

I have published studies, research projects, and policy papers for many international institutions. I have also published articles in magazines in Arabic, English, Spanish, and French.

I am a political commentator on several U.S., European, and Middle Eastern media outlets.

I also write a bi-monthly Op-Ed for the leading newspapers.

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