Reviving the Syrian elite

The word elite is originally Latin. Eligere means “to elect,” which in turn means in that context to “select as the best.” By virtue of their success, many of the elite are financially comfortable, but not necessarily wealthy. They include the best people from all walks of life – business, academia, medicine. They are people that lead and influence the society positively. They can make the difference needed, and can help form public opinion in Syria and abroad. They are people that regardless of being nouveau riche or old money have made an effort to be in the elite, to be distinct individuals that the rest of the population looks up to. Certainly, they are not the financial elite that Sami told us about.

So to revive the Syrian elite, we don’t have to look into the aristocracy, bourgeoisie or plutocracy, or resort to nepotism or cronyism. We’d rather stick to the “meritocracy”: those who have enough merit that if elections were to take place, they’d be voted as the society’s top class. The term is not new, as it has been used in Singapore as a political concept that yielded the massive economic success of the country. The system was adopted after Singapore was forced out of Malaysia, because Singaporeans did not accept the federal government’s policy to give advantage to Malays, a word that meant inheritors of the earth, because it was their birthright as natives. In a meritocracy, assignment of wealth, position, and social status comes through competition or demonstrated talent. Meritocratic elite are front line leaders that can assume responsibility and be entrusted with critical missions, because they are able, knowledgeable, and experienced. These leaders have amassed skill not wealth, they produce more than they consume, and they do more than they talk. They lead by example, and they are conscience of the influence of their correctness or mishaps on many people that watch what they do. The financial elite in Syria include distinguished individuals that are part of the meritocracy. They are not many, however. Can we find more candidates for a new meritocracy class? Yes, but we have to look for them. Look for the professor whose students even sit on the theatre stairs during his lectures. Look for the manager whose employees stay after office hours without being asked. Look for the doctor who puts away a day’s returns every month to treat the poor without charge. Look for the official who people trust and respect because he refused a bribe. Look for the businessman who has given back to his community and was modest about his generosity. Look for the student on a scholarship who also works hard and at-tends English classes every night because he feels he owes it to his parents. Look for the many young people that are eager to learn, to do, to prove themselves, to move mountains, unlike the young spoiled elite that Sami spoke of. Look for the people who love what they do, embrace life with its good and bad, sustain challenges, and never give up or surrender. Look for critics not cynics, inspirers not censors, and those who can celebrate the success of others not belittle it. Look for men and women who created good homes, brought up good children and despite the hard-ships, taught them how to give back to a country that gave them a lot.

These are Syria’s real elite, the people whose self-esteem comes from real accomplishments and gives them the can-do attitude. Some of them won’t go to up market cafés even if they can afford it. They wouldn’t necessarily drive a fancy car. They wouldn’t necessarily live in lush apartments or villas. They wouldn’t necessarily wear designer clothes. And when they do any of that, they keep it low profile, because it is for their pleasure and comfort, and not to impress the peers. They wouldn’t like to be labeled as elite – a status largely hijacked by imposters. That’s probably why we don’t know many of them. People like them shy away when the stage is occupied by extras. We have to look for them, find them, bring them to the front, let them have their way, and Syria will not be the same again. They may not be able to realize their vision (and ours) in their lifetime. But they will die trying.