IT Opportunities in Syria

Jeff Mirek

Jennifer Kozik

Tad Blankenburg

Brief History

Seat of several powerful empires dating before 2000 BC Center of the Christian religion until 7th century when the area

succumbed to Muslim Arab rule French colony from 1922 – 1946 Independence gained by UN resolution ordering French

troops to evacuate

Geography

Geography

Total Area: 185,180 sq km

(Slightly larger than North Dakota)

Climate: Humid Mediterranean coast, semi-arid

steppe zone and hot, dry desert

Long considered a crossroad between Europe and the Middle East as well as Europe and Asia

People

Population: 18.8 Million

Religions: 74% Sunni Muslim

12% Shia Muslim

10% Christian

Languages: 90% Arabic

English and French widely understood and required

for study in the education system

Ethnic Groups: 90% Arab

9% Kurds

1% Armenians, Circassians, and Turkomans

People

Education:

Literacy – 60% Men 50% Women

Syria has a good basic education system. The Baath Party strongly

promotes education and accounts for 8.6% of the state budget.

Engineering and medicine are emphasized in Syria’s four universities.

In 2002 the President founded a virtual university which allows Syrian

students to obtain degrees from US institutions.

Computer literacy is mandatory at the high school level.

Economy

GDP: US$71.42 Billion (2005 Est.) Per Capita – US$3900

Agriculture – 28.5% of GDP Industry and Manufacturing – 29.4% Services – 42.1%

Inflation Rate: 5.1%

Main Industries: petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining

Economy

Electricity Consumption: 28.26 billion kWh (2003 est.)

Oil consumption: 240,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Economy

US Sanctions: The sanctions include: Prohibition on the export to Syria of any items that appear on

the United States Munitions List (arms and defense weapons, ammunition, etc.) or Commerce Control List (dual-use items such as chemicals, nuclear technology, propulsion equipment, lasers, etc.);

Prohibition on the export to Syria of products of the United States, other than food and medicine; and

Prohibition on aircraft of any air carrier owned or controlled by the Syrian government to take off from or land in the United States.

Government Type: Republic , in name only, that is dominated

by an authoritarian, military regime

Consists of: Executive – The President is the supreme authority

Legislative Can only modify laws from executive branch, cannot make law. The constitution established the Baath party as the ruling party

Judicial – President appoints judges

Government

Administrative Divisions: 14 Provinces

Legal System: Based on French and

Ottoman civil law

Infrastructure - Communications Telephones:

Hard Lines: 2.9 MillionCell: 2.95 Million

14 TV Stations

16 Radio Stations

System:

- Controlled by Government - general assessment: fair system currently

undergoing significant improvement and digital

upgrades, including fiber-optic technology

Infrastructure - Transportation

Airports: 26 with paved runways

Railways: 2722 km

Generally adequate for passenger and

freight

Paved Roadways: 18,451 km Extensive and reasonably well

maintained

Infrastructure - Transportation

Ports: Baniyas, Jablah, Latakia, and Tartus

Tartus and Latakia – 2800 Vessels per year

- 1.5 Million tons loaded

- 6.9 Million tons unloaded

Investment Risks

Nationalization – The Baath Party is a socialist movement thatadvocates state ownership of industry. The Syrian government isslowly implementing private ownership.

Civil Unrest – Unrest in the Kurdish and Shia Muslim communityoccurs regularly and is brutally suppressed. The regime has one ofthe worst human rights records in the world.

War – Syria considers itself at war with Israel who currently occupies a small portion of Syrian land, the Golan Heights

Human Rights – Syria has a very poor human rights record. Torture, executions, and government persecution are common practice.

Perspective on Syria

Following the succession in 2000 of President Hafez al-Assad by his son, Dr. Bashar Al-Assad, progress has been slow in delivering the openings and reforms hoped for by many.

Economic reforms have started in some areas, primarily banking, but the economy remains dominated by regulations and sustained by the petroleum and gas sector.

Perspective on SyriaSyria was an ally in the first gulf war and a member ofthe UN Security Council during 2002-2003, stronglyopposing the invasion of Iraq.

Syria has been accused by the US of not doing enough to stop the influx of fighters into Iraq across its border.

The US introduced sanctions against Syria in May2004, calling for: Better Syrian cooperation on Iraq An end to Syrian support for select Palestinian organizations and Hezbollah, An end to the Syrian program for chemical weapons Syrian withdrawal from Lebanon

Censorship in Syria

“The Internet is the only way for intellectuals to meet and share ideas in Syria today.”—Aktham Na`issa, President of the Committees for the Defense of Democratic Liberties and Human Rights in Syria

Censorship in Syria

“What I want to say to you, my friend…is that you and your friends are being watched constantly. They’re watching you as you walk in the street and in your daily life. They’re watching you as you talk on your home phone, on your mobile, and on the Internet. Don’t be too surprised if they’re watching you in your sleep, in your dreams, and in your silence. Don’t be surprised if they’ve come into your bed at night.”—E-mail from one Syrian human rights activist to another, 2005

Technology in Syria

In order for Syria to condone a particular technology, itmust meet the following criteria:

It should benefit the majority of the Syrian people. Technology geared toward the elite is not favored because such people have the resources and means to get what they want without government assistance

It should not disrupt the social structure or adversely affect the middle class, and should be within the means of the masses

It should have a direct impact on Syria’s overall social and economic development

It should not jeopardize Syrian independence or security concerns

Syria’s Emergency Law Syria’s Emergency Law is at the center of all legislation criminalizing

peaceful opposition to the government

Syria has been under a state of emergency since a military coup in 1962 and because of the constant “real threat of war by Israel” the Emergency law persists

The law designates the Prime Minister as the Martial Law Governor

Among its sweeping provisions are “the placing of restrictions on freedoms of individuals with respect to meetings, residence, travel and passage in specific places or at particular times; preventive arrest of anyone suspected of endangering public security and order; authorization to investigate persons and places; delegation of any person to perform any of these tasks”

Syria’s Emergency Law

The Emergency Law allows for the censorship of letters, internet, publications, broadcasts and other forms of communication

Certain types of Web sites are blocked in Syria by all ISPs: pornography, fanatic religious sites, and extremist Zionist sites

Some ISPs have their own policy for blocking Web sites that are not applied by other ISPs (e.g. the Syrian Telecom ISP blocks access to Yahoo! mail and MS mail services, while the SCS ISP does not block access to these services)

Government Censorship

Syrian Internet users report that they can access the Internet from cafés without showing ID.

Plainclothes security officials monitor cafés logging who goes in and out and their activities online. These activities may be subject to criminal penalties and the government does not need customer logs to monitor the cafés

Activists and bloggers tell Human Rights Watch that security officials can compel café owners to spy on their customers and threaten to close the business on administrative grounds.

Government Censorship

There are three ISPs that offer service to the general public: The government-owned Syria Telecommunication

Establishment (STE) The government-funded SCS Network Aya “the first fully private ISP in Syria” owned by a

Syrian entrepreneur known for his close ties with the President

Other private ISPs are in the process of setting up operations or obtaining licenses.

The government intends to maintain its control over data communications within the country via its control of the international gateway and the public data network

Anonymity Software

Sites that offered free, anonymous browsing could overcome the Syrian monitoring and censorship programs a few years ago but these sites have been closed within Syria

We feel that there is a strong market for anonymity software such as Triangle Boy HTTP tunnel Socks2HTTP CCProxy Peek-A-Booty

Anonymity Software makes it harder to trace visits to web sites,online posts, instant messages and other communication formsback to their authors or users Some use "onion routes" creating layers of servers that

separate computer users from the Web sites they visit to hide a user's location. The software is easy, cheap, it is installed and operates in the background by adding icons in Windows

Some replaces the URL bar with a JavaScript and establishes an encrypted connection from the user's desktop using 128-bit Secure Sockets Layer with cookies automatically disabled

Newer anonymity software goes a step further, allowing users to get to an anonymizer through a third party, the code is open source, allowing anyone to set up third-party access to the anonymizer

Anonymity Software

Anonymity Software

Current demand for existing rudimentary anonymity software is so high that entrepreneurial Syrians have been able to turn software installation (available free or trial basis) into a job charging up to 5000 Syrian pounds ($100 USD) for installation

Opportunity to Profit from IT in Syria

Host an open source third party anonymizer programallowing anyone in Syria to set up third-party access tothe licensed anonymizer server which will be runoutside of geographic boundaries of Syria

Provide Licensed Anonymity Software to the people ofSyria via a shared secure server

Charge people to encrypt and log on to an untraceableaccount providing the ability access the internet usinglicensed anonymity software

Investment Opportunities

IT Services

As oil reserves are drying up Syria is in a desperate situation to

develop its industry.

One method for IT investment in Syria is through a joint venture with the government to develop IT services

Design and Implementation Network Management Security Management

Investment Opportunities

IT Services

This proposal will:

1. Utilize the local, inexpensive, and educated labor market2. Take advantage of established, although small, local industry as

well as government and educational institutions3. Will require minimal investment in assets and thus protect from

loss due to nationalization or military incursions

Investment Opportunities

Expected Results:

These services will result in more efficient industries and institutions that will better utilize the low level of capital investment available.

Sources Anthony Shadid, “Syria’s Voices of Change,” Washington Post, May 25, 2005,

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wpdyn/content/article/2005/05/24/AR2005052401431_pf.html

Joe Pace interview with Ayman Abd al-Nour, July 25, 2005, http://faculty-staff.ou.edu/L/Joshua.M.Landis-1/syriablog/2005/07/interview-with-ayman-abdelnour-by-joe.htm

Human Rights Watch telephone interview with Ayman `Abd al-Nur, October 2, 2005.

Megan K. Stack, “Arabs Take Bytes at Regimes,” The Los Angeles Times, September 12, 2005, http://www.latimes.com/technology/la-fg-technology12sep12,1,3706022,full.story?ctrack=1&cset=true

Maha Taki, Weblogs, Bloggers and the Blogosphere in Lebanon, Syria and Jordan: An Exploration, dissertation submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the M.A. Degree in Communications, University of Westminster, London, 2005

Sources

CIA World Factbook www.cia.gov

Country Profile: Syria, April 2005 Library of Congress, Federal Research Division http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/profiles/Syria.pdf