On 18 October, the Prince Claus Fund organised an ‘insider view on Syria’, a debate on Syria’s creative dissent with Jameel, artistic director of the satirical internet puppet show Top Goon, Dado Midani on the brand Syria, Donatella della Ratta on user-generated creativity in the Syrian revolution and Malu Halasa, editor and journalist on the Middle East.

Artistic director of Top Goon Jameel said that the number of creative activists is increasing, despite the repression and violence. Jameel emphasised the need for non-violent protest: “We do our best to make the world aware of the horrible crimes of the regime. We do it by our artistic production – in peaceful ways.”

According to Malu Halasa the success of Top Goon is that it takes the pulse of the revolution and its insistence on non-violence. Jameel: “you can’t separate cultural and creative expression from activism. Non-violent cultural expression is a way of thinking and living. You can’t imagine how much power for example songs have in a demonstration or revolution’. Midani concluded: “a good song is like a nuclear bomb. As soon as you sing the song, you break the barrier of fear.”

Syrian communication expert Dado Midani described Syria as an artificial state, never forming a unity. “The protests broke down all societal barriers and for the first time Syrians felt solidarity.” Dado listed the different ‘brands’ of Syria. Starting with the Axis of Evil, the brand had evolved into A Revolution called Syria to The Humanitarian cause called Syria’. Dado hopes the future brand will be ‘A Free Syria.’

Arab media specialist Donatella Della Rata analysed the raised hand campaign which begun as government campaign but was taken over by the people. “To artists the revolution is a celebration of peaceful resistance.”