The Swearing in Speech

Two days ago, and after the comedy of the so called presidential election, Syria’s dictator Bashar Assad was sworn in for a third term of 7 years. It took place in his palace instead of the parliament, as the constitution dictates, and he swore on the oldest Quran in the country, even he burned the whole country with its ancient sites.

The swearing in Speech

By Tarif Youssef Agha

After he demolished the Homeland

The man stood in his palace and was sworn in

Some of his audiences were those with shameless faces

The others were gathered like how a shepherd gathers his sheep

He didn’t leave any ancient site in the country without burning it

Then, he was sworn in on the oldest Quran in the country

Fear forced him to perform it among the walls of his palace

Fear forbad him from doing it in the parliament

He swore to carry on with his extermination

He made up his mind to exterminate those who were left alive

He swore and swore while the whole world is watching him

A world that pretends to suffer deafness

He couldn’t last in the presidency without

Kissing the feet of Israel and Iran

He made the Homeland accessible to all foreigners and enemies

Every one of them swallowed a slice of it

Oh our Homeland, a civilization giant, I feel sorry for you

When ‘Time’ took a nap, a dwarf was assigned to rule you

I feel sorry for you as you were turned into an idolatry temple

As soon as one idol leaves, it is replaced with another idol

Then, the modern time holocaust was built on your land

Every one determined to throw you in the flames

The victims became faceless and nameless

They were reduced in the news into just a number

But, oh Nero of our time, swear as much as you want

The people of Syria, before you, had sworn as well

They, three years ago, swore that

They would not settle their differences with you but by guns

***

A Poem translation

(Can be shared without permission)

Tarif Youssef-Agha

An Expatriate Arab Syrian Writer & Poet

Member of the ‘Syrian Revolutionary Writers Assembly’

Friday July 11, 2014, Houston, Texas

http://sites.google.com/site/tarifspoetry