Hama seminar discusses 'The Snail' novel and testimonies of survivors from Tadmor prison

Testimonies of former detainees of Tadmor prison recalled chapters of abuses witnessed in prisons during the era of the ousted regime, during a dialogue session held at the Hama Directorate of Culture on Friday. The discussion session, organized by the Directorate in cooperation with the Tadmor Prisoners Association, centered on the novel 'The Snail' by the late writer Mustafa Khalifa, forming a living documentary platform led by former detainees: Dr. Fidaa al-Najjar, Maher al-Shamali, Abd al-Salam Arafah, and Ridwan Dahimash, in a cognitive movement seeking to consolidate national memory and protect evidence of contemporary history from oblivion.

Documenting crimes of the ousted regime era

Hama Director of Culture, Muhammad al-Umar, stated in a statement to SANA that hosting survivors to discuss the dimensions of the novel comes within the plans of the Ministry of Culture to frame collective memory and dismantle the legacy of the ousted tyranny. Meanwhile, former detainee in Tadmor and Saydnaya prisons for 23 years, Dr. Fidaa al-Najjar, pointed out that 'The Snail' is among the first literary achievements that exposed the abuses of the ousted regime, emphasizing that highlighting those practices is a fundamental requirement and a historical responsibility to ensure that current and future generations do not forget the crimes committed against the sons of Syrian society over decades.

The blessing of liberation and public disclosure

Former detainee and member of the Survivors Association, Abdo Tawashi, explained that he spent about 12 years behind the walls of Tadmor prison and was unable to disclose his suffering and pain until after liberation from the ousted regime, describing the ability to express publicly as a great blessing of immeasurable value. The dialogue workshop opened the floor to the audience to ask questions and approach the narrative texts with lived reality, transforming individual testimonies from mere documentation of tragedy into a permanent legal and cognitive record that preserves human memory from erasure.

Novel details

The novel 'The Snail: Diaries of a Spy' by Syrian writer Mustafa Khalifa was published in 2008 and translated into ten global languages. It takes the form of an autobiography of a survivor of arrest, conveying methods of torture and humiliation and attempts to extract human dignity within prisons.

Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)