Photo/Illutration Yuki Sakashita, left, Iskandar Salama, center, and Maher Al Ayoubi hold an online meeting with Syrian engineers in Tokyo’s Minato Ward on Jan. 10. (Kazuki Uechi)

More than a month has already passed since the collapse of the Assad regime, which ruled Syria with an iron grip for five decades.

Now, a small group of Syrian refugees in Japan is hoping to use the skills and knowledge they’ve gained here to help rebuild their homeland.

“My dream has been for Syria to become a better place,” said 33-year-old Maher Al Ayoubi, who works at an IT company in Tokyo.

He spoke with excitement about the improving situation in his homeland.

The civil war broke out in 2011 when he was studying IT and programming at the University of Damascus.

Fearing for their safety, Al Ayoubi and his family fled to Turkey. In 2014, he came to Japan through a connection with a friend living in Japan.

Al Ayoubi was forced to drop out of university. He wanted to work in IT but couldn’t find a job opening.

While working as an English teacher, he met Yuki Sakashita, 37, at a nonprofit organization that supports refugees.

VENTURING INTO THE UNKNOWN

Sakashita’s interest in Syria was sparked in 2015 when he saw the heartbreaking image of a Syrian child’s body washed ashore after a boat carrying Syrian refugees sank off the coast of Turkey.

As he interacted with Al Ayoubi and others, Sakashita realized that many Syrians have strong IT skills.

“I decided to treat them not as refugees needing support, but as partners to work with in business,” Sakashita said.

Iskandar Salama, a 32-year-old web engineer who came to Japan through a JICA program, also became involved. JICA stands for Japan International Cooperation Agency. 

In 2019, Sakashita, AI Ayoubi and Salama founded systems development company BonZuttner.

The company takes on projects from Japanese firms. It relies on four displaced Syrian engineers living in Syria or neighboring countries working remotely to develop websites and apps.

“I thought it was crazy to dive into unknown territory with unfamiliar people, but I strongly felt there must be something I could do,” said Sakashita, who had no background in IT and has never been to Syria.

Differences in culture and customs sometimes caused misunderstandings, but through trial and error, the group worked things out by giving specific instructions and documenting everything.

KNOWLEDGE GAINED IN JAPAN

The Assad regime collapsed in December. While the chaos that ensued temporarily displaced one engineer from Damascus, the company’s operations were largely unaffected.

When sanctions on Syria are eased or lifted, remote communication and money transfers will become smoother, making their work easier.

Beyond outsourcing from Japan, the team aims to leverage technologies such as electronic payments, robotics and artificial intelligence to contribute to Syria’s reconstruction.

Al Ayoubi and Salama had long hoped to use the knowledge and experience they gained in Japan to contribute to Syria’s future.

Al Ayoubi said his parents are planning to return to Syria from Turkey soon.

“From now on, I want to visit my country every year,” he said.

Salama said, “I don’t know what the new future will look like, but compared to the past, I’m optimistic.”

“I’ve always wanted to be a bridge between Japan and Syria, and now is the time to fully commit,” he added. “The road ahead is crucial.”

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