The Local Council of Douma was formed to coordinate civic and revolutionary activities in the city. However, once the regime abdicated its responsibilities towards the city and its community, the Local Council stepped up and began to provide these services.

The Council started working when activists began searching for a way to prevent the chaos that was imminent once the state started pulling out its services from city. The city’s activists, which revolted against the regime’s injustice, not only organized demonstrations but established autonomous institutions. The activists told SyriaUntold that they had to work in order to “secure the continuation of services and basic needs of the citizens in order to fill any existing gaps.”

After various meetings and deliberations, activists in the city alongside various independent figures, agreed to form a local council in September 2012. The Council became immediately affiliated with the Political Committee of Eastern Ghouta. In October 2012, Douma was liberated from the regime and its militias. The liberation of Douma led to a significant chance in the work of the Council. Its first action of duty was to host elections. A consensus was reached, deciding that political differences and ideologies must be set aside for the greater good. The Council was composed of 25 elected technocrats, 7 of whom were engineers, 3 merchants and economists, 6 ‘dignitaries’ who worked with the different neighborhood committees, 2 agricultural engineers, 1 teacher, 1 public health specialist, 1 technical assistant, 1 human rights specialist, 1 lawyer, and 1 notary.

In response to the looting of institutions under the regime’s reign, the city’s activists realized that they cannot advance the city without taking care of all the citizens. As such, they organized the Council in an efficient way. The Council is composed of 19 offices, 8 of which are administrative and 11 of which provide services, a Land Registry Office, and the Civil Registry which registers births, marriages, divorces, and deaths.

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The services provided by the Council covered all aspects of daily life; for example, the Office of Agriculture planted basic foodstuffs, while the Sports Bureau created an underground gymnasium to protect children from bombing and enable them to have fun.

The offices of the Council employ 288 citizens. 35 of the employees hold university degrees and 72 of the whom are intermediate and technical institute graduates.151 have secondary school certificates, and 30 employees do not have any educational certifcates.