Another fundamental difference between Social Nationalism and European Fascist and Nazi movements lies in Saʿadeh’s insistence on political independence and the rejection of alignment with foreign powers. Whereas Fascism and Nazism were inseparable from expansionist state projects and international blocs, Syrian Social Nationalism defined itself from the outset as an autonomous doctrine grounded in national realities and interests.
Saʿadeh repeatedly emphasized that the movement’s policy must remain strictly Syrian and socially rooted, independent of any foreign ideological currents. In a 1939 letter to the administration of Sūriyya al-Jadīda, he stated unequivocally: “Our policy is a Syrian Social National policy, independent, not mixed with any foreign policy.” [1] This declaration underscores that Social Nationalism was conceived not as an extension of European ideologies, but as a distinct intellectual and political project derived from Syrian national conditions. In the same spirit, Saʿadeh’s correspondence with party members, including George Bandaqi, reveals his dissatisfaction with editorial tendencies that praised Hitler and Mussolini or gave them excessive prominence. He warned that such practices—particularly the publication of their images and rhetoric—created the false impression that the Syrian Social Nationalist movement adhered to Nazi or Fascist doctrines, thereby damaging the movement’s morale and undermining the ideological foundations he had carefully established. [2]
This independence was not merely theoretical. During the early years of the Second World War, Saʿadeh criticized tendencies within party-affiliated publications that appeared to lean toward Axis powers. He expressed concern that excessive publication of images and rhetoric praising Hitler and Mussolini could create the false impression that the movement followed Nazi or Fascist doctrines. In his correspondence, he warned that such editorial choices undermined the ideological foundations of the movement and distorted its national character. His position reflected his broader principle that “The interest of Syria is above all interests, and we do not bind ourselves to any foreign axis.” [3]
Saʿadeh also stressed that the movement must avoid intellectual imitation of foreign ideologies. He affirmed the originality of his doctrine, declaring: “We are not imitators. We produce our own thought and derive our policy from our national life.” [4] This insistence on originality underscores the fact that Social Nationalism emerged from a systematic study of society and history rather than from borrowed doctrines.
Moreover, his commitment to independence was demonstrated in practice by the political circumstances the movement faced. Despite accusations that it was aligned with Axis powers, party members were arrested by authorities associated with the Vichy administration, and the movement faced repression. Saʿadeh later pointed out that even when detainees sympathetic to Axis powers were released, members of his party remained imprisoned. These developments contradicted claims of collaboration and illustrated that Social Nationalism maintained an independent position that was viewed with suspicion by competing foreign-aligned authorities. [5]
[1] See a letter to the administration of Sūriyya al-Jadīda, dated 10/11/1939. See Antun Saʿadeh, The Letters, Vol 1, Beirut, 1978, pp. 103-112.
[2] See a letter to George Bandaqi dated 20/10/1939, Ibid., pp. 115-118.
[3] See ibid. Also, a letter dated to George Bandaqi dated 23/07/1939, ibid., pp. 51-55. and his letter to the administration of Sūriyya al-Jadīda, dated 10/11/1939, Ibid.
[4] Ra’y al-Nahda — Following the Example of the Syrian Social Nationalist Party, Al-Nahda, Beirut, Issue 17, 2 November 1937. see Antun Sa´adeh. Complete Works, Vol II, 1935-1937.
[5] See the following articles and speeches by Saadeh: Actions and Facts Speak, Al-Zawbaʿa, Buenos Aires, Issue 65, 1 September 1943; The Leader’s Speech in Buenos Aires, Al-Zawbaʿa, Buenos Aires, Issue 86, 2 August 1946; The Leader’s Speech in Buenos Aires, Al-Zawbaʿa, Buenos Aires, Issue 86, 2 August 1946; The Nonsense of “Al-Huda”, Al-Zawbaʿa, Buenos Aires, Issue 82, 4 November 1944. See Antun Saadeh in His Forced Exile, 1944–1945, Complete Works, Vol. 12, pp. 38-44.
