Participated in the exhibition «Producers 2020» at Tkiyeh Sulaymaniyah Market
Industrialists from Aleppo carry their products to Damascus, hoping to sell them
Tobjian hopes to break the siege by producing local materials and cosmetics.
A.F.B.
Sonali Ghazal makes marshmallow, garnished with flowers and pistachios.
A.F.B.
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Under archaeological arches in the Souk Al-Tekia Sulaymaniyah, Joseph Topjian hopes to find in Damascus an alternative market to sell his production of Aleppo soap, after the years of war that torn his country apart prevented him from exporting it.
Tobjian, 61, is one of 137 Aleppo people who participated in the "Producers 2020" exhibition, which was held with the support of the government in the Suleimaniyah Tekkiye market in the center of the capital, carrying products they made in small, temporary workshops, after the years of war toppled their factories waiting to be rebuilt or restored.
"I spent my whole life between laurel oil and soap, and this smell does not leave my lungs," said Tobjian.
He added, "We are in Damascus today to search for an alternative market to the foreign market, after export operations were not possible."
In one of its pavilions dedicated to receiving cultural and touristic exhibitions and events, the Sulaymaniyah Tekkiye hosts the exhibition for about a week. In 2012, the Tobjian family immigrated to Canada, after their factory in Aleppo was destroyed, but its members did not adapt to their new world, so they returned to their city. In 2018, they will not resume making soap in a small workshop.
And after the family's factory was filled with more than 40 workers, today it has only two workers.
"We hope to break the siege by producing local materials and cosmetics that Damascus merchants used to import from abroad," said Tobjian, who wore a T-shirt with a picture of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who visited the exhibition with his wife, on Wednesday, two days after its opening.
He added, "We must all make our efforts to revive our workshops and factories," explaining, "We inherited the soap industry from our fathers and grandfathers, and we do not want it to stop."
On a colorful table, teacher Sonali Ghazal, 42, displays marshmallow desserts decorated with flowers and pistachios, which she prepares in a small workshop near her home.
In the past, Ghazal used to present this non-Arabic sweets to her students, but today it is completely missing from the market due to the difficulty of importing it.
If found, it is "extremely expensive".
"We were able to make marshmallows inside Syria, and we added an Aleppo touch to it," she says.
"I will give the dessert again to my students, but this time with the flavor of pistachios," she added.
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