Constitution of Syria
The current Constitution of the Syrian Arab Republic was adopted on 26 February 2012, replacing one that had been in force since 13 March 1973. The current constitution designates the state's government as a "democratic" and "republican" system. It determines Syria's identity as Arab and describes the country as a part of the wider "Arab homeland" and its people as an integral part of the Arab nation. The constitution supports the Pan-Arab programme for co-operation with other Arab nations to eventually achieve Arab Union.[1]
Criticism[edit]
The 2012 Constitution remains un-recognized by almost all bodies of the Syrian opposition, which boycotted the referendum. The constitution was drafted by Ba'athist loyalists and was part of government attempts to monopolise its power as well as suppressing the 2011-12 Syrian protests.[5] International experts have assessed that the constitution has no "checks and balances", making it unfeasible for a political transition. Syrian opposition activists have demanded the repeal of at least 21 clauses in the Constitution which bestows unrestrained powers on the President, banishment of emergency courts and the withdrawal of more than 20 emergency edicts as the precondition to start a meaningful transition process.[11] Popular Front for Change and Liberation, the sole opposition front that had initially participated in the Syrian People's Assembly, withdrew its recognition in 2016 after Bashar al-Assad's scuttling of the Geneva negotiations.[13]