Syrian Reform: What Lies Beneath

In: Middle East quarterly, Band 12, Heft 1, S. 61-70

Abstract

The prospects for democratic reform in present-day Syria are contemplated. An historical overview of the establishment & perpetuation of dictatorship in Syria is presented, illuminating the role that emergency laws have played in maintaining the autocratic government. Although secular & Islamic opposition groups have emerged in contemporary Syria, it is noted that the state has effectively silenced such resistance. The emergence of sundry political discussion forums within Syria following the succession of Bashar al-Assad to the Syrian presidency & the Assad administration's hard-line stance to such opposition are subsequently discussed. Whereas internal dissent has largely failed to initiate democratic reform, it is demonstrated that US support for democracy throughout the Middle East is necessary to commence political reform. Nonetheless, several obstacles that will continue to hinder democratization processes in Syria are acknowledged, eg, the tendency for Syrian political reforms to adopt provincial, not regional or international, political perspectives. The extent to which US foreign policy toward Syria has changed under the George W. Bush administration is pondered, & recommendations for enhancing democracy's prospects in the Middle East are offered. J. W. Parker