Russian newspaper published the main provisions of the newly drafted Syrian constitution
The Russian daily newspaper, RBC, published the main provisions of the draft constitution of Syria, which was written by Russia and presented in the negotiations in Astana on the 23rd-24th of January. A source close to Syrian opposition provided the text of amendments consisting of 27 paragraphs to RBC.
This document implies a change of the name of the Syrian State. If the Russian version is approved, the country will be officially named the Syrian Republic instead of the Syrian Arab Republic.
There is a proposal to repeal the provision that Islamic law should be the main source of legislation. If the draft is adopted, a non-Muslim could become the Head of State. The President will be elected for a seven-year term of office without the right to re-election.
The Syrian Parliament will be called the People’s Assembly. There is a proposal to lift the existing quota system, whereby the half of seats were allocated to workers and peasants and the other half to representatives of other social categories. The Parliament will obtain the right to appoint judges of the Supreme Constitutional Court. In addition, MPs will appoint and remove from office the Head of the National Bank.
There are also plans to create a new entity called the Assembly of Regions. The President will need its approval, for example, to declare a state of emergency or to mobilize the armed forces. Russia proposes to recognize the autonomy of the Kurdish regions and equality of Kurdish and Arabic language in the territory of Kurdish self-government areas.
The document also proposes to provide any other region of the country with the right to establish language used by the majority of population of the region as an additional state language in accordance with the law. The current Constitution of Syria was adopted in a referendum that took place in 2012 after the onset of military conflict.
Negotiations over the situation in Syria were held on the 23rd-24th of January. Following the results of the meeting, Iran, Russia and Turkey agreed to create a trilateral mechanism for monitoring ceasefire in the country. The next round of negotiations is set to take place in Astana again but the United States insists on the continuation of talks in Geneva instead. The representatives of opposition and Syrian Government participated in negotiations in Astana.
The occasion marked the first time that the delegation of the Syrian opposition was formed exclusively from representatives of armed groups. However, direct negotiations between the warring parties have not yet taken place. Afterwards, the representatives of opposition stated that they weren’t satisfied with final statements on the results of the meeting.