An analysis of commonalities and divergences of Syrian constitutional papers since 2011

Abstract

A few months into the popular movement in Syria, which began in March 2011, groups of Syrians began organising conferences and workshops which gave rise to papers laying out different visions for the country’s constitution. Several civil and political movements emerged, moreover, which posited the fundamental principles which they believed should govern any new constitution of Syria. In a previous paper, entitled Syrian Visions: Mapping Syrian Constitutional Papers Since 2011,1 we presented these different constitutional documents, numbering 44 in total, a summary of which can be found in Table 1. This paper shall attempt to analyse the commonalities, consensuses and divergences among this collection of documents, and identify the main gaps and constraints therein. The make-up of these different documents differs, however, as does the extent to which they examine the legal and technical details related to the writing of a constitution; while some concentrate on the general constitutional principles which should be taken into consideration for a future constitution, others present thorough, comprehensive proposals. As such, the research team has relied on a group of fundamental constitutional determinants which are usually examined in the drafting of a constitution in a postconflict country, taking into consideration the uniqueness of Syria’s context, and the various dynamics brought about by its conflict. This work is part of the Conflict Research Programme managed by the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and funded by the UK Department for International Development