Syrian Government - Research Paper Example

It states that Syria is an integral part of the Arab homeland and that all the people of the country have all the legislative power. The president and the members of parliament are elected by the people through their votes. However it appears that the enforcement of these principles is not ensured by the government since many years. Branches of the Government The structure of the Syrian government consists of the executive, the legislative, and the judicial branches. The Executive Branch The president is the head of the state and the chief officer of the government.

He is elected by the people through referendum for a term of seven years. The constitution required that the president be of no less than 34 years of age and a Muslim. The constitution gives right to the president to appoint two vice-presidents, to name the prime minister and to dismiss him, other deputy minister, the members of the Cabinet and the military officers. Dr. Bashar al-Assad is currently serving as the president (Britannica). The Legislative Branch The legislative branch is called Majlis-al-Shaab or the People’s Assembly.

It is a 250-member unicameral body. The members are elected by the people through elections for a term of four years. People’s Assembly is represented by the members of different political parties. However, the majority of the seats are reserved or the National Progressive Front (NPF) which consist of the members of the Baath Party (Cafe Syria). The Council nominates a candidate for the presidential elections, discussion of economic matters and approval of the budget and the government policies.

It also enacts the laws; however, initiation of law is not covered under its functions. The Judicial Branch The judicial system of Syria consists of courts at three levels: Courts of first instance (which comprises of magistrate and peace courts), courts of appeal (there is one court of appeal per province like a High Court), and the Constitutional courts which is the highest tribunal authority. The judicial system itself has the elements of Islamic, ottoman and the French Laws. The Supreme Constitutional Court is the head of the judicial system.

It’s members consist of a chief justice and a bench of four different judges who all are appointed by the president for a period of four years (Mongabay). Problems with the Syrian Political System Although the constitution of Syria says that its people have every right to elect and appoint the president in general elections, the president is actually imposed through the unopposed popular referenda. The passing of presidential title by virtue of hereditary entitlement is quite apparent although the constitution says the government is of the republic form.

And many attempts are made by the government to remove the opposing forces and continue to pass the title in this way. For example, in order to make Bashar (Hafiz al-Assad’s son), eligible for nomination in the presidential election, the minimum age restriction was changed from 40 to 34 in 2000. Moreover the people cannot change the government. Most of the power resides with the president and he has the power to dissolve the legislature as well. The People’s Assembly may criticize the government’s policy or express its views on the economic matters, but it cannot initiate the law.

The degree of public accountability is minimum and the government does not tolerate any political opposition (Mongabay). Syrian and U.S Political Systems Compared In this section