Syria's new constitution no immediate cure
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E-mail Xinhua, February 29, 2012
Although a new Syrian constitution has been approved by an overwhelming majority, violence shows no sign of abating, indicating that restoring stability is no picnic for the troubled Middle East country.
Syrian Interior Minister Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar said Monday that some 8.38 million people, or 57.4 percent of all eligible voters, took part in the two-day referendum.
About 89 percent backed the draft constitution, while 9 percent voted against it, he said.
The birth of the new constitution had no direct impact on the northern province of Idlib and the central city of Homs, where battles between government forces and opposition fighters raged on.
Analysts said the new constitution will serve as a corner-stone for future reforms, but cannot immediately pull Syria out of its current dilemma.
Great significance
The newly approved constitution includes a bundle of reform promises that may substantively change the political structure of the Arab republic.
Article 8 of the new constitution states that power in Syria is practiced democratically through voting, which ends the overarching leadership of the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party that has lasted for over half a century.
The constitution also says the president is directly elected by the people for a maximum of two seven-year terms.
According to this article, President Bashar al-Assad might be re-elected to another sever-year term when his present term ends in 2014.
Revising the constitution is only the latest legislative effort by the Syrian government in answer to domestic demands for political reforms.
Since the outbreak of large-scale demonstrations last March, authorities have issued a series of new laws that brought changes in policies regarding political parties, election, regional administration and the media.
In the roadmap envisaged by the government, Syria is to hold parliamentary elections in June that include opposition parties, as it completes the shift from the one-party rule to a multi-party system.
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