Background
The new constitution would set a limit of two seven-year terms for future presidents and also removed Article 8 of the constitution of Syria, which stated that "the Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party leads the state and society."Issues
Political parties
The new constitution removes the de jure Ba'ath Party monopoly over the political life of Syria. The text also prohibits the formation of political parties on an ethnic, religious, regional or tribal basis. However, any planned political party must get the government's permission and approval before it is to be formed.Presidency
According to the new constitution, presidential elections are held every seven years. They are intended to be contested by several candidates, unlike the old form of election in which a single candidate was approved or rejected. The conditions required to be candidate at the presidential election are the following: # A candidate must have the support of 35 members of the parliament # A candidate must be 40 years old or more # A candidate must have lived in Syria for 10 years before the election # A candidate must be Syrian by birth, of parents who are Syrians by birth # A candidate must not be married to a non-Syrian spouseEconomy
Syria will no longer be a planned socialist economy but will focus on the principle of developing public and private economy in order to boost the national income and to develop the production to create jobs and raise the standard of living. The constitution states that development is the goal of all economics of policy and that consumers and producers are protected. Private property is protected and can only be confiscated for necessities of war and disasters and only for a fair compensation.Constitution of the Syrian Arab Republic Approved in Popular Referendum on February 27, 2012Religion and culture
The new constitution says that the state respects and protects all religions, but reaffirms thatRights and freedom
The new constitution forbids any discrimination on the grounds of sex, origin, religion or language. National unity, integrity and military service are considered a "sacred duty" while freedom is considered a sacred right.Campaign
In the weeks leading up to the referendum, public television hosted discussions about the new constitution and informed citizens how to vote. The main foreign-based opposition group, the SNC, opposed the proposed constitution and called for a boycott. The Syrian opposition in exile described the new constitution as fraudulent and the referendum as a farce. It pointed out that the Syrian government had never respected the old constitution, which enshrines freedom of speech and peaceful demonstrations and bans torture.Conduct
Due to the ongoing fighting in Syria, questions were raised over the organization of the vote in the cities of Homs, Hama, Daraa and in the northern province of Idlib, which are areas held by the rebellion. Voters present in these areas were not able to take part in the referendum unless they traveled to government-held areas. 14.6 million Syrians were eligible to vote, in 14,185 polling stations which were open from 7:00-19:00. Multiple polling stations were set up in each district and neighborhood of central Damascus. At midday, the interior ministry announced that the referendum was going smoothly in most of the provinces. The interior minister, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Ibrahim al-Shaar, announced that the turnout was "high except in some areas despite threats and intimidation from armed groups." He called the participation in central Damascus "remarkable." Canadian-based ''Results
With a voter turnout of 57.4% and 89.4% voting in favour, the new constitution was adopted. President Al-Assad signed the new constitution into force on 27 February 2012.International reactions
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{{Syrian Civil War