Syrian Democracy

The Arab Spring has been a life changing phenomena, not only for the people who are attempting to overthrow their governments but for political scientists everywhere. The events originating in the North African country of Tunisia have led to the snowballing of several other Middle Eastern, predominantly Muslim, nation states. The figurative breaking point might have finally been reached as the oppressed peoples of the Middle East have risen up to overthrow long-standing dictatorial governments in hopes of revolutionary change; change that is subject to the will of the people.

As I have stated, the events in Tunisia have spread to many other nearby countries such as Libya and Egypt which have received arguably the most media coverage. Although the events in these latter two countries are far from resolved, another country is stealing the spotlight: Syria.

My intentions for this paper are to outline the prospects of democracy in Syria keeping in mind the current events that are taking place in the country. I will primarily be using the three books we have discussed in class as well as outside sources reinforcing more specific details of this case study. I conclude this piece by arguing that if Syria implements an efficient bottom-up institutional makeover, the prospects for prolonged consolidated democracy are very high.

Brief Background on Free Syria Movement

The events in Syria began in March of 2011. Students from a small town began protesting against the government by detailing the sides of buildings with anti-government graffiti. The government’s response was a brutal crackdown ordered by the President Bashar al-Assad. This military crackdown has led to a vicious cycle of continued revolt and government intervention. Thi...

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...es the people a sense of trust and the more people are informed, the less likely officials will be tempted by corruption.

An important aspect of government transparency is a free and independent media. The media is an important institution that serves not only as a watchdog against government tyranny but they are the vehicle from which people derive their knowledge about current government affairs. Currently the Syrian constitution prescribes a free press however most describe the Syrian media as state-controlled. Censorship is a huge issue in Syria as speaking out against the government is strictly forbidden and as one can see, censorship was the catalyst for the Syrian revolution. The Syrian government needs to allow independent media to exist and give them access to information that is necessary for the public to make informed political decisions.