INVADERS FAILED IN SYRIA. PEOPLE WANT PEACEFUL CHANGE

INVADERS FAILED IN SYRIA. PEOPLE WANT PEACEFUL CHANGE

89% VOTE IN FAVOR OF NEW SYRIAN CONSTITUTION

http://rt.com/news/syria-referendum-constitution-results-307/
Published: 27 February, 2012

Syria’s Interior Minister has announced that 89 per cent of those who took part in the referendum have voted in favor of a new constitution. The new law puts an end to five decades of one-party rule among other reforms put forward by President Assad.

Interior Minister Ibrahim al-Shaar announced the results of the referendum at a press conference on Monday.¬ According to the minister, out of 14,580,000 Syrians eligible to vote some 8,376,000, or about 57 per cent, actually came to the polling stations and voted, RT’s Maria Finoshina reports from Damascus.

Al-Shaar said that the opposition groups tried to hamper the vote in some troubled areas like Homs and Idlib. Armed rebels did not allow some people to get to the polling stations he said.The minister has not provided the figures on turnout in these cities.

“In Homs we are going to fight till the very end, till there are no armed groups,” he said, as cited by Finoshina.

Those who live in such troubled regions had a chance to vote at polling stations which had been set up out of areas where clashes with the armed opposition still continue. Syrians who live in neighboring countries voted at stations set up near the borders.

“We are satisfied with the results,” al-Shaar said. “The Syrian people have made their choice.”

Russia’s Foreign Ministry considers the results of the referendum in Syria to be evidence of the wide public support for the government's course of reforms.
"The referendum has confirmed that the course for changes is supported by the people,” the ministry’s statement said. “The influence of those opposition groups that called for boycotting the referendum is restricted and gives them no exclusive right to speak on behalf of the Syrian people."

The adopted constitution includes 14 new and 47 amended articles. The reforms put forward by President Assad are designed to stop the bloody uprising and pave the way for free elections in the country.

SYRIANS TOOK AN ACTIVE PART IN THE CRUCIAL VOTE AND THE OFFICIALS SAID TURNOUT WAS VERY HIGH.

Despite the fact that the opposition boycotted the referendum, calling it an empty gesture, and called for mass protests, there were no public order violations in Damascus during the vote.

Western politicians considered the referendum to be a farce, with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton calling it "a cynical ploy" and German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle describing it as a "sham vote." Meanwhile, on Monday the European Union has slapped the Syrian government with its toughest set of sanctions yet. http://rt.com/news/eu-recognizes-syrian-national-council-321/. They include an asset freeze on officials, and a ban on importing precious metals and minerals from the country.

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“SYRIA HOLDS REFERENDUM AMID BLOODSHED” .

http://rt.com/news/syria-referendum-vote-constitution-211/.
Published: 26 February, 2012

The draft of the newly proposed constitution has been made public days before the referendum takes place. It includes 14 new and 47 amended articles. One of the main changes is Article 8, which actually ends over 50 years of single-party rule in Syria. It proclaims that political system in Syria is based on pluralism and multiparty system is permitted.

Also very important is Article 88, as it says that president of the country could only be elected for two seven-year terms. This change however will come into power only after the next presidential elections, which is scheduled for 2014.

There is controversy over some provisions of the draft document. For instance, the new constitution would allow only a Muslim to become president, which the non-Muslim minority is naturally not pleased with.

“What about the 10 per cent of others? We are not here temporary; we’ve been living together for ages, we want to be counted. Why [do] they keep it?” one of such disgruntled people told RT.

The people behind the draft say it was necessary, especially with the tension so high in Syria’s society. “Ten per cent unhappy is better than 90 per cent angry,” said Ahmad Kuzbari, member of constitutional committee.

Still the draft constitution meets the majority of democratic demands of the Syrians. But the big question is whether the government wins public support of the reform. Political analyst Nabil Saman told RT that many people do not trust it. “They're simply not used to it,” he explained.

According to the Interior Ministry 14,000 polling stations were set up for the referendum. About 15 million Syrians have the right to vote.

However, as Maria Finoshina reports, the referendum may come too late as violence is continuing in the country between the opposition and the authorities.
The opposition called to boycott the vote and go on strike. RT’s correspondent says warnings were circling in Damascus that there could have been attacks and explosions at the polling stations during the vote.

Meanwhile, a group of countries, led by the US, calling themselves the Friends of Syria have called for tougher sanctions on Damascus. They include an asset freeze on officials, and a ban on importing precious metals and minerals from the country. http://rt.com/news/eu-recognizes-syrian-national-council-321/

Political activist Shabbir Razvi believes that the Friends of Syria should be really dubbed “the Foes of Syria," because they are really not working "for the interest of Syrian people.”.

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