Expert: Syria's 'indirect elections' keep President al-Sharaa in control

DW (English)

Bente Scheller, head of the Middle East and North Africa Division at the Heinrich Böll Foundation, told DW that Syria's first parliamentary vote since the ouster of the Assad regime is an "indirect election" that affords President Ahmad al-Sharaa much influence over the composition of any future government.

Transcript

00:00Benta Schella is head of the Middle East and North Africa division at the Heinrich Boll

00:05Foundation, a think tank affiliated with the German Greens.

00:09She last traveled to Syria in July and joins us now from Berlin.

00:13Benta, these are the first parliamentary elections since Assad's fall.

00:18After decades of Assad rule, how fair and free do you imagine these elections will be?

00:25Well, first of all, I have to say as a German, I am impressed.

00:28It's only been nine months since the toppling of Assad's regime.

00:33That is a short period in comparison.

00:35Remember, Germany took four or nearly five years to hold the first elections after World

00:41War Two.

00:42So I think it is an oppressive step.

00:44And the problem, however, is these elections will not be general, not be direct.

00:50And therefore, I think there are certain doubts about them.

00:53It's indirect elections.

00:55And of course, there is a large shadow about how the committees were composed.

01:00You say they're indirect elections.

01:03Briefly walk us through how these elections will work in terms of the general electoral

01:08system, et cetera.

01:09Well, there are two kinds of seats in the parliament.

01:14One third of the seats, it's direct appointments by Ahmed Ashara.

01:19The other two thirds come through indirect elections.

01:23Ahmed Ashara has also appointed a general committee for the elections.

01:27And this general committee has appointed subcommittees in each district.

01:32And these then elect electoral colleges, as it's called, from whose ranks the candidates

01:39in the end come.

01:41So it's indirect elections with a heavy hand of the president in the very composition of

01:46the bodies electing.

01:47And there is no quota, neither for minorities nor for women, for the final elections.

01:53You talk about minorities and women.

01:55How inclusive is the process, especially for women, minorities, and displaced Syrians?

02:02Well, there are some concerns regarding this because, like I said, in the last step, there

02:10is no quota for anybody.

02:12And therefore, I think these elections are a test how inclusive the new government wants

02:16to be.

02:17With this one third of the seats that Shara himself could handpick, of course, he could

02:22still adapt and include more women, more minority members, if he thinks through the general

02:28elections, these were not elected.

02:30So we will really need to see how inclusive the composition of the parliament is.

02:35More important, however, will be to see whether other than Assad, the parliament will be included

02:40in shaping the policy of the coming month.

02:43It is an election for a parliament for the next 13 months.

02:48And within this period of time, a new electoral system should be developed and the next elections

02:55should be direct.

02:56They should be fair in general.

02:58I'm curious, do you see signs of genuine institutional reform or is Syria heading toward a new form

03:06of authoritarianism?

03:07What we've seen so far could go to either direction.

03:13On the one hand, I think we see an authentic effort of Shara to be more transparent, to really

03:20talk to people, to engage with people.

03:23This is a significant difference.

03:25However, institutional reforms have been lagging behind.

03:28I think many citizens are not happy with a slow pace that developments and improvements are going.

03:34And I think also the issue about inclusivity.

03:38We've seen so many incidents in the past month regarding the Druze, the Alawites and the Kurds

03:44that give reason to be concerned and see how it develops.

03:47Of course, I think all these efforts need a lot of support.

03:51I think Europe should really be engaged in these and not leave the field entirely to the Gulf

03:56States, who are much closer following up with Shara as well as Turkey.

04:01Syria, of course, has long been a pariah nation.

04:04What impact might these elections have on the country's reintegration into the international

04:10community and the possible lifting of sanctions?

04:15I think that this is really very relevant for this because there should be a first step.

04:20There should be relevant and visible signs that Shara means it when he says that he wants

04:26to rule a state that has reliable institutions.

04:30I think it is a positive step and it will earn him recognition.

04:34Therefore, I think that this is not really a step in the wrong direction.

04:39However, to be filled with content, to really live up to the standards that he sets will be the

04:44challenge because just to tick a box that elections were held will not matter as much as how political

04:50reforms afterwards continue.

04:52So I think that it's really important for him to get in touch with the Druze and the Kurds,

04:59to find an arrangement with them that makes them feel represented and recognized.

05:04And this might be the main door opener also with the international community.

05:08Bente Shella, our deep thanks to you.

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