Ba'ath Party (Syria)
| حزب البعث العربي الاشتراكي Arab Baath Socialist Party |
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| Party leader | Bashar al-Assad |
| Deputy Chairman | Abdullah al-Ahmar |
| founding | 1947 1966 as a Syrian party |
| Headquarters | Damascus |
| Alignment | Baathism |
| Colours) | black, red, white and green ( pan-arabic colors ) |
| Parliament seats | 172 out of 250 in the People's Council |
| International connections | Ba'ath Party |
| Website | www.baath-party.org |
The Ba'ath Party in Syria (official name Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party, French Parti Baas arabe socialiste ) is the Syrian branch of the all-Arab Ba'ath Party .
The Ba'ath Party also has branches in other Arab countries, but currently only governs in Syria. Its full Arabic name is hizb al-baʿth al-ʿarabī al-ischtirākī /حزب البعث العربي الإشتراكي / ḥizb al-baʿṯ al-ʿarabī al-ištirākī / 'Arab Socialist Party of Resurrection' ( Arabic al-baʿth means "resurrection, renewal"). Their ideology is baathism .
The party is formally based on the doctrine of a single undivided Arab nation and an all-Arab fatherland , but in reality its policy is more oriented towards a regionalist Greater Syria . The basic principles are unity , freedom and socialism . As with the original Ba'ath Party ideology, it is essentially secular . In Syria, it forms the dominant party in the national party alliance Progressive National Front .
Religious proportional representation
The religious composition of the Regional Command Council of the Syrian Ba'ath Party in the 1970s and 1980s (see also List of Political Parties in Syria ):
| Denomination | 1970s share |
1980s share |
|---|---|---|
| Sunni Muslims | 52% | 70% |
| Alawites | 23% | 21% |
| Druze | 9% | 4% |
| Christians (div.) | 6% | 5% |
| Ismailis | 9% | 1 % |
| total | 100% | 100% |
Party founded 1947–1954
At the beginning of the development are two party congresses in 1947 and 1954, at which the ideological orientation of the party was defined and one merged with other movements:
- First National Congress (January 1947, Damascus)
This is the first official meeting of all Ba'ath activists on a pan-Arab level. MPs were gathered from Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Jordan and Iraq. It came to the unification of different Baath movements within Syria, z. B. under Zaki al-Arsuzi and Wahib al-Ghanam with the group under Michel Aflaq and Salah ad-Din al-Bitar . At the congress resolutions, internal regulations and a party constitution were passed. In terms of foreign policy, one year after the withdrawal of the French mandate, the Ba'ath Party positioned itself as an anti-imperialist force: in principle, friendship with all countries in the world is strived for. Relations with Great Britain, France and Spain, because they occupied Arab states, continued to exist with Turkey and Iran because they had usurped Arab territory, and finally with the USA because they were too involved in the internal affairs of the Middle East were an exception interfered. As for the internal regulation of the party, an Executive Committee under Michel Aflaq was set up to appoint branch secretaries. The aim of the party was to formulate a supranational and supra-regional common policy on a pan-Arab level that pursued the long-term goal of creating Arab unity. A distinction was made between “national”, i.e. H. Pan-Arabic, and "regional", d. H. national, level differentiated.
- Second National Congress (June 1954, Homs)
Delegates from Syria, Lebanon, Iraq and Jordan were again present at this congress. This resulted in a merger with the “Arab Socialist Party” under the leadership of Akram al-Haurani , with which the party gained new recruits from the field of farmers and small craftsmen. Furthermore, an administrative reform was carried out: From now on, the national directorate, which was operating at the pan-Arab level, was opposed to a regional directorate at the national level, which was to be elected by its own regional congresses. Thematically was u. a. discussed the situation of the party in the individual Arab states, where party members sometimes had major problems and suffered from repression.
history
Since its inception, the Syrian Ba'ath Party has changed significantly in shape, form and position within society. Based on the party congresses of this party, the development from a more intellectual nationalist movement to an apparatus of power and rule can be traced. In addition, it can be said that the Ba'ath Party's pan-Arab goal with the formation of independent national party headquarters has moved more and more into the background, even if the pan-Arab ideology is still officially adhered to today.
Congresses in the context of the union with Egypt 1958–1961
In 1958, Syria and Egypt merged to form the United Arab Republic . This was a first step on the way to realizing the pan-Arab ideal without the Ba'ath Party having an institutional part in the merger. However, due to the unequal distribution of power between Egypt and Syria, the merger also brought with it enormous problems, so that the republic was dissolved as early as 1961.
- Third National Congress (August / September 1959, Beirut)
Eighteen months before this congress took place, in view of the positive developments on the way to the realization of the pan-Arab ideal, the National Directorate of the Ba'ath Party decided to dissolve the party in Syria (but not entirely). This was probably intended to send a sign of courtesy to Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser , who at that time enjoyed great popularity throughout the Arab world and was recognized as the undisputed leader of the pan-Arab movement. At the party congress, Michel Aflaq seems to have refused to criticize Nasser publicly, despite some tensions with the Nasserists. The Congress then decided to dissolve the Ba'ath Party in Syria, only on a “national”, i.e. H. to act on a pan-Arab level and thereby take on a control function with regard to the pan-Arab development. For this reason, the Congress “decided” to cooperate with the leadership of the United Arab Republic, which only half-heartedly accepted this offer. Militant Ba'ath supporters were shocked that the National Directorate had deigned to dissolve a regional unit and hid in sub-cells outside the official hierarchy. In the meantime, Nasser took action against potential political competitors in Syria. a. against the Ba'ath Party supporters. At the same time he promoted the split in the party by the group around Abdallah ar-Rimawi, which was excluded in 1959 . Purges are carried out, including in the military. The Homs Military Academy, which is important for the Syrian military , was relocated to Egypt. A conspiracy group known as the "Secret Military Committee" formed among their officers, which brought the Ba'ath Party to power in Syria in the 1963 coup. In view of Nasser's repressive measures, many Baath supporters broke with the decision of the National Congress and openly criticized Nasser and his policy towards Syria. The Ba'ath Party was clearly in a phase of weakness during this period: it was disbanded in Syria, its members harassed, in Iraq it had to suffer repression, and the climate in Jordan was just as tense.
- Fourth National Congress (August 1960, Beirut)
This National Congress was held in the final months of the United Arab Republic's existence. No official document was adopted, only a confidential document circulated. Congress revolted against the decision to dissolve the Syrian Ba'ath Party and decided to rebuild the Ba'ath in Syria despite all repression measures. The old Ba'ath squad were accused of having accelerated the collapse of the party. The main criticism, however, was directed against Nasser, who was blamed for a failure of the Union because of his repressive measures. At the same time as the National Congress in Beirut, the Rimawi Group in Damascus, with Nasser's approval, declared itself the National Revolutionary Command of the Baath Party in place of the Aflaq National Command, which had fled to Lebanon . Nevertheless, there was great disappointment when the 1961 coup in Syria and the putschists proclaimed the detachment of Syria from its alliance with Egypt.
- Fifth National Congress (May 1962, Homs)
The aim of this national congress was to rebuild the Syrian party organization after the separatist coup of 1961, the regional organization of which was provisionally restored. Despite all the criticism of Nasser's regime, Congress condemned the dissolution of the union with Egypt, which it described as a measure against Arab unity. Due to the collaboration of Akram al-Haurani with the separatists and his refusal to advocate a union with Egypt, it was decided that the Arab Socialist Party and the Ba'ath Party should go their separate ways from now on. The Ba'ath was still in a bad situation, as many of its followers were still in prison in various Arab states. Overall, however, it regained its strength: a coup by republicans (allied with Baathists and Nasserists) in North Yemen and the successful coup by Baathists in Iraq on February 8, 1963, encouraged the militant supporters of the Baath to take action again. There was tension between the older Baathists, who were more willing to compromise, and a more radical group, which also included the members of the secret military committee, and who can be described as neo-Catholicists.
Radicalization, development into a directing power apparatus in 1963
Due to the fact that the old party leadership had discredited itself for agreeing to the dissolution of the Syrian Ba'ath Party, an internal opposition formed within the Ba'ath Party. This was decisively influenced, if not dominated, by the secret military committee founded by Syrian officers in Cairo in 1959/60. With the rise of these neo-Ba'athists, it can be seen that in Syria the regional directorate operating on the national level gained increasing importance, while the national directorate operating on the pan-Arab level increasingly lost influence and was ultimately even ousted from key positions.
- First Regional Congress (September 1963, Damascus)
The first Syrian regional congress was convened after the Baath coup seized power on March 8, 1963 . He was thus under the influence of the secret military committee whose members had organized and carried out the coup. In the elections for the regional directorate, the neo-Catholic line prevailed, which represented more progressive socialist ideas with regard to the formation of society. The old Ba'ath leaders were ultimately disempowered and new, more radical leaders came to power. The military committee, however, remained in the background and hid behind a civilian government. This did not make it quite clear to what extent the military and the interests it represented ultimately dominated the Syrian regional branch of the party and pushed civilian influencers into the background.
- Sixth National Congress (October 1963, Damascus)
The atmosphere at the national congress that followed shortly afterwards was accordingly more radical: the congress, which again consisted of delegates from all over the Arab world, praised the achievements of the founding fathers, but criticized the lack of a precise party ideology. This criticism should be understood against the background of the fact that the Ba'ath Party came to power for the first time after three revolutions in Yemen, Iraq and now Syria, i.e. had to take on specific government responsibility. It had been a long way from the zealous nationalist debating club to here. It should also be taken into account that the Ba'ath had not yet developed a very clear profile with regard to domestic politics. B. to Nasserists and Communists. In response to these demands, resolutions were passed at the party congress that should continue to serve as reference points in the future: The congress called for a democratic revolution that should be supported by the organized masses. One wanted to overthrow traditional structures and fight against reactionary elements. Workers, peasants, revolutionary intellectuals, the military and the petty bourgeoisie should be involved in the transformation of society and mobilized in trade unions and unions. The Baath Party was of course intended to be the engine of development. There should also be nationalizations, but not in the same way as in Egypt under Nasser. An agrarian reform, which should go hand in hand with expropriations and the creation of collectives, was also seen as important. This form of Arab socialism should, however, remain anti-dogmatic, realistic and always adapted to Arab conditions. Another topic of negotiation was the party's position in relation to the army: it was supposed to be educated ideologically, which, however, did not really correspond to the real balance of power between civil and military members of the Baath. According to Pierre Guingamp, Michel Aflaq, one of the founders of the party, said in response to this congress that he no longer recognized his party.
Fight between old Baathists and new Baathists 1964–1966
As a result of the seizure of power by the neo-cathists under the covert leadership of the secret military committee - as shown above - a more radical trend prevailed within the Ba'ath party, while the founding generation was pushed into the background. At an extraordinary regional congress (February 1964, Damascus), Michel Aflaq complained about the party's lack of unity and called for better cooperation. In the period that followed, these tensions increased into a power struggle between old Baathists, mainly represented by the National Directorate, and neo-Catholicists, mainly represented by the Regional Directorate. The causes of this dispute are not only to be found in the ideological field: Both groups came from different generations and classes. While the old Baathists all belonged to an older generation and mostly came from a bourgeois-intellectual urban class, many members of the neo-Catholicists (including Hafiz al-Assad ) were comparatively young social climbers from the country who had made a political career via the military and also often came from ethnic and religious minorities.
- Seventh National Congress (February 1964, Damascus)
The tensions mentioned occurred u. a. revealed at the seventh national congress. This mainly concentrated on the events in Iraq, where the Ba'ath Party had lost its power again as a result of another coup. However, new elections were held here, in which the number of soldiers in the management positions of the National Directorate was strengthened, while the more civilized old Baathists were also weakened within the National Directorate.
- Second Regional Congress (March / April 1965, Damascus)
In December 1964, the National Directorate took several measures to strengthen the civilian Baath leadership against the more military-oriented Syrian Regional Directorate. However, they waited until the eighth National Congress was called to implement them, probably to give the Syrian regional directorate the chance to respond to the demands. This viewed the planned measures as a conspiracy and met for closed negotiations, about which hardly any information is available for this reason. However, the demands of the National Directorate were clearly not addressed.
- Eighth National Congress (April 1965, Damascus)
The National Congress then took the planned measures: It condemned the Syrian regional leadership for its regionalist-Syrian approach, demanded that the military organization of the Ba'ath be converted into an office for military affairs that should be subordinate to the regional directorate. He also restricted the number of military personnel in the regional directorate to 10% of the elected members. The military should have to choose between their position in the army and a government or party function, but not both. The dominant theme of the congress was therefore the criticism of the superior power of the army within the party apparatus and the ultimately unsuccessful attempt to reduce the number of military personnel at all management levels. Another topic was the Palestinian struggle against Israel.
- Ninth National Congress I (October 1966, Damascus)
The Syrian leadership tried to mobilize Ba'ath supporters from other Arab countries against the old Baathists and civilians. This took the risk of spreading the ultimately Syrian schism into all party branches in the Arab world. At the congress, massive accusations were then made against the founding generation: They, represented by Michel Aflaq and Salah ad-Din al-Bitar , had given the bourgeoisie influence over the party and thus promoted the reactionary elements. In addition, Congress took a radical stance towards almost all neighboring Arab states: Saudi Arabia was described as a partner of imperialism, and Nasserist Egypt was not mentioned at all. Only the two Yemeni republics and Algeria were recognized as "friends". They were also aggressive towards Jordan.
- Ninth National Congress II (March 1968, Beirut)
How great the tensions between civilian old Baathists and militarist neo-Catholicists had become in the meantime is evident from the fact that the old leadership ignored the ninth national congress in Damascus and convened its own ninth national congress in Beirut. The defeat in the Six-Day War against Israel in 1967 and the loss of the Golan Heights led to massive criticism of the Syrian leadership, which the old Baathists used to point out the incompetence of the Syrian regional directorate and to demand more influence for themselves. Subsequently, there were several arrests on the part of the Syrian leadership who had the aim of eliminating this opposition. In many cases, however, this did not succeed: In July a new Baath coup was successfully carried out in Iraq, whereupon some old Baathists, including Michel Aflaq, were welcomed in Iraq and from here began to polemicize against the Syrian regime.
Power struggle between Hafiz Assad and Salah Jadid 1968–1970
Meanwhile, however, tensions between Defense Minister Hafiz al-Assad and his rival Salah Jadid had broken out within the neo-Catholic military leadership in Syria . As defense minister, Hafiz al-Assad had been charged with defeat in the Six Day War. In turn, he shifted the responsibility to the rest of the members of the government, who he accused of a lack of control over Palestinian militias and of too radical policies towards neighboring Arab states.
- Fourth Regional Congress (September 1968, Damascus)
Hafiz al-Assad raised his voice as a member of the regional directorate at the regional congress. In doing so, however, he did not direct his criticism against the actual ruler Salah Jadid, but against the official government: He accused him not only of failure in connection with the Six Day War, but also of too strong ties to the USSR and an internal Arab policy that led to isolation Syria in the Arab world.
- Tenth National Congress (September 1968, Damascus)
A few days later the tenth national congress opened, which gave the other side the opportunity to express their positions. The political strategies of other Arab states were again denounced and thus contributed to the further isolation of Syria in the Arab world. The Palestinian Fedayin were celebrated as heroes in the face of the 1967 defeat. The attempt to solve the problem of controlling Palestinian militias was to create a Palestinian militia subordinate to the Ba'ath Party, the Sa'iqa, which was declared to be the vanguard of a well-fortified Arab nation. The Congress thus represented the political maxims of Salah Jadid and did not take into account the criticisms formulated by Hafiz al-Assad. The situation subsequently escalated: In the 1970 coup, Hafiz al-Assad Salah had Jadid and a large number of his supporters arrested and took power himself.
Party congresses as part of the “corrective movement” 1971–1975
When Hafiz al-Assad came to power, more moderate tones were struck in both foreign and domestic policy. The next two party congresses are in connection with the " corrective movement " initiated by al-Assad , arab. الحركة التصحيحية, to be classified. In the course of the related reforms, the party was placed on a broader basis, autonomy and decision-making powers were further strengthened at the local level, initially greater political freedoms were granted and v. a. more conciliatory tones towards the private sector and the conservative bourgeoisie struck.
- Fifth Regional Congress (May 1971, Damascus)
The regional congress convened shortly after the takeover of power thus initially had the function of criticizing the old Ba'ath regime under Salah Jadid and of proclaiming the reforms associated with the corrective movement. It was decided to give the private economic sector greater freedom for the good of the state. Hafiz al-Assad has been described as a necessary leader for the leadership of the party and nation.
- Eleventh National Congress (August 1971, Damascus)
Similar tones were struck at the eleventh national congress. The corrective movement was praised and the Iraqi Baath regime was criticized.
- Sixth Regional Congress (April 1975, Damascus)
As announced in the Corrective Movement, the next regional congress took place 4 years after the last. The Congress does not play a major role in the political development of the Ba'ath. On it was v. a. polemicized against Iraq.
Period of crisis in the regime 1979–1985
The party congresses held between the late 1970s and the mid-1980s, however, had a different character. They each took place in a context in which the Syrian Ba'ath regime under the leadership of Hafiz al-Assad had been seriously called into question, on the one hand by attacks and an uprising by the Muslim Brotherhood , on the other hand by an attempted coup by Assad's youngest brother Rifaat al-Assad . It is noticeable that only regional congresses have taken place since the eleventh national congress: the implementation of pan-Arab ambitions moved more and more into the background after a failed Syrian-Iraqi reconciliation and cooperation phase in 1978/79 - at least at party level. The Syrian Ba'ath Party thus increasingly became the party of a nation-state.
- Seventh Regional Congress (December 1979 – January 1980)
After several attacks by radical Islamists against supporters of the Baath regime, this congress took concerted action against the Muslim Brotherhood . The leading force was Rifaat al-Assad , who announced at the party congress that he wanted to stamp out the Muslim Brotherhood. The latter have been labeled as agents of imperialism who should be eliminated. In the period that followed, the most brutal methods were used against the Muslim Brotherhood (cf. Hama massacre ). Other domestic issues were also raised at the Congress, such as: B. Corruption, which rose sharply after the economic boom as a result of the October War . An inspection committee was set up, but it could not operate efficiently, as a large part of the government and the military were themselves involved in corrupt business. B. in the black market with the civil war-torn Lebanon . In domestic politics, social strife, nepotism and economic difficulties dominated the field. The regional congress did not, however, set the course necessary to solve these problems. In foreign policy, it supported the only Arab country's revolution in Iran as a movement against imperialism, just as the Soviet invasion in Afghanistan , which was also interpreted anti-imperialist.
- Eighth Regional Congress (January 1985)
In a way, the eighth regional congress marks the end of the failed coup by Rifaat al-Assad, which had seized power after Hafiz al-Assad suffered a heart attack after the efforts of the Lebanon War and the Hama uprising. Hafiz al-Assad managed to defuse the crisis (only) through his personal intervention. At the party congress, unity and loyalty to the president, who has now ruled for fourteen years, was demonstrated. The internal problems of the country, including corruption, the smuggling activities of the army between Syria and Lebanon, the enrichment of certain people in the shadow of the system, the police state methods of the strongly developed security apparatus etc. were not mentioned.
After the change of rule in 2000
Up until 2000 there was no party congress of the Ba'ath Party in Syria. It was only when Hafiz al-Assad saw the end of his life that his son Bashar al-Assad was prepared for rule.
- Ninth Regional Congress (June / July 2000, Damascus)
Shortly after the former president's death, the party was reassembled to amend the constitution and elect the new president, who was then acclaimed with over 90% of the vote.
- Tenth Regional Congress (June 2005, Damascus)
The high hopes for a more democratic future in Syria, which had been placed on the new president both in Syria and abroad, were disappointed after the failure of the so-called Damascus Spring . Nevertheless, clear ideological changes can be identified at the tenth regional congress. a. for a modification of the state of emergency that has prevailed for several decades and propagated new economic guidelines in the sense of the social market economy. In terms of foreign policy, closer ties to the European Union and the USA were advocated .
Structure and membership
An internal organizational report from 1985 found that around 8 percent of Syria's age-old population was organized in the party. In October 1985, the party comprised 102,000 full party members and around 435,000 supporters. The Alawite coastal provinces of Latakia and Tartus and the Druze-dominated Suwayda were clearly over-represented. Membership in rural areas was also significantly higher than in the Sunni-dominated cities. The military party apparatus that follows this civilian party apparatus is considered to be clearly dominated by Alawi. When filling management positions, the tribal affiliation of the person leaving office is usually retained. A clear affiliation of the party's military leadership cadre to certain tribes within the Alawite community cannot be proven. The regime and the party itself tried to replace tribal affiliations with identity as party members.
Summary and conclusion
The overview of the party congresses of the Ba'ath party makes it clear that the Ba'ath party in Syria is by no means to be seen as a monolithic bloc, but has been subject to change in the course of its history: it started with a strongly idealistic, nationalistic and anti- colonialist movement of a more intellectual character, which had to find its place in the chaotic political landscape of Syria and the Arab world of the 50s and 60s over the next few decades. It was in competition with other ideological movements, among others. a. the communists, orthodox Islamic movements and v. a. the pan-Arabism of Nasser . Only after the dissolution of the United Arab Republic did the Ba'ath party actually come to power in Syria and develop administrative skills at all. Not only the will to power of some prominent personalities, incompetence and general inexperience, but also the unstable foreign policy situation as well as the experiences of domestic political instability after more than a decade of radical political changes at home contributed to the attempt to concentrate power and not to distribute it. An originally pluralistic movement became more and more totalitarian, v. a. as soon as it was dominated by the military, who were more authoritarian anyway. In recent years the Ba'ath Party has increasingly become the instrument of legitimation and confirmation of President Hafiz al-Assad .
literature
- Pierre Guingamp: Hafez el Assad et le Parti Baath en Syrie. L'Harmattan, Paris 1996.
- Daniel Le Gac: La Syrie du général Assad. Questions au XXe siècle 46. Éd. Complexe, Bruxelles 1991.
- Moshe Ma'oz: Syria under Assad. Domestic Constraints and Regional Risks . Croom Helm, London 1986.
- Volker Perthes : Secret Gardens. The new arab world . License issue for the Federal Agency for Civic Education , Bonn 2005.
- Patrick Seale: The Struggle for Syria. A Study of Post-War Arab Politics 1945–1958. Oxford University Press, London 1965.
- Patrick Seale: Assad of Syria. The Struggle for the Middle East. Tauris, London 1990.
- Martin Stäheli: Syrian foreign policy under President Hafez Assad. Balancing acts in global upheaval. (in: Contributions to Colonial and Overseas History , Vol. 28, Steiner, Stuttgart 2001.)
