The urgent need for a comprehensive social contract for Syrians

After more than half a century of Ba’ath Party rule in Syria, a unilateral authoritarian system has taken root, emptied the state of its civil essence and transformed it into a security apparatus that controls society by monopolizing politics, silencing voices confiscating freedoms, and perpetuating a culture of obedience. With the outbreak of the Syrian revolution in 2011 , this system ultimately led to the disintegration of the state and its institutions, exposing the fragility of the “national contract” if one ever existed Today, amid the ruins of the Ba’athist state, the context of war and societal fragmentation, and attempts to rebuild authority through non-representative means, the urgent need to redefine “Syria” through a new, comprehensive social contract emerges This new social contract will end the era of unilateral central rule and establish a pluralistic, democratic system based on rights and dignity.

In this context, the experience of the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria presents a distinct model worthy of contemplation and building upon. This experience has established a social contract that transcends the nation-state acknowledges cultural and  political diversity, and grants communities the right to self-determination within the framework of a democratic decentralized Syria.

First: The collapse of the state as a consequence of the breakdown of the social contract.

What Syria witnessed was not just a political collapse, but rather the structural disintegration of a false social contract, imposed  by authoritarian force rather than with the consent of the various components. The Ba’ath regime never establish any form of contract between state and society, but rather imposed the “security state doctrine” as the sole truth Ethnic, religious, and class-based groups were marginalized under the banner  of “national unity,” whichin reality served as a mask for a narrow military-security authority that dominated the public sphere.

With the fall of central authority in much of Syria after 2011, this fragile contract collapsed, and the bitter truth was revealed: there was no real socio-political consensus on the form of the state, nor on the identity of society, nor on the system of rights and duties. Thus, Syrians began searching for the first time since independence for answers to fundamental questions: Who are we? How do we live together? And under what form of governance?

Second: The constitutional declaration of the transitional government… an Partial step

The Constitutional Declaration issued by the Syrian Interim Government, headed by Ahmad al -Sharaa, constituted an attempt to restore what could be restored of the political identity of the new Syria. However, despite its symbolic importance, the document was unable to rise to the level of the founding document of the post-war state. The language in which the declaration was formulated remained closer to the classical literature of the centralized national state, and did not create an epistemological break with the Baathist model against which the revolution was waged. It did not mention anything substantive about the issues of ” complex identity,” nor about recognizing other ethnic components such as the Kurds, Syriacs, Turkmen, and others. The concepts of social justice, political empowerment of women, and the distribution of power and wealth through true political decentralization were also absent

Most importantly, the declaration did not emerge from a broad societal participatory process, but rather came as a result of top-down understandings. This weakens its societal legitimacy and also undermines its ability to serve as a genuine foundation for an inclusive constitution.

Third: The Autonomous Administration Eperience… a model for an alternative social contract

In contrast, the “social contract ” ratified by the Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria in 2023 constituted a pioneering experience that deserves serious consideration. It was not formulated as a purely legal text, but rather came as the product of popular dialogues and community conferences, in which representatives of various demographic, political, religious, and cultural components participated.

Key Features of This Contract:

–        Recognizing ethnic and religious diversity and breaking with the concept of a “single national identity” that formed the basis of previous constitutions.

–        Adopting the principle of democratic decentralization, allowing regions to self-govern, while preserving the unity of Syria.

–        Gender equality: ensuring mechanisms for the effective representation of women, not as a symbolic partner, but as an equal political actor.

–        Recognizing multiple languages as  both official and local languages.

–        Geniue separation of powers, and the  establishment of a court to protect the social contract (acting as a constitutional court).

–        Emphasizing that sovereignty belongs to peoples and societies, not to the state as a supreme entity.

This contract, despite the challenges of its implementation, represents a true transition from the “nation-state” to the “democratic society,” where sovereignty is distributed, identity is diverse, and the state serves humanity not the other way around.

Fourth: Towards a comprehensive social contract for Syrians

Any attempt to establish a new Syrian state cannot be built on the ruins of the 1950 or 1973 constitutions, nor on a fragile transitional declaration. Instead, what is required is a new social contract that emerges from the ground, first recognizing the failure of previous experiences and based on the following principles:

• Recognizing all components as fundamental entities, equal in rights and duties.
• Redefining sovereignty, shifting from state sovereignty to societal sovereignty, where power is built from the grassroots to the center.
• Separating religion from the state, while guaranteeing freedom of belief to protect religion from politicization and the state from sectarianism.
• Ensuring a fair distribution of resources, promoting social justice and rebuilding trust between the state and society.
• A consensual, non-exclusionary democracy, respecting election results while ensuring representation for all.

Fifth: Challenges of the upcoming constitutional path

Building a comprehensive social contract will face major challenges, including:

• Regional and international interventions, which often oppose the establishment of a true democratic model in Syria.
• The structure of the traditional opposition, which remains captive to centralized and exclusionary thinking.
• Deep divisions within Syrian society, along ethnic, sectarian, and class lines.
• Institutional weakness in most areas of Syria, along with the absence of bodies capable of implementing constitutional agreements.

However, despite the enormity of these challenges, they do not negate the urgent necessity of drafting a “new national charter” that redefines Syrians as an equal political community rather than as rival factions

The regime has fallen, but the state has yet to be born. The transition from tyranny to democracy does not occur merely by removing those in power but rather by redefining the foundations upon which the legitimacy of governance is built. This can only be achieved through a comprehensive social contract that acknowledges the diversity of Syrians and guarantees justice and dignity for all.
Despite the complexities of its surrounding environment, the experience of the Autonomous Administration presents an initial model worth building upon and developing serving as a foundation for a new Syria that is just, decentralized, democratic, and civil.