Albawaba.com
Damascus
Syria will soon issue a new law for political parties, according to sources who quoted Vice President Abdel Halim Khaddam as saying.
The sources, who have recently met with Khaddam, said that they asked the vice president if the new law would be confined only to the expansion of the Progressive Front, the ruling coalition.
The veteran politician replied that it is likely that the draft law will allow new parties to emerge in the country’s political life, said the sources.
There are now six parties functioning under the umbrella of the Progressive Front, but the ruling Baath party takes the lion’s share in power.
Since the death of President Hafez Assad last June and the rise to power of his son Bashar, there has been talk of new changes in the political arena in Syria. It has been said that businessmen such as Omar Sunqur, Rateb Shallah and Riad Seif were considering forming their own parties and playing a political role depending on their economic weight.
Key politicians such as Ahmad Mreiwed and Mansour Atrash were also said to be working on new parties. However, no official or practical steps have been taken by the politicians in that direction so far.
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