Workshop on “Civil Society role within the constitution-building process in Syria”

Gaziantep, Turkey, 19 – 22 February 2018

After almost eight years of war, its root causes and the call for freedom of the Syrian population still remain to be addressed. Any realistic prospect for a political solution to work needs to promote a political transition that meets the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people and enables them independently and democratically to determine their future.
 
Over the course of the years, several initiatives at the national and international level attempted to address the pressing need to revisit and update the Syrian Constitution. Syrian civil society organisations, governments and international institutions have worked to define the modalities and content for a constitution-building process within the broader efforts by the international community to provide a comprehensive framework for a Syrian-led, Syrian-owned political transition to end the conflict in Syria.
 
The drafting of the new constitution is not simply a legal and technical process, but it represents the basis upon which to rebuild the social fabric of Syrian society, address the root causes of the war and ensure that transitional justice processes and mechanisms for non-repetition are set up. Although several civil society groups have continued to work on elaborating possible “constitutional scenarios”, they might still not be sufficiently prepared to develop and engage in sustained work both on the elaboration and the support to any constitution-building process. Supporting them in this process, alongside technical support on the constitutional principles for a new Syria, will be critical in the months ahead.
 
Against this backdrop and in the framework of its Syria Program, No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ) organised a workshop on “Civil Society role within the constitution-building process in Syria”, which was held in Gaziantep, Turkey, from 19 to 22 February 2018. The purpose of the workshop was to engage Syrian organisations and civil society activists on the discussions around the constitutional process by raising awareness on legitimate mechanisms for a constitutional process such as inclusion, equality, accountability and transparency.
 
 
Documentation: 

 
For further information, please contact Gianluca Eramo (MENA Democracy program Coordinator) on geramo@npwj.org or Nicola Giovannini (Press & Public Affairs Coordinator) on ngiovannini@npwj.org.