NATURE OF GOVERNMENT

Syria's State Expansion and the Transformation of Syria's Political Arena

How Syria Social and Economic intervention changed overtime

  Following Syria's gain of formal independence from the French in 1946 and a coup led by the socialist Arab Ba'ath Party, Syria was transformed into an one-party authoritarian state. Not only did the Syrian state experience a strict authoritarian rule by the until today governing Ba'ath party, but also like many postcolonial states, experienced tremendous growth in the scope and reach of state institutions. As historian and editor Steven Heydemann of the Cornell University states in his research book Authoritarianism in Syria: Institutions and Social Conflict 1946-1970 that "the size of the armed forces increased, and public schools were built at a rapid pace. Accelerating a trend that had been under way since the war, the size of the civil service grew dramatically during these years, from forty-seven hundred in 1939 to twenty-one thousand in 1952, with most of this growth taking place after 1946." (59) Looking at this Table from the source Syria vol. 2, Economy & Finance, we can clearly see the increasing trend in employment in Syrian state organizations.

Table 8. Expansion of state employment in Syria by department,1939-1952

	Department	1939	1945	1952
	Presidency of the Republic	7	16	20
	Parliament	--	--	40
	State Audit Department	16	25	49
	High Court of Justice	--	--	18
	Prime Minister's Office	15	22	35
	Muslim Fatwa and ReligiousSchools	94	107	157
	State Inspection Office	--	--	19
	Advisory or Shura Council	3	22	--
	Information Directorate	--	--	50
	Civil Servants Disciplinary Board	--	--	12
	Ministry of Foreign Affairs	22	184	216
	Ministry of Finance	719	834	2,472
	Ministry of Interior	259	408	508
	Tribal Directorate	--	288	20
	Police and Public Security	1,564	2,509	2,676
	Health Ministry	363	560	1,234
	Justice Ministry	677	902	1,184
	Reformatory Schools	--	--	49
	Land Department	184	215	299
	Ministry of National Economy	--	--	255
	Agriculture Ministry	207	317	698
	Public Works Ministry	98	169	613
	Education Ministry	2,554	3,466	10,056
	Agricultural Schools	--	--	182
	Total	6,782	10,044	20,862
Source: Syrian Arab Republic, Syria, vol. 2, Economy and Finance (Damascus: 1955), pp. 159/60.

    Noting Hinnebusch's statement of Asad's aim having been to "consolidate the unstable Ba'th state and mobilize Syria for a war to recover the lost territories" and in the process of this, turning "the Ba'th state from an instrument of class revolution into a machinery of power in the service of raison d'etat." we understand to importance of this expansion of state for al-Assad (65). Preserving a "leading role" through strict governmental involvement in Syria's economy, society and induvidual rights was essential for al-Assad goals of domestic and foreign politics and consequently meaning that all sort of "protests [have] to be forcibly repressed" (Kelidar 1974)

    Furthermore, Hinnebush states, "to be sure, Asad's foreign policy prioritised alignment with Egypt, a necessary partner in any war to recover the Golan and continued close alliance with the Soviet Union, needed to back Syria's military build-up. But acquiring the resources to support war preparation required détente with several former enemies. An alliance was struck with the conservative Arab oil states who provided financial resources in return for an end to Syria's effort to export revolution" (65). But is this point backed enough with evidence? 

Works Cited

• Heydemann, Steven. Authoritarianism in Syria: Institutions and Social Conflict, 1946-1970. Ithaca, NY: Cornell UP, 1999. Questia School. Web. 25 Mar. 2013.

• Hinnebusch, Raymond. Syria: Revolution from above. New York: Routledge, 2001. Questia School. Web. 25 Mar. 2013.