Syria’s interim president has signed a temporary constitution asserting the right to freedom of religion for all Syrians. The legislation will last for five years, as the country transitions to new leadership.
Current president Ahmad-al-Sharaa was the leader of the Islamist rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) which overthrew Bashar al-Assad’s regime in December.
The temporary constitution states: “citizens are equal before the law in rights and duties, without discrimination based on race, religion, gender or lineage.”
The document declares that the government is: “committed to combatting all forms of violent extremism while respecting rights and freedoms.”
It comes directly in the wake of violence against Syria’s faith groups led by pro-Assad fighters, which saw over 1500 killed. Four Christians are known to have been killed in the outburst, yet Premier has heard that reports of mass-scale violence against Christians have been over-exaggerated.
Bashar al-Assad was an Alawite Muslim – a minority in Syria. Whilst his regime was known for its brutality, Christians who complied with the government and did not challenge Assad were able to hold government positions.
Martin Parsons, is CEO of the Lindisfarne Centre for the Study of Christian Persecution. He tells Premier the new leader may take the country in a different direction, due to his background as a jihadist. “Things are already getting much more difficult for Christians. What Sharaa is doing is Islamising the country… We're seeing the old secular constitutions gone.”
The new constitution states that the country must be led by a Muslim. It also sets up an interim parliament, known as the ‘People’s Committee’, wherein two-thirds of the members will be personally appointed by al-Sharaa. The Associated Press reports that “glorifying the former Assad regime” is considered a crime under the new rules.
A further committee will be formed to draft a permanent constitution, but it is unclear whether Christians or other religious groups will have any input.
The trauma of the so-called Islamic State’s presence in the country still lingers, with one source telling Open Doors: “All Christians I know now want to leave the country.”