Shafaq News/ US researcher and author Michael O'Hanlon suggested, on Sunday,that US President-elect Donald Trump may push for the establishment of atransitional government in Syria, warning against "rushing to holdelections."
In an article published on the The Hill website, O'Hanlon, who is theDirector of Research at the Foreign Policy Program at the BrookingsInstitution, stated, "Achieving stability in a country that has justemerged from a dictatorship and a brutal war is not easy."
O'Hanlon argued that the main priorities of voters in any future Syrianelection would likely revolve around supporting a party that aligns with theirsectarian and ethnic identity to ensure their survival.
He compared this scenario to Iraq following the US invasion, emphasizingthat for elections to be successful, the security situation must be stable, asvoting for most people "is more than just a means to ensure the protectionof their families and communities."
The writer noted that political parties need time to define their platformsand visions for managing the country, "where they should be voted forbased on what they can offer to Syrian society, not just on their sectarianidentity."
O'Hanlon's views sharply contrast with the rhetoric often heard from USofficials discussing strategies for engaging with the new Syrian administrationthat ousted the former President Bashar Al-Assad.
Many have called for early elections in Syria to demonstrate that the newleadership is open to the participation of all sects in shaping the country'sfuture.
He suggested that the US under Trump could work with its allies to encouragethe Syrian transitional government to form an inclusive government thatprotects the rights of individuals and minorities, "instead of rushinginto elections that could tear the country apart."
The author emphasized that electoral integrity alone does not guaranteedemocracy, as true democracy requires checks and balances that apply to allbranches of power or ruling parties, along with a robust legal system toprotect individual rights.
He argued that "developing a well-structured, multi-year plan forSyria’s transition to democratic governance is the wisest, most realistic, andmost effective option," urging countries to push the new leadership inSyria in that direction.
The Iraqi Experience
The author brought up the post US invasion of Iraq situation as an exampleof the dangers due to rushing into elections, stating that US President GeorgeW. Bush had asked Ambassador Paul Bremer to lead Iraq for a year after theinvasion, then establish an Iraqi Governing Council and hold three rounds ofelections.
O'Hanlon believes that "these tensions led to the formation of ademocratic but ineffective government in 2006, particularly with the continuedconflicts across the country."
He argued that the Iraqi experience does not imply that a future Syriashould become an authoritarian state governed by one individual or party, butrather highlights the "need for caution in the pace of democratictransition."
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