SYRIAN INDEPENDENCE AND ITS AFTERMATH

This research paper discusses the internal political leadership and alignment of political forces during Syria's struggle to achieve national independence and its painful forty nine year aftermath (19461995). This paper has two main theses: (1) the activities of indigenous Syrian leaders and parties played a relatively minor role in the attainment of Syrian independence; and (2) Syria was illprepared for national independence and has largely been misruled since 1946. Politics during the latter period featured unstable governing elites and institutions, factionridden power struggles, sectarian strife, repression, especially after 1970, of important elements of Syrian society, and until the 1990s, relative economic stagnation. Today, Syria faces grave political, economic and social uncertainties.

Because of their history, Syrians developed very little sense of nationhood or political cohesion prior to 1946. Damascus was once the capital of the Arab world during the Ommayyad Caliphates (661750). The peoples who inhabited the lands which now comprise modern Syria were ruled for nearly thirteen hundred years by a succession of alien Arab, Christian Mongol, Egyptian, Ottoman Turk (15161918) and French rulers. The movement for Syrian independence was led by small groups of relatively well off citybred intellectuals and professionals, who dreamed primarily of Arab as opposed to Syri