The Ba'ath Socialist Party in Iraq and Syria Thi

This paper will discuss the evolution of the Ba'ath Party in Iraq and Syria, concentrating upon the different methods used by the party leaders in each country to consolidate power. The first part of the paper will briefly discuss the history of the Ba'ath Socialist Party prior to the events which brought each to power in Iraq and Syria. The second part of the paper will examine the philosophical underpinnings of the Party and their relationship to the Ba'ath governments in Iraq and Syria. The third part of the paper will compare the histories of the Ba'ath parties after they came to power in the two countries and the characteristics of the leaders who presently rule the two countries, Saddam Husein and Hafiz al-Asad.

The Ba'ath Socialist Party had its roots in the Arab nationalist movement during the 1920s and 1930s. The party itself was born in 1947, when it held its first congress. There were two primary founders, Michael `Aflaq and Salah al-Din Bitar, both of whom were schoolteachers from Damascus. The party quickly attracted Arabs from all regions, although its influence was concentrated primarily in Syria and Iraq. The party was dedicated to three goals: freedom from foreign control, unity of all Arabs, and socialism. The first two goals were quite naturally derived from the pan-Arabist movement which had been gaining ground during this time period; the last goal came from a desire to bring social justice to the p

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tem and the state as a whole. Traditional Arab regimes, on the other hand, have always been based upon the individual personality of the leader. In spite of the adoption of "modern" institutions and ideologies, such as socialism, modern Arab regimes continue to center on one leader. The modern prototype for this was, of course, the Nasser regime in Egypt during the 1950s and 1960s. Nasser was both a "prophet" and a charismatic leader; he was a prophet in that he proposed the idea of a universal Arab state, while his personal charisma allowed him to come closer than any other leader in realizing such a dream. Nasser was not a member of the Ba'ath party, nor did he ever wish to be; he wanted to lead the proposed Arab state himself (Khadra, 1984, pp. 228-29). The Ba'ath party contained no individual who could even come close to matching Nasser's prophetic or charismatic abilities. At least one scholar has said that the constant search for a "hero" of Nasser's stature has been the prime motivator of the party. This should be an extremely ironic assessment, considering the party's vocal emphasis upon group leadership, ideology, and the importance of the party as an institution. But the fact remains that the Ba'ath party has,
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Alawis Asad, Syria Iraq, Iraqi Ba'ath, Islamic Iran, Muslim Ba'ath, Asad Syria, Saddam Husein, Iraqi Ba'athists, Syria Egypt, Syria UAR, ba'ath party, 1988 pp, seale 1988, ba'ath socialism, arab nationalism, iraqi ba'athists, iraqi ba'ath, seale 1988 pp, al-khalil 1989, middle east, devlin 1991, ba'ath party iraq, richards waterbury 1990, al-khalil 1989 pp, boulder westview press,
Approximate Word count = 4956
Approximate Pages = 20 (250 words per page)