Ninth Session of Syrian Constitutional Committee Meetings is postponed
Mr. Geir O. Pedersen, the United Nations Special Envoy for Syria, announced on July,16 2022 the ninth session of the meetings of the Syrian Constitutional Committee is postponed. He expressed his regret that holding the Ninth Session of the Small Body of the Syrian-led, Syrian-owned, UN-facilitated Constitutional Committee in Geneva from 25 to 29 July 2022 is “no longer possible”.
Pedersen said in a statement that his office has sent letters to the members of the Small Body informing them of the same.
He stressed the importance of that all the “stakeholders in this conflict protecting and firewalling the Syrian political process from their disputes elsewhere in the world.” He encouraged them to engage in “constructive diplomacy on Syria.”
Pedersen indicated that he will continue to consult with all relevant parties and provide more information in due course.
On June, 29 2022 Pedersen announced that the Co-Chairs agreed that the ninth session will convene in Geneva on July, 25. He confirmed that formal invitations have been sent accordingly and logistical steps have been taken to move ahead with the session.
The Syrian Constitutional Committee which held its eighth session from May,30 to June, 3rd 2022 discussed four principles: “maintaining and strengthening state’s institutions”, “unilateral coercive measures from a constitutional standpoint”, “the supremacy of the Constitution and the position of international treaties” and “transitional justice”.
It is noteworthy that the United Nations announced on September, 23rd 2019 that an agreement had been reached between the “Syrian Government” and the “SNC” on the formation of a balanced, credible and inclusive constitutional committee, comprising representatives of the government, the opposition and civil society, to discuss and prepare a draft of a new constitution, or constitutional reform, within the path of a political solution in accordance with the Geneva Communiqué and based on Security Council Resolution 2254 (2015) and relevant resolutions.
The Constitutional Committee is composed of fifty members from each of the three parties, and the Small Body is composed of 45 members comprising fifteen members from each party. The Small Body meets in Geneva, where it held its first meeting in October 2019.