ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Sunday issued a decree establishing a seven-member committee to draft a “constitutional declaration” for the country's “transitional phase.” However, the effort appears to have once again excluded Kurdish parties. Sharaa tasked the seven “experts” with “drafting a constitutional declaration to regulate the transitional phase” in Syria and “submit their proposed [draft]” to the interim president. Following a swift offensive, a coalition of opposition groups led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) - headed by Sharaa - on December 8 toppled the regime of Bashar al-Assad. The new Syrian leadership in late January disbanded the army, dissolved the parliament and annulled the constitution. While Rudaw could not independently verify whether any of the newly formed committee’s members are Kurdish at the time of writing of this report, Bahia al-Mardini, a member of the committee, is reportedly Kurdish. However, she does not appear to be affiliated with any of the Kurdish political parties active in Syria. Salih Darwesh, the secretary of the Kurdish Democratic Progressive Party in Syria told Rudaw’s Dilbxwin Dara on Sunday, “This is not the first time Ahmed al-Sharaa has sidelined us.” Sharaa’s Sunday decree additionally stated that the formation of the new committee aligns with the recommendations of the National Dialogue Conference held in Damascus on Tuesday. Hundreds of Syrians gathered at the conference pledged by Sharaa as a step toward “free and fair elections” and constitutional reform. While the conference was praised for addressing the importance of freedom of expression, human rights, as well as Syria’s unity and sovereignty among other things, it was also criticized for being “exclusionary” and “rushed.” In the aftermath, 35 political parties in northeast Syria (Rojava) dismissed the outcomes of the conference as “meaningless” due to its lack of inclusivity. In a similar vein, the Kurdish National Council (ENKS/KNC) and the Democratic Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (DAANES) slammed the National Dialogue Conference for excluding Kurds and marginalizing key communities. In the weeks leading up to the conference, Kurdish opposition parties had also criticized a top committee established by Sharaa to prepare for the event. The committee was also accused of excluding Kurdish representation in the foundational step for shaping Syria’s future.
