Al-Jazeera: Reaction to the recommendations of the Baath party congress

The Syrian political analysist Yasse Nehlawi described what was concluded by the congress as the beginning of a new phase in the Syrian political scene that was provided for by President Bashar al-Assad through which he works for the building of the state with new faces as elements.

He indicated in a statement to al-Jazeera TV that approving political parties will open the door for expanding political activities to work in society, and to form government-licensed human rights societies.

On the other side, the general observer of the Muslim Brothers in Syria Sader Eddine al-Bayanouni told al-Jazeera that his group pins no hope on the congress, because his party sees in it a perpetuation of the state of the Baath party, noting that all catastrophe hit the Syrian people are the results of the practices conducted by this party.

He explained that "had the Baath Party had self confidence, it would have opened a real discussion with political parties which have popularity, rather with than those who are not popular." He indicated that getting out of the political bottleneck in the country requires convening a national conference to be attended by all parties on the ground of genuine pluralism, rather than symbolic one.

The observer of the Syrian Muslim Brothers stressed that the way to achieve that is "through continued pressures on the government so as to respond to people's demands."