Members of the People's Assembly: The presidential elections are a Syrian sovereign political matter, and the Syrians refuse to compromise their dignity and national sovereignty

Damascus-Sana

The People's Assembly, at its eighth session of the second special session held today, chaired by Hammouda Sabbagh, Speaker of the Assembly, began discussing the draft law on intangible cultural heritage, which was prepared by the Education and Scientific Research and Constitutional and Legislative Affairs committees.

The Council approved by majority the first three articles of the aforementioned draft law, which include definitions of a number of cultural heritage concepts, including the traditional crafts, which are defined as “the heritage crafts that the craftsman practices manually depending on his individual mental and manual skill that he acquired from the development of his practice of his craft using the raw materials available in the environment. Local natural or some number or simple tools.

The Syrian heritage is also defined according to the articles as “the practices, perceptions, forms of expression, skills and the associated machines, parts, artefacts and places of culture that the Syrian groups, groups, or individuals prepare as part of their cultural heritage inherited from generation to generation through accumulation, assimilation, reproduction, transfer and continuous reinvention in accordance with The environment and its interactions with nature and its history, which develops for them a sense of their identity and a sense of their continuity, and enhances the respect for cultural diversity and the human creative capacity.

The articles indicate that there are specific types of heritage that must be preserved and protected, represented by “traditions and forms of oral expression, including language as a means of expressing heritage, the arts, performance traditions, social practices, rituals, ceremonies, knowledge and practices relating to nature and the universe and skills associated with traditional craftsmanship.”

In another context, the Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee considered that it is permissible to consider the draft law that includes the creation of the National Authority for Quality and Accreditation in Higher Education because it does not violate the provisions of the Constitution. Therefore, the Council referred the aforementioned draft law to the Education and Scientific Research Committee in the Council for study and preparation of the necessary report on it.

With regard to the presidential election, a number of members of the Council affirmed that the presidential elections represent a pure Syrian political matter, and the opening of the door to candidacy for the elections is an affirmation that Syria is a state of institutions and law that respects its constitution and that there is no room for interference with the Syrian decision, no matter how intense the pressures and coercive measures on Syria.

Some members indicated that the Syrian people will proceed, through their participation in the presidential elections, to declare their victory, the independence of their sovereign decision, the exercise of democracy, and the choice of the president who represents him and expresses his will, ambitions and aspirations, stressing that only Syrians have the right to determine their destiny and their future and they refuse to compromise their dignity and national sovereignty.

The session, which was attended by the Minister of Culture, Dr. Labana Mashouh, and the Minister of State for People's Assembly Affairs, Eng. Malloul Al-Hussein, rose to 12 o'clock tomorrow, Monday.

Wasim Al-Adawi