Syria's Assad Sets May 7 as Date for Parliament Vote
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Syria's embattled President Bashar al-Assad issued a decree on Tuesday setting May 7 as the date for parliamentary elections that were delayed last year, the state news agency SANA reported.
The vote is part of a raft of reforms announced by Assad in a bid to calm a year-long uprising against his regime that began with democracy protests.
Assad's announcement comes as peace envoy Kofi Annan said he was awaiting a response from the Syrian leader on "concrete proposals" which he had submitted to him in two rounds of talks in Damascus at the weekend.
"I am expecting to hear from Syrian authorities today since I left some concrete proposals for them to consider," the U.N.-Arab League envoy told reporters in Ankara after a meeting with the Syrian opposition.
"Once I receive their answer we will know how to react."
The elections would be the third time a legislative vote has taken place in Syria since Assad came to power in 2000.
The last parliamentary poll in 2007 saw the National Progressive Front -- a coalition led by Assad's Baath Party -- seize, as expected, the majority of the 250 seats in the assembly.
The May 7 vote was originally set to take place in September but was delayed to allow Assad to carry out reforms in the face of the revolt threatening his regime.
13 March 2012, 15:19
211
Who cares really? An election organised & supervised by a crippled totalitarian regime... the farce goes on!
13 March 2012, 16:18
07
So laughable--he has "elections" and gets almost 90% of the vote while he is bombing his own people, and somehow almost 60% of the eligible voters managed to vote.
He is trying to make himself out as a reformer, but there aren't many in the world that believe him; I don't think he believes it either.
13 March 2012, 16:36
13
I do not think they will hold these elections in may, and that is because of the war that israel will launch soon on hizbushaitan: he will find that his ally is no more and will be thinking about how fast he is going to pack his stuff and run to hide somewhere :)
13 March 2012, 17:23
14
Its really strange that the regular syrian army the one made up of sunnis have not turned yet after seeing all of what's going on and the killings of their families and relatives. I know that the part of the army which was mainly sent into lebanon and its usually made up of idiots and really uneducated poor conscripts who have shown how cowardly they ware in the past, but still you would think that they would at least defect and try and help their own. dont you think they get news of what's going on? cant wait to see bashsar and that fat Muallem hanging in the middle of damascus
13 March 2012, 17:40
14
The Syrian people don't want you..get the hell out ya butcher...
13 March 2012, 17:58
14
Let us get real. The Assad Regime is a Mafia, it is not a government. The trappings of government, such as a constitution, laws, a parliament even elections are all facade to cover that this is no government it is Mafia. So when Assad says he is going to improve elections, change the constitution, this is to change the cover, improve the draperies so that the real nature of the regime can be better covered and hidden
13 March 2012, 20:05
14
I was thinking the same thing .... there is a message in there.
13 March 2012, 21:00
04
How many parties are registered for the vote? If the answer is 1, then all is the same. Why didn't he do a presidential vote first??
