Syria's 'Post-Assad' Election: Same Dictator, New PR
The article purports to explain how Syria’s 'post-Assad election works and who can vote.' This journalistic gymnastics attempts to frame a predictable sham election as a legitimate process, even as it admits to limited voter participation and regions excluded from polling. What the headline cleverly obfuscates is that Bashar al-Assad, ruler since 2000, hand-picked his successor years ago –
himself. (Yes, really.) Despite what the semantic contortions suggest, Syria is no more 'post-Assad' than North Korea is 'post-Kim.' The Syrian constitution, 'amended' in 2012, ensures Assad's perpetual eligibility, and opposition figures are either exiled or 'disappeared.' One might wonder if the 'post-Assad' designation is meant for audiences who prefer their dictatorships lightly seasoned with
electoral theater.