Banners representing the three candidates for Syria’s presidential elections have proliferated in the streets of Damascus.
Two candidates are competing against President Bashar al-Assad: Abdallah Salloum Abdallah, a member of the Political Bureau of the Socialist Unionist Party, and Mahmoud Merhi, who introduced himself as the representative of the Syrian National Opposition in the Coordination Committee - the political entity that was formed after 2011 and included the Democratic Arab Socialist Union.
However, the Union denied supporting Merhi, stressing that the latter’s membership has been terminated since 2013, as a result of “his deviation from the political line and the party’s fixed positions, which call for the necessity of radical and comprehensive national democratic change as a path to political transition.” The Union renewed its decision to boycott the elections.
Merhi chose the word “Ma’an” (together), as the main slogan for his campaign. His billboards showed phrases such as: “Together, because our opinion is different, but with honor”, and “Together for the release of the prisoners of conscience.”
Abdallah, for his part, chose the slogan of “Our strength in our unity”, while his billboards carried messages such as: “No to terrorism” and “Yes to defeating the occupiers.”
On the other hand, Assad’s campaign said “Hope is in Work.”
The electoral campaign, which started on Wednesday, will end on May 25, ahead of the polls scheduled for the next day.
Meanwhile, Syrians were surprised by a government decision complicating the return of citizens from abroad. The new order, issued on May 11 and revealed by local websites on Tuesday, required the abolition of Article 178 of the 2006 Customs Law, which stipulated that the personal luggage, tools and household furniture of persons coming for permanent residence would be exempted from customs duties and other fees and taxes.
An economist in Damascus, who preferred to speak on condition of anonymity, told Asharq al-Awsat: “It has become clear to everyone at home and abroad that the system is bankrupt and there is no US dollar in its treasury to finance its imports… Thus, it is resorting to decisions that would provide the treasury with foreign currency.”
The expert noted that the new decision “can generate hundreds of thousands of dollars in light of the presence of more than 6 million Syrian refugees in neighboring and Western countries.”
