Syrians bid adieu to Assad

By Kesava Menon

MANAMA (BAHRAIN), JUNE 13. Thousands of Syrians poured onto the streets of Damascus in the early hours of Tuesday to pay their last respects to the man who had ruled them for the last three decades. World dignitaries also filed into the Presidential palace to pay homage to Mr. Hafez al Assad and offer their condolences to his son and successor, Dr. Bashar al Assad. The body of Mr. Assad was to be flown to his home village of Quedaha for internment later in the day.

While Dr. Bashar's accession to the office held by his father was proceeding much more smoothly than expected, a note of dissent has been sounded by his uncle in exile, Mr. Rifaat al Assad. The 63-year-old brother of the late President was a key ally after the bloodless coup which brought Mr. Assad to power nearly 30 years ago. Mr. Rifaat al Assad was also the dominant figure in the crushing of the last major domestic challenge to his brother's authority in Syria when his tanks and artillery smashed the Muslim Brotherhood's forces in the city of al Hama in 1982. However, in 1983, at a time when Mr. Assad was bed-ridden, Mr. Rifaat had attempted a coup only to be faced down by his brother. Mr. Rifaat has been in exile since then but continued to be officially designated as the Vice-President for security affairs till he was relieved of this post a few years ago.

An aide told the Italian newspaper La Republica that Mr. Rifaat would return home to challenge the ``illegal'' new regime. Yesterday, Mr. Rifaat struck the first dissenting note against his nephew's accession to the Presidentship. In a statement broadcast over the Arab News Network owned by his son, Mr. Rifaat said he would launch a new Rectification Movement (this was how Mr. Assad had termed his coup) to introduce full-fledged democracy in Syria. It was not just that Mr. Rifaat challenged what was otherwise a smooth transition that sounded alarm bells in the region. There is a possibility that Mr. Rifaat still has adherents within the ruling Baath party and the military who might rally to his banner if they believe that Dr. Bashar does not fit his father's shoes.

For the time being, however, the upper echelons of the Syrian establishment does appear to believe that Dr. Bashar has the credentials. He has become the commander-in-chief of the Syrian armed forces, he is the Baath party's sole nominee for the presidency and the leaders of all wings of the armed forces have pledged their allegiance to him. His election as President when Parliament convenes in a couple of weeks seems to be a mere formality. But Dr. Bashar has to consolidate his position and also ensure that people more attuned to his way of thinking occupy pivotal posts in the Government and wider establishment. This is bound to cause some turmoil and Mr. Rifaat appears to be positioning himself to take advantage of any opportunities that may arise.

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Body taken to Qardaha

DAMASCUS, JUNE 13. An aircraft left the Syrian capital today carrying the body of the President, Mr. Hafez al-Assad, on the last leg of his state funeral - burial in his home village of Qardaha.

Presidential guards took the coffin from the gun carriage and, while a band played, handed it over to generals with black arm bands before taking it back to carry it the last few metres to the plane.

- Reuters

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