Syria under al-Assad rule: a case of Neopatrimonial regime

Abstract EN

This paper aims to conceptualize the Syrian regime under the rule of Hafez and Bashar al-Assad (1970-2011) as a neopatrimonial regime.

The paper claims that the neopatrimonial domination of the Assad regime bases on three pillars; the personalization of the regime, the patronage networks and the clientelism.

Under the subtitle of personalization the Syrian regime, the paper tries to lay down the historical process and mechanisms used to personalized the regime under Hafez and Bashar al-Assad, through using the personal clique and the imposed personal cult.

Following, the paper figures out the dual patronage networks that the Assad regime has utilized to consolidate his personal domination through penetrate the bureaucratic realm and the society; the Alawite patronage and the Baath Party patronage.

In the same context, the paper evaluates the clientelism as another mechanism functions in the patrimonial penetration processes, mainly in the economic domain, and the changes that took place in this regard under Bashar al-Assad’s rule.