The Twilight of Arab Leftism

With the fall of the former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad last month, the last stronghold of the Arab left fell through the closing of the headquarters of the Syrian Arab Ba’athist Party in Damascus; similar to how the Iraqi Ba’athist Party fell in 2003 with the fall of Saddam Hussein at the hands of coalition forces. In a phenomenon worthy of study and deep understanding, we must not overlook the fall of Arab political parties with the fall of their leaders, regardless of their diverse orientations and intellectual leanings.

The Ba’athist Party rose during the period of Arab revolutions and the spread of what is known as the left in relation to ideas supporting revolutions and calls for economic, social, and cultural change. The party was founded in 1947 in Damascus by Michel Aflaq, Salah al-Din al-Bitar, and Zaki al-Arsuzi. The party adopted the concept of Ba’athism, symbolizing renaissance, a mix of Arab nationalism, Arab unity, socialism, and anti-imperialism. The party’s literature aimed at unifying the Arab world into a single state with the slogan “Unity, Freedom, Socialism.”

Initially, the Arab Ba’athist Party merged with the Arab Resurrection Movement led by al-Arsuzi, and later with the Arab Socialist Party led by Akram al-Hawrani to form the Arab Socialist Ba’ath Party. The party quickly established branches in other Arab countries, but it only came to power in Iraq and Syria (which provided the biggest example of party conflict).

The term “left” as commonly used comes from the division adopted in the French parliament since the 17th century, which conventionally saw each bloc sitting in a different part of the council chamber, with the right side for conservatives, the center for moderates and those willing to cooperate with all parties, and the left for those who called themselves “enlightened,” generally associated with socialism and liberalism. The term “left” became widely popular after the inclusion of many schools of thought linked to socialism and liberalism until those who belonged to this ideology started calling themselves leftists. Ostensibly, leftists fought what they termed Western imperialism, aided by expansionist Eastern countries like Russia.

Leftist parties ideologically draw on a mix of socialist, nationalist, and progressive ideas that developed in response to the political, economic, and social contexts in the Arab world generally. Despite their stark differences, they later coalesced with the emergence of political Islam into a single crucible, particularly as mass support waned and distanced from them. The leftists align on socialism, social justice, reducing class disparities, and nationalism, historically linked to anti-colonial movements. They also advocate for democracy, civil rights, secularism (not all, but most), the separation of religion from the state, and opposition to imperialism and Zionism (although communist leftists have strong connections with communist parties in Israel).

The popularity of leftist currents in the Arab world declined after the end of the Cold War, the collapse of the Soviet Union, and the dominance of globalization and capitalism over societies through the economy until countries like Russia and China (considered the last two main poles of the left) became capitalist economies despite their resistance to the nomenclature. The role of leftist currents in the Arab world shrank significantly to become theoretical through clubs closed in on themselves and with small numbers, most of which inherited membership. Additionally, with the rise of political Islam and the nature of conservative societies, we all witnessed the masses turning to it. These factors led to the isolation of thought and thinkers from society until they became theorists far removed from reality, as mentioned by Dr. Mustafa Mahmoud in his book “The Fall of the Left,” where he elaborated on their fall from the calculations and concerns of people not only in Egypt but also in the Soviet Union itself, the cradle of communism.

This decline and retreat can be attributed to several factors, the first being their failure to achieve what they called for. All the revolutions they led either failed or resulted in greater tyranny and brutality than the overthrown regimes. The conflict between the Iraqi and Syrian Ba’ath Parties is a key example in this context. Yes, the parties later fell due to direct Western intervention, as in Iraq, or indirect intervention, as recently happened in Syria. But this does not mean that the people ruled by these parties were satisfied with them; authoritarianism was the primary characteristic of governance.

What also led to their downfall was their choice to engage in wars and conflicts, as happened with Saddam Hussein in his war with Iran and his invasion of Kuwait. Internal conflicts within the parties played a significant role in focusing on party affairs rather than state administration due to corruption, favoritism, and the emergence of internal opposition groups. Mismanagement of resources also played a large role in the deterioration of the economic and social situation. The important question today remains: Will leftist parties and ideologies persist in our Arab world despite their fall in their strongholds? Or will their adherents adapt and develop their orientations and ideas to ensure their continuity away from militancy and contrary to the general path?