There was some discussion in the Syrian media in December about whether the ruling Arab Socialist Baath Party might be preparing to hold its 11th regional congress. The previous congress was held in 2005, and typically such gatherings are held every five years. Mr Assad, who is the regional secretary of the party (region, or qitr in Arabic, in this context is a reference to Syria as part of a wider Arab national entity), declared recently in response to a question at a press conference that the important issue with respect to any coming congress was not its timing but whether it produces results matching people's expectations.

Speculation that the Baath party may be gearing up for a new congress has been fed by reports of internal elections in several branches of the party. The previous Baath congress was notable mainly for its approval of a strategy of establishing a social market economy, which marked a departure from the party's previous commitment to socialism. The congress also decided to set up a special committee to study proposals for political reform, including ending the party's automatic majority. This is enshrined in the constitution, as amended in 1973, which guarantees the Baath party and nine allied formations at least two-thirds of the 250 seats in the People's Assembly, Syria's unicameral parliament. No parties are permitted outside this National Progressive Front, meaning that the remaining seats go to independents, who are typically loyalist business people. (A handful of independents have in the past used their status as members of parliament to criticise the government, but this has not made them immune from arrest.) There has been no indication since the 2005 congress of any active consideration of these proposed reforms. The next parliamentary election is scheduled to take place in April 2011.