Syria is at the center of much of the unrest in the Middle East, and considerable changes in the nation’s government must be considered in order to help bring about peace in the area. Setting up a semi-presidential system with a Parliament modeled after Switzerland’s is the first step toward democratization and the rule of law. This must be followed by adoption of a legal system in which international law takes precedent over domestic law. For details, see the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development.

Human security and sustainable development are the two major tasks of the UN, which are, of course, subject to compliance by member states. The solution is to enforce "One World under One Set of Laws.” international law must prevail over domestic law and directly affect the people", with supervision by the people to ensure compliance with the UN Charter, the Vienna Convention for the Protection of the Ozone Layer, the Charter of Nature and others. For details see the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development.

The Iranian Ambassador to Russia said last month that Tehran is looking for ways to broaden the scope of defense cooperation with Moscow, even in areas that require coordination with the UN Security Council. Iranians would like to purchase a wide range of military-purpose products from Russia, some of which are covered by UNSC sanctions. Moscow has said it is ready to work with Iran in the area of military and technical cooperation. Democratic powers worldwide must support Taiwan in its bid to carry out constitutional reform. When Taiwan enjoys greater freedom under a truly democratic government it will lead the people of China to call for democratization and in turn, will put pressure on Russia to follow suit. For more details please see the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development.

Voters in Hong Kong are forced to cast ballots for candidates for Chief Executive who have been previously vetted by the Election Commission of the Chinese Communist Party. This election is a result of dictatorial politics and does not change the fact that Hong Kong is being subjected to a dictatorship. The people of Hong Kong should make good use of Article 39 of the Hong Kong Basic Law and the two international human rights covenants. People have the right to self-determination through referendums. They must be allowed to decide on having the heads of the legislative, executive, judicial and procuratorate branches popularly elected to ensure they will be responsible to the people. For details please see the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development.

The government of mainland China is rife with corruption, a situation which can be attributed to thousands of years of graft and bribery at every level of officialdom. The only way to overthrow this deeply engrained culture is to put power squarely in the hands of the people through direct elections of key officials including the president and vice president and the heads of various branches of government. This must be complemented by the election of 1/4 of Parliament each year and other measures to ensure separation of power. The Charter for Permanent Peace and Development offers solutions that will end corruption once and for all.

All politics are local politics, and local officials who do not take action or abuse their powers should be whisked out of office. The ultimate solution is to choose governors, comptrollers and local chief executive through election to serve a single term of 5 years, followed by a 6-year ban on running for office again. Candidates for governor should run independently, while those in the race for comptroller and chief financial officer should run on a single slate. The one-vote single-election system should be adopted to allow third forces to participate in the system. For details, see the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development.

Elections are all too often a rich man's game, with candidates vying for the right to make money through systemic corruption. To eliminate the connections between politics and business, comprehensive constitutional reform is needed to implement democracy and the rule of law, separation of powers and checks and balances. The heads of the four branches should be elected, and elections must be free of charge in order to put an end to the symbiotic structure enriching political and commercial figures. See the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development.

To solve disputes between the executive and legislative branches the best solution is constitutional reform. The Cabinet should be made up of 12 ministries and ad hoc committees. The Prime Minister and Ministers are elected by the Committee Chairs of the national legislative body. 1/4 of the Members of the State Duma should face election each year, and the central government must be accountable to the Duma and to the public. For details, see the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development.

The solution to such perennial problems in many nations is a changeover to a semi-presidential system like the one in Finland, along with a legislative system similar to the one which serves Switzerland. The prerequisite for permanent peace in the world is global democratization. Syria’s government should begin by adopting a basic constitution based on democratic models and implementation of One World under One Set of Laws. The constitution must reflect the spirit of the times. For details see the Charter for Permanent Peace and Development..

As British historian Lord Acton once noted, "Power leads to corruption, and absolute power leads to absolute corruption." The only way to avoid corruption, is through constitutional reform to implement democracy and the rule of law. Also essential are separation of powers and checks and balances, and election of the heads of major government branches. These moves are all necessary to ensure the connection between government and corruption is broken.