Agricultural land – Syria Report

This decree passed in 2012 regulates the reclamation of agricultural land and its redistribution to new beneficiaries.

Legislative Decree No. 29 of 2012
Agricultural Land Reclamation

The President of the Republic
In accordance with the provisions of the Constitution,
Promulgates the following:

Chapter One
Agricultural Land Reclamation

Article 1
For the purposes of this Legislative Decree, the following terms and expressions shall have the meanings set out beside them:

The Ministry: The Ministry of Irrigation
The Minister: The Minister of Irrigation
The body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation: The General Commission for Water Resources or The General Establishment for Land Reclamation and its affiliates in the provinces.

Article 2

An announcement stating that there is a public benefit in land reclamation in any region of the territory of the Syrian Arab Republic can be issued with a decision from the Minister, with the agreement of the Minister of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform, after receiving the opinion of the General Union of Farmers and the Executive Office of the Provincial Council. The decision shall specify the following:
The date on which land reclamation in the region is to begin.
The body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation.
The following is to accompany the decision:
A plan describing the real estate, and the sections of real estate, to be included in the reclamation decision.
A plan describing the unspecified and uncompiled lands falling within the reclamation area.

Article 3

The Minister’s decision is to be published in the Official Gazette. It is to be announced in one of the daily newspapers, and it is to be recorded in the list of announcements of the provincial, regional, and neighbourhood headquarters, as well as the headquarters of associations and farmers’ organizations, that have purview over the reclamation operation.
The announcement and the publication are considered equivalent to the personal notification of those with rights to the real estate and the lands indicated in Article 2.

Article 4

The Minister shall record his decision described in Article 2 of this Legislative Decree with…

…the concerned ministers and governors, if the reclamation area falls within more than one province.
…the Public Directorates of Real Estate Interests and the Directorates of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform that fall within the reclamation area. Upon their notification of the decision, it is incumbent upon these bodies to place a note in the real estate registries, newspapers, and contracts included in the reclamation that guarantee the subjection of this real estate to reclamation.
…the Public Directorate for Real Estate Interests, which must definitively complete the specification and compilation in lands not yet specified or compiled, and clear the commons of specified and compiled real estate that are held in common and are included in the reclamation, upon being notified of the decision of what procedures will be necessary.

Article 5

The process of specification and compilation is to take place in the regions chosen for reclamation, according to the provisions of Law No. 11 of 1971 and its amendments, with regard to the following matters:
The provisions of Paragraph B of Article 4 above.
The organization of plans for specification, compiling, and duplicate technical clearing, according to the provisions of Decision 186 L.R. on the date of March 15, 1926 and its amendments.
The substitution of the two phrases, ‘Minister of Irrigation’ and ‘Ministry of Irrigation’ for ‘Minister of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform’ and ‘Ministry of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform’, and ‘the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation specified by the Minister of Irrigation’ is to take the place of ‘the General Organisation for the Investment and Development of the Euphrates Basin’ in the texts of Law No. 11 of 1971 and its amendments.
In the implementation of the provisions of this Legislative Decree, the provisions of Paragraph C of Article 1, Paragraph E of Article 3, and Article 6 of Law No. 11 of 1971 and its amendments shall be exempted.
A decision of the Minister written down with the General Directorate for Real Estate Interests, indicated in Article 2 of this Legislative Decree, is to be equivalent to the commencement of specification and compiling in the area that includes unspecified and uncompiled lands according to that which is stipulated in Paragraph E of Article 1 of Law No. 11 of 1971 and its amendments.
Land reclamation in the specified and compiled areas are to be exempted from the application of the provisions of Article 14 of Legislative Decree No. 145 of 1966, unless the Minister of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform issues the necessary decisions to ensure the rights of agricultural reform within them.

Article 6
It is forbidden, from the date specified in the Minister’s decision announcing the reclamation operations, to change the appearance of the land or the facilities within it, or to invest in agricultural land that harms the existing agricultural harvest. This harm may be estimated in a written notice by the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation because it halts agricultural work during the reclamation activities according to the annual executive programs. This body shall pay no compensation emerging from the destruction of produce or demolition of facilities that took place against the provisions of this Article.

Article 7
The body engaging in reclamation has the right to claim the real estate in the region of reclamation, and to begin its activity from the date specified in the decision of the Minister.

Article 8

Previous contracts to commence reclamation that are entirely related to investment in the reclamation area are to be halted within the reclamation period, with the endorsement of the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation. The effects of the previous contracts are to resume from the date of the issuance of the decision of final distribution, unless the bodies to the agreement consent to halting it. They otherwise remain subject to the relevant legal principles.
It is forbidden for the Directorate of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform, or any other body in the reclamation region, to put into effect the lease or investment contracts on this land. A contract that contradicts this is invalid. This prohibition ends from the date of the issuance of the final distribution agreement.
The ownership of lands included in the reclamation decision can be transferred in a way that does not exceed the ownership ceiling set forth in this Legislative Decree.

Article 9

The Minister is to issue the necessary decisions to form a technical committee made up of the following:
A representative of the Minister: President
A representative of the Ministry of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform: Member
A representative of the Farmers’ Union in the province: Member
A representative of the provincial council: Member
The task of the committee members in the Paragraph A above are as follows:
Describing real estate and facilities and irrigation existing upon it, and noting the names of those who work them.
Estimating the compensation emerging from preventing investment in the land and facilities.
Estimating the compensation emerging from the destruction of produce and facilities, in the event of their destruction.
With respect to the provisions of Article 6 of this Legislative Decree, the Ministry must carry out these compensations to those to whom they are owed within one year from their estimation through the relevant public body, per Paragraph 3, and within three months from their estimation according to Paragraph 3.
The members of the committees are to take the following oath in front of the president of the initial civilian court before undertaking their tasks: ‘I swear to God that I will perform my task with faithfulness, sincerity, and utter neutrality.’
The technical committees are to announce the decisions concerning the results of their work in the headquarters of the relevant regions, areas, and farmers’ organizations.

Article 10

The body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation and whoever is adversely affected can review the decision of the technical committee within 15 days from the date of its announcement. This may be done before a review committee, formed by a decision from the Minister, with the following structure:
A judge named by the Minister of Justice: President
A representative of the Ministry of Irrigation named by the Minister of Irrigation: Member
A representative of the General Union of Farmers named by the President of the General Union of Farmers: Member
The aforementioned committee is to conclude with the review within ten days of the objection being lodged.
The committee is exempted from following the Law of Principles of Courts.
The decisions issued by the review committee shall be final.
Committee members are to take the legal oath described in the previous Article in front of its president before undertaking their tasks.

Article 11

Upon the conclusion of the project’s land reclamation and distribution, a decision shall be issued by the president of the Council of Ministers, based upon the suggestion of the Minister, that determines the extent of the cost of each hectare of reclaimed irrigated land from the accounted reclamation costs.
Upon the conclusion of the project’s reclamation procedure and distribution, the Minister shall issue a decision at its close in which the body overseeing investment in the irrigated reclaimed areas is to be specified.
Those with rights in the reclamation area are to abide by the following:
Cultivation of lands must be undertaken according to the agricultural plan approved by the Council of Ministers.
Construction may not be undertaken on irrigated reclaimed lands that violates the relevant laws.
Implementation must be undertaken in accordance with directions from the body overseeing investment, as pertains to the protection of irrigation canals, drains, and accessories; preventing the pollution of the waters in them and blocking without waste; and ensuring the repair and insulation of canals and drains.
The Minister, based upon the suggestion of the director of the body overseeing the investment, shall issue the necessary instructions for the implementation of the provisions of Item 3 of Paragraph C of this Article. He is also to specify in these instructions the canals and drains that the investors must repair, insulate, and improve according to the nature and makeup of the project.
Anyone who breaches any of the clauses present in Paragraph C is subject to the relevant legal texts, and he is to be denied any irrigation until the removal of the violation.

Article 12
A decision is to be issued by the president of the Council of Ministers and the minister indicated in Paragraph A of Article 11 on the forms and conditions stipulated in Article 3 of this Legislative Decree, and it is to be recorded with the bodies stipulated in Article 4.

Article 13

The Directorate of Real Estate Interests and the Directorate of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform, upon the decision of the Minister indicated in Paragraph B of Article 11 of this Legislative Decree, crosses out the note ‘subject to reclamation’ placed upon the entries, presses, registries, and contracts of the real estate included in the reclamation. In its place, per the decision of the president of the Council of Ministers, a note shall be placed upon the real estate of enforced insurance in the interest of the Ministry in the value of the accounted and resulting costs of reclamation. This note has the same rights and privileges as those of the state, and no real estate deal can be made except with written permission from the Ministry, and the note of enforced insurance is to be crossed out upon the fulfilment of the entire value of the reclamation costs.
The Directorate of Real Estate Interests in the specified province shall record the real estate and portions of real estate included in the decision of the committee for the final distribution of irrigated reclaimed lands in its real estate journals as ‘irrigated reclaimed lands’.
No disposal that leads to the transfer of ownership of irrigated reclaimed real estate, in whole or in part, can take place before the payment of the instalments of the costs of reclamation incumbent upon the real estate desired to be disposed, until the date of the documentation of the contract with the real estate offices charged with keeping the imposed insurance note written in the real estate journals in exchange for the remaining sums of the costs of reclaiming it.

Article 14

The costs of reclaiming irrigated lands are to be settled by the landowners, beneficiaries, and all bodies that have received irrigated reclaimed land in the reclamation projects.
The costs of reclaiming lands in the projects are accounted on the basis of the mean of the actual cost of the irrigated reclaimed area for each project on its own.
Those beneficiaries indicated in Paragraph A of this Article are charged with fulfilling the costs of reclamation within 30 annual instalments.
The Ministry body supervising the reclamation shall oversee the specification of the beneficiary names indicated in Paragraph A of this Article, and shall bring this to the attention of the Finance Ministry and its offices in the provinces to collect the owed instalments. The paid instalments revert to the fund of public debt and are in fulfilment of the loans given to fund the land reclamation projects.

Article 15

A technical committee is to be formed with a decision from the specialized director in the directorate or the institution charged with specifying the real estate or portions of real estate included in the reclamation. The committee is to be made up of:
A civil engineer
An agricultural engineer
A surveyor
The Minister is to issue a decision to remove the real estate that appears in Paragraph A above and to place a note reading ‘subject to the reclamation’ upon its real estate journal.

Chapter Two
Distribution of Irrigated Reclaimed Lands

Article 16
By a decision from the Minister, one or more committees are to be formed in each province in which land reclamation projects are taking place, with the task of distributing, to those with rights to them, the lands reclaimed and irrigated according to the completion plans, as per the principles specified in this Legislative Decree and the ministerial decisions executing its provisions.

Article 17

Each irrigated land distribution committee stipulated in the previous Article is made up of the following structure:
A real estate judge named by the General Director for Real Estate Interests: President
A representative of the Provincial council named by the president of the council: Member
A civil or irrigation engineer named by the Minister of Irrigation: Member
A representative of the Office of Real Estate Registration and a representative of the Office of Surveying named by the Director of Real Estate Interests in the province: Members
A representative of the Directorate of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform in the province: Member
The general director of the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation shall name a secretary for the committee from among those with experience, ability, and a good reputation in this body.
The president of the committee shall be discharged until the end of the distribution activities.
The period for completing the work of the committee is to be specified in a decision according to the nature of the project, and the stages of its work are to be based on the suggestion of the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation.
The committee members shall take the oath stipulated in Article 9 of this Legislative Decree before commencing their roles.

Article 18

The committee engaging in the reclamation is to submit to the irrigated land redistribution committee, within 15 days of the date of informing it, a decision to form the committee of planning, statements, documents, expertise, and services that the completion of its task requires.
The completion plans for the irrigated reclaimed lands is to be organized according to the files of the conditions and technical characteristics put forward by the Ministry to this end.
The plans and statements of the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation must cover the positions and areas which are excepted from the reclamation or which are not suitable for investment, and the positions of areas that are suitable for investment, and the removal of drains, canals, roads and public facilities that must be put in the public or private properties of the state according to the case to guarantee the stability and success of the process of reclamation, investment, or public interest.
It is incumbent upon the committee, based upon the request of its president, to use the information and experience available in the offices, institutions, and public companies of the state, and it is incumbent upon the aforementioned bodies to meet that request.

Article 19
The irrigated reclaimed land distribution committee is to study the documents, statements, and plans presented to it from the specialized bodies in the irrigated reclaimed area – the plans and statements submitted to it from the body engaging in the reclamation, the judicial provisions that have achieved the rank of requirements, the final contracts, and all of the information and premises and documents available to them – before issuing a decision to distribute the lands in the irrigated reclaimed region to those with rights. This shall be conducted according to the principles specified by the executive instructions of this Legislative Decree, conforming to the following:

Apportioning a section of land subject to reclamation for free in an amount equivalent to that required by the reclamation project specified in Paragraph C of Article 18 above.
In the case that the apportioned area exceeds the proportion indicated in Paragraph A above, the following shall apply:
The compensation of the owners of the land with substitute land from those owned by the state, if such exists, or from the lands that exceed the ceiling of ownership, indicated in Paragraph D of this Article.
In the case necessary land is unavailable for compensation according to Paragraph A of this Article, the compensation is to take place in the form of cash from the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation, within a period no longer than three months from the date of informing them of the decision for final distribution. The value of the land is to be estimated according to the actual price, determined according to the relevant laws.
Citizens with rights are to be returned to their lands. In case they are unable, they are to be returned to neighbouring and equivalent lands by force of law.
No individual can own more than 16 acres of irrigated reclaimed land. Any individually owned area exceeding that amount is to be returned by force of law to the state and recorded in the real estate journals along with the owner’s name.
Areas of land in the irrigated reclamation region to be returned to state property are to be gathered, if possible, into a single real estate, or into neighbouring plots.
The lands removed from reclamation that fall within the irrigated reclamation lands are to remain with their owners within the positions, borders, and areas detailed in the completion plans. Their registration numbers are to be provided within the updated irrigated reclaimed real estate area, according to the provisions of this Legislative Decree

Article 20
A decision by the distribution committee is to be issued in the name of the Syrian Arab people and includes:

The names of those with rights, their rights, the area of the real estate, their numbers and positions, the area of the land apportioned to each person with a right, those with lands whose amount of materials exceeded the free deduction of their lands, and the necessary statements to record rights in the real estate record. This shall be accompanied by a completion plan decision organized according to the provisions of Paragraph B of Article 18 of this Legislative Decree
A recording of the apportioned areas in execution of the provisions of Paragraph A of Article 19 in the name of the private property of the state, or connecting it to the public property of the state, according to the situation.
The president of the distribution committee shall oversee the implementation of this.

Article 21

The president of the committee is to deposit a copy of the distribution decision and its attachments with the party engaging in reclamation, and it is incumbent upon it to place boundary stones that indicate the borders of the properties included in the distribution decision, within a month of depositing the decision.
It is incumbent upon the party engaging in reclamation to respond to the requests of those with rights to prove their properties according to the distribution decision.
The president of the distribution committee is to oversee the implementation of this.

Article 22

The distribution decision and the plans accompanying it are to be announced in the lobby of the headquarters of the province in which the reclamation is to take place, in the relevant headquarters of the regions, neighbourhoods, and farmers’ associations, in the headquarters of the body undertaking the reclamation, and in the lobby of the relevant administrative units.
The announcement shall be considered equivalent to the personal notification of those with rights.
The procedures of the announcement are not subject to any means of judicial or administrative review.

Article 23
Those with rights emerging during the period of distribution, those adversely affected by the distribution decision, or those who are represented by those specified in Article 20 of Decision No. 186 of 1926, have the right to appeal this decision to the committee for the distribution of irrigated reclaimed lands within 30 days from the date of the announcement, with a summons exempted from taxation and stamp.

Article 24

Appeals are to be reviewed by the distribution committee to ascertain the situation of those with rights.
The distribution committee is to resolve the appeals of those with rights with a final decision within 30 days of the date of the conclusion of the period of the announcement.
The decision becomes final if the appeal does not take place within the period specified in Article 23.
The council of state is to appoint an administrative court board to conduct a final review into the decision issued by the distribution committee to see if a grave legal error has corrupted it.

Article 25
The president of the committee for the distribution of irrigated reclaimed lands is to file the final decision and its attachments in line with the following:

As soon as the decision to organize the expense is delivered to the trust of the surveyor to modify its plans and entries, it is incumbent upon the Director of Real Estate Interests to record the contents of the decision and its attachments in new journals, and to write down the previous signs and rights present on the real estate journals before issuing the distribution decision to the updated real estate journals. The decision shall be issued according to the decision of distribution and after the conclusion of the technical operation the Director of Real Estate Interests, the Directorate of Real Estate Interests in the province.
In such cases where portions of the included lands are appropriated or state property with the aforementioned decision, the Directorate of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform in the province is to modify its entries according to what was laid out in the previous Paragraph. Those principles and procedures are to be applied upon the certificates of benefit and the rights that they include.

Article 26
The texts of this Legislative Decree are regarded as a decision to specify the public lands in the stipulated areas subject to reclamation in Article 6 of Decision No. 144 of 1925, and the final decision of the distribution committee is considered the specification of public properties stipulated in Decision No. 144 of 1925, with the mere presence of them in the distribution plans transferring them to the plans for the trust of the area.

Article 27
The public properties of the state in the irrigated reclaimed regions are to be recorded before the issuance of the distribution of private properties to the state, and the distribution decision allows it to forfeit its privatization for the public benefit.

Article 28
The lands included in the final distribution decision shall be considered an independent real estate area, and borders present in the distribution decision are to be modified by force of law to the other borders of the real estate area and the borders of the real estate overlapping with it. The name of the new real estate area is to be decided in a distribution committee decision according to what the governor decides, who also decides the serial numbers of the real estate present within. It is incumbent upon the Director of Real Estate Interests to implement this.

Article 29
The old entries are to be annulled by force of law after the implementation of the distribution decision. These annulled entries are not to be evidence for any right established after the cancellation. Old entries are to remain evidence for the rights that existed before the modification.

Article 30
Final judicial decisions are to be implemented with a modification, cancellation, transfer, or update of personal rights to the irrigated reclaimed lands and recorded in the real estate record, even if they appeared to the Directorate of Real Estate Interests after the emergence of the distribution decision. In this case, they are to be left to the real estate that was transferred to the person with the right, according to the distribution decision.

Article 31
The personal rights recorded in the real estate registry according to the final distribution decision have the affirmative and appropriate power enjoyed by the entries of the real estate record.

Article 32
The dealings and procedures connected to the distribution and recording of irrigated reclaimed lands are exempted from all duties, taxes, and financial costs. Those with rights are to be given a complete picture according with the origin of the real estate journals returning to them, per the distribution decision, instead of the previous, for free and without duty or stamp, and only once.

Article 33

The committee for the distribution of irrigated reclaimed lands, by itself or based upon the review of those with rights or the request of the Director of Real Estate Interests, is to correct the material, written, and technical plans present in its decisions, and to directly implement the decision for correction in the real estate record. After the distribution committee has finished its task, its authority is to be transferred to the Director of Real Estate Interests according to the principles stipulated in Law No. 188 of 1926 and Law No. 189 of 1926.
The corrections mentioned above in Paragraph A are to be specified in the executive instructions.

Article 34

When the distribution decisions become final, the president of the distribution committee is to deposit photographs of them and of the plans attached to them with the party engaging in reclamation.
It is incumbent upon the party engaging in reclamation to place boundary stones upon the property in the irrigated reclamation area according to that which is specified in the final distribution decision and its attachments.
The committee engaging in reclamation is to submit real estate to those with rights per the original submission conditions.

Article 35
After the issuance of the decision to conclude the reclamation and distribution, the Ministry of Agriculture and Agricultural Reform, in its capacity as a body with rights, is to take over the lands returning to the private property of the state in the reclamation area, and to administer them according to the relevant laws and systems.

Article 36
The provisions of this Legislative Decree shall not affect real estate that has had decrees or decisions issued regarding their ownership.

Article 37

The procedures of distributing irrigated reclaimed lands ongoing before the effectiveness of Law No. 3 of 1984 shall remain sound and in effect towards their goals. They shall have the status of public benefit, cannot be invalidated, have the force of a final distribution decision as stipulated in this Legislative Decree, and act after being recorded according to its provisions.
The provisions of this Legislative Decree, issued during the period of the effectiveness of Law No. 3 of 1984, are to be enforced upon the distribution decisions that do not reach the degree of finality on the date of its effectiveness.

Chapter Three
Investment in Irrigated Reclaimed Lands

Article 38

It is forbidden to make any change to the notes of the irrigated reclaimed lands or facilities built on it, or to construct any building or facility violating the relevant laws after submitting the irrigated reclaimed lands to those with rights. Each such violation is subject to the punishments stipulated in Article 43 of this Legislative Decree.
The body overseeing investment shall be given with the authorities stipulated in Legislative Decree No. 107 of 2011. It shall have the authorities of the president of the council of the administrative unit and the council of the administrative unit, as pertains to building permits and violations in the irrigated reclaimed area, including removing violations.

Article 39
Those working in the first and second category in the bodies overseeing or engaging in the reclamation and the investment, authorized by a decision from the general director specializing in overseeing the implementation of the requirements stipulated in this Legislative Decree and the relevant laws, shall have the authority of judicial control.

Article 40
The director of the bodies mentioned in the previous Article shall submit the conditions organized for public representation specific to following up on crimes related to regulation, as per the relevant texts and laws, and to the administration of state matters for requesting personal rights and material damages.

Article 41
It is incumbent upon the body overseeing the investment, with the agreement of the Ministry, to specify the minimum and maximum amount of water provided for the irrigated reclaimed lands according to the nature of the land and the water ration for the supported agricultural cycle and the means of irrigation followed. It is to oversee the distribution and proper use of the water.

Article 42

It is incumbent upon those benefiting from government irrigation projects to put forward the annual expense including:
The irrigation duty on each hectare of the agricultural areas able to be irrigated, on the basis of the water ration according to the agricultural cycle in exchange for assurance of water and the costs of use, and the necessary repair for the irrigation and drainage facilities, with a decision issued by the council of ministers based upon the suggestion of the Minister.
An independent duty on water used in the government irrigation projects, to be organized on the basis of the square metre for non-agricultural ends, defined in a decision to be issued by the president of the council of ministers, based on the suggestion of the Minister.
The amounts indicated in this Article are to be gathered according to the law of collecting public funds.
In some exceptional cases, with a decision issued by the Minister, based on the suggestion of the body overseeing the investment, the following shall be permissible:
A reduction in the percentage rate of the irrigation duties specified according to the provisions of Item 1 of Paragraph A of this Article concerning a certain government irrigation project, in the year in which the dearth of water and the decrease of the water ration provided, from that which was originally decided for the noted project.
The cancellation of an irrigation duty within a year in which the lack of arrival of water to the irrigated reclaimed lands through the project’s special network is proven.

Chapter Four
Punishments

Article 43
Anyone who objects to the undertaking of reclamation, distribution, and investment operations in the irrigated reclaimed lands is to be punished with ten days to one month imprisonment and fines of 5,000-10,000 Syrian pounds, in addition to a fine equal to the compensation for the material damages. This punishment shall be increased with repetition.

Article 44
Anyone who hinders the undertaking of reclamation, distribution, investment operations in the irrigated reclaimed lands as the result of neglect or the lack of caution is to be punished with a fine of between 30,000-50,000 Syrian pounds, in addition to a fine equal to the compensation for the material damages. This punishment is to be increased with repetition.

Article 45
The fines stipulated in this Legislative Decree are to return to the public treasury.

Article 46

Attacking the president and members of the council for the distribution of irrigated reclaimed lands during their performance of their tasks as stipulated in this Legislative Decree is considered equivalent to an attack on a judge.
The judge who is currently president of the council of distribution, upon being informed or becoming aware of a crime, is to immediately bring it to the public prosecutor and take it to the relevant court.

Article 47
The judicial inspection administration has the right to inspect the committee for the distribution of irrigated reclaimed lands, and its works and decisions, in the way stipulated in the law of judicial authority. Disciplinary punishments are to be enforced upon each member by the body that this member belongs, based upon the suggestion of the judicial inspection administration.

Article 48
In the case that a member of the distribution committee commits any of the crimes stipulated in Chapter 1, Section 3, Book 2 of the law of punishments, they are to be brought directly to the relevant court.

Article 49
The provisions of the previous articles do not obviate the harsher punishments stipulated in the relevant laws, and in this case, the more serious punishment is applied.

Chapter Five
General Provisions

Article 50
The director of the body that engages in, or oversees, reclamation, or he who represents it, is to be a member in the branch agricultural committees of the province.

Article 51
The presidents and members of the stipulated committees in this Legislative Decree and those working in the real estate interests charged with implementing the decisions of the distribution committees shall grant compensations. The conditions of which, including those who benefit from them, and what they cover, shall be specified by a decision from the Minister, according to the relevant laws.

Article 52
Paragraph C, Article 3 of Law No. 11 of 1971 is to be modified according to the following: ‘The ongoing works of specifying and compiling according to the provisions of this Legislative Decree have the status of a public benefit, and they cannot be invalidated. He who obstructs, or has obstructed and quit his obstruction, or did not quit his obstruction, must be brought to the ordinary courts in his right in the department in which the name of the person who took his place is recorded within two years starting from the date of the decision of the real estate committee containing the evidence of real estate ownership.’

Article 53
The executive instructions of this Legislative Decree are to be issued with a decision from the Minister.

Article 54
Law No. 3 of 1984 is to be annulled, as are all legal texts that conflict with the provisions of this Legislative Decree.

Article 55
This Legislative Decree shall be published in the Official Gazette and shall be considered effective from the date of its issuance.

Damascus, 04/06/1433 Hijri, 26/04/2012 Gregorian.

President of the Republic
Bashar Al-Assad

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