Release Syrian Democracy Activists

Date Issued: January 11, 2008

UPDATE: On January 28, 2008 yet another activist affiliated with the Damascus Declaration was arrested by the Syrian Security forces. Riad Seif, president of the secretariat of the National Council of the Damascus Declaration, was arrested and charged under broad criminal provisions concerning membership in illegal or secret groups and undermining the state. His arrest came immediately after the a court hearing for the other activists arrested in recent weeks, whose cases are described below.

Click here to read this alert in Arabic

In a serious escalation of repression against non-violent government critics, State Security Services in Syria detained more than 40 activists who took part in a December 1 meeting for supporters of the Damascus Declaration for Democratic and National Change just outside Damascus. At least nine activists remain in detention.

Among the detainees are several leading human rights defenders including Akram al-Bunni, a brother of the detained human rights lawyer, Anwar al-Bunni, currently serving a five year prison term for his human rights work, and the journalists Ali al-Abdullah and Fayez Sarah.

Please join with us in calling for the immediate and unconditional release of these nine detainees, and of all those imprisoned in Syria for their non-violent support of human rights.

Background

On December 1, 2007 over 160 supporters of the Damascus Declaration for Democratic National Change gathered to elect a National Council of the Damascus Declaration and a five person leadership council from within that group. The meeting in Damascus brought together a broad spectrum of Syria's fractured political opposition, together with leading human rights activists, in support of a document (Damascus Declaration) that calls for basic rights and freedoms for all Syrians, full observance of international treaties and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, democracy, and the rule of law.

In recent weeks, the Syrian authorities have detained over 40 activists associated with the Damascus Declaration. Most recently, on January 7, Mohammed Haji Darwish, a political activist and former political prisoner was detained. Other detainees include:

Dr. Ahmad Tohme, a dentist, political activist and elected member of the National Council of the Damascus Declaration, detained in Damascus on December 9, 2007.

Jabr al-Shoufi, a teacher, member of the Executive Board of the Committee for the Defense of Freedoms and Human Rights in Syria (CDF), and elected member of the National Council of the Damascus Declaration, detained in Damascus on December 9, 2007.

Dr. Fidaa al-Hourani, a medical doctor and daughter of a former Syrian vice-president; she was elected president of the National Council. She was detained in Hama on December 11, 2007.

Akram al-Bunni, a lawyer and human rights activist; he was elected as a member of the leadership group of the National Council. Akram al-Bunni is a former political prisoner, and the brother of the prominent imprisoned human rights lawyer, Anwar al-Bunni. He was detained on December 12, 2007.

Dr. Walid Bunni, a medical doctor and democracy activist. A former political prisoner, he was a founding member of several democracy promotion organizations. He was taken into detention at his home near Damascus on December 17, 2007.

Dr. Mohammed Yasser Al-Ayty, a medical doctor and elected member of the National Council of the Damascus Declaration. He was taken into detention at his home in Damascus on December 17, 2007.

Ali al-Abdullah, a journalist and member of the Committee for the Revitalization of Civil Society in Syria. He is a former political prisoner and elected member of the National Council of the Damascus Declaration. He was taken into detention at his home in Damascus on December 17, 2007.

Fayez Sarah, a journalist and founding member of the Committee for the Revitalization of Civil Society in Syria, detained on January 3, 2008.

The nine detainees are all reported to be held in Damascus in the custody of the State Security Police, Information Branch, known as Branch 255. They are reportedly subjected to beating and harsh treatment. None of them have been able to communicate with lawyers or their relatives; they have not been charged.

The situation of human rights defenders in Syria has deteriorated over the past two years. The May 2006 "Beirut-Damascus, Damascus-Beirut" Declaration calling for better relations between Lebanon and Syria was followed by the largest crackdown on civil society since the repression of the "Damascus Spring" in 2001. The round-up of the supporters of the Damascus Declaration is a further escalation in that crackdown.

Numerous other human rights defenders and peaceful civil society activists remain in prison. Among them are writer and journalist Michel Kilo, human rights lawyer and activist Anwar al-Bunni, and pro-democracy dissident Mahmud Issa, who were convicted and harshly sentenced by the Criminal Court of Damascus. On April 24, 2007 Anwar al-Bunni was sentenced to five years on the charge of "disseminating false information likely to undermine the morale of the nation." Three weeks later Michel Kilo and Mahmud Issa received three years' imprisonment for "weakening national sentiment."
The prominent academic and pro-democracy advocate, Aref Dalilah was arrested as part of the crackdown on the "Damascus Spring" in 2001 and continues to serve a 10-year prison sentence for criticizing the government. In 2006, he suffered a severe stroke and was reportedly denied proper medical care by the prison authorities. On May 10, 2007, activist Kamal al-Labwani, who has been detained in harsh conditions since November 2005 when he was arrested upon his return from a trip abroad during which he met with European and American officials, received a 12-year prison term for "contacting a foreign government and inciting aggression against Syria."

In addition, the Syrian authorities have increasingly imposed travel restrictions on human rights defenders to prevent them from pursuing their legitimate activities. Among those who were recently barred from traveling are human rights defenders Mazen Darwish and Fahima Saleh Ousse and environmental activist Abdelkarim Daoun.

Sample letter:

His Excellency Bashar al-Assad
President of the Syrian Arab Republic
Office of the President
Presidential Palace
Al-Rashid Street Damascus,
Syrian Arab Republic

Your Excellency,

I am writing to express my deep concern about the detention of 40 activists who attended a meeting in support of the Damascus Declaration for Democratic and National Change on December 1, 2007. The detainees, who include human rights activists and supporters of various non-violent political opposition groups have united around a demand for human rights and democratic change in Syria. While many detainees were released, some have now been held for more than a month without charge or trial: Dr. Ahmad Tohme, Jabr al-Shoufi, Dr. Fidaa al-Hourani, Akram al-Bunni, Dr. Walid Bunni, Dr. Mohammed Yasser Al-Ayty, Ali Abdullah, Fayez Sarah, and Mohammed Haji Darwish.

These nine activists are being detained for exercising their rights to freedom of expression and freedom of association. Their detention in harsh conditions clearly aims to deter them and other people from getting involved in the human rights and pro-democracy movement.

The imprisonment of the activists for exercising their basic freedoms constitutes a serious violation of Syria's Constitution and of its obligations under international law.

The Syrian Constitution states in Article 38 that "every citizen has the right to freely and openly express his views in words, in writing, and through all other means of expression. He also has the right to participate in supervision and constructive criticism in a manner that safeguards the soundness of the domestic and nationalist structure and strengthens the socialist system."
Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) ratified by Syria in 1969 states that "everyone shall have the right to hold opinions without interference," and adds that "everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of his choice."

Article 22 the ICCPR declares that "everyone shall have the right to freedom of association with others" adding that "no restrictions may be placed on the exercise of this right other than those which are prescribed by law and which are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, public order (ordre public), the protection of public health or morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others."

These detentions also constitute clear violations of the Declaration on Human Rights Defenders adopted by the U.N. General Assembly on December 9, 1998. Article 5 of the declaration states that "everyone has the right, individually and in association with others, at the national and international levels: (a) To meet or assemble peacefully; (b) To form, join and participate in non-governmental organizations, associations or groups..." Article 6 provides that "everyone has the right, individually and in association with others... (c) To study, discuss, form and hold opinions on the observance, both in law and in practice, of all human rights and fundamental freedoms and, through these and other appropriate means, to draw public attention to those matters."

Your Excellency, we strongly urge you to immediately and unconditionally release these nine detainees, and all other human rights defenders detained for exercising their basic rights and freedoms.

C.C.
Ambassador Dr. Imad Mustapha
Embassy of the Syrian Arab Republic
2215 Wyoming Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20008
USA

Ambassador Dr. Bashar Ja'afari
Permanent Representative of the Syrian Arab
Republic to the United Nations
Permanent Mission of Syria
820 Second Avenue, 15th Floor,
New York NY 10017
USA