14/09/2001
Call for Europe to Put Pressure on Syria to Improve Human Rights

Syria has no law that permits the organising of opposition political parties, says New York based Human Rights Watch. The NGO is calling on European countries with close ties to Syria to use their influence to promote freedom of expression.

According to Human Rights Watch former political prisoners who have been meeting and speaking freely have reported that they are under surveillance by security forces and that family members have been questioned about their political activities.

"Now is the time for democratic countries with close bilateral relations with Syria, such as France, to convince the government to reverse this alarming trend," said Hanny Megally, executive director of the Middle East and North Africa division of Human Rights Watch.

The European Union, with which Syria has been negotiating a free-trade Association Agreement, should also weigh in as forcefully as possible, he added.

Syria is a signatory to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantees freedom of expression and association. The United Nations Human Rights Committee examined Syria's compliance with the treaty earlier this year, criticising various practices including that of incommunicado pre-trial detention, and restrictions regularly placed on the establishment of private associations such as independent NGOs and human rights organisations. It also expressed concern at restrictions on the holding of public meetings and demonstrations.

Human Rights Watch also cited and condemned the continuing detention of independent member of parliament Mamoun al-Homsi, who was arrested on August 9, and a recent lawsuit filed against Nizar Nayouf, a journalist and human rights defender who was released in May after serving nine years of a ten-year prison term. The allegations include attempting to change the Syrian constitution by illegal means, creating sectarian strife, and disseminating information abroad harmful to the state.

"Freedom of expression is an indispensable benchmark of the transition to a free society," said Megally, "The Syrian government is now blatantly trampling that right."