DAMASCUS, Syria– On July 23, Muhanad al-Hasani, a prominent Syrian human rights lawyer was asked to attend a meeting on July 26 with high level Syrian intelligence officers.  After two days of questioning, al-Hasani was arrested and detained incommunacado on July 28.  He was formally charged with “weakening national sentiment” and “spreading false or exaggerated information.”

Al-Hasani is president of the Syrian Human Rights Organization (Swasiah), and in that capacity he regularly defends political activists and detainees of the government.  Since Swasiah’s inception in 2004, al-Hasani has received countless threats for accusations that he is running an unauthorized organization.  Furthermore, as is the case with many other human rights organizations, Swasiah was refused permission to register as such an organization within Syria.

Prior to his arrest, Syrian officials placed al-Hasani under increased scrutiny due to his work as a lawyer and human rights activist.  On July 19, after sitting in on a trial before the State Security Council (SSC), al-Hasani’s notes from the proceedings were seized and destroyed at the order of Habib Najma, the lead attorney for the SSC.  Najma contends that al-Hasani’s notes abused the confidentiality of the SSC and that such information would soon be disseminated by al-Hasani on the internet.  In response, al-Hasani contended that the court sessions are open to the public and that he only attended as a human rights observer and thus had not committed any violations of the law.

In light of his arrest, various individuals have spoken out against his detention.  Wilder Taylor, the Acting Secretary General for the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) said that “Muhanad al-Hasani’s unlawful detention accelerates a campaign of harassment against him.” Wilder further stated that, “it also constitutes an attack on the legal profession in Syria and its independence” and that “under the State Security Court Law . . . proceedings of the Court are public and reporting on public proceedings cannot be criminalized under any circumstances.”

Sarah Leah Whitson, the Human Rights Director for the Middle East and North Africa contends that “it is Syria’s repressive practices, not al-Hasani, that’s weakening national sentiment.”  Despite these calls for the release of al-Hasani, he still remains detained under the authority of the Syrian government.

For more information, please see:

HRCP Blog- Update from Wilder Taylor on the Situation of Commissioner Muhaad al-Hasani– 17 September 2009

Front Line- Update: Detained Human Rights Lawyer, al-Hasani Accused of Misconduct by the Bar Association– 26 August 2009

Human Rights Watch- Syria: Free Prominent Rights Lawyer– 4 August 2009

Front Line- Syria: Detention of Human Rights Defender, Mr. Muhanad al-Hasani-31 July 2009