Syria Watch

Syria Justice and Accountability Centre: Recent Prisoner Release Fails to Build Trust Among Syrians

April 6, 2015

prisoners-in-syria

Photo Credit: Middle East Monitor

 

In late March, Russia facilitated the release of nearly 700 prisoners held by the Assad regime. While Russia’s Foreign Ministry lauded the decision as a confidence building measure designed to demonstrate Assad’s willingness to begin negotiating a political solution, the arbitrary nature of the prisoner release illustrated the serious rule of law concerns that plague detention conditions in Syria.

Principally, the prisoner releases lacked transparency, information on the detainees’ original charges, and details on the legal justification for their amnesty. Instead, the prisoners were used as political ploys by Assad to garner international support while ignoring the many problems plaguing Syrians — particularly the more than 60,900political prisoners who remain in government custody under inhumane conditions.

According to Syrian law, the government can order the release of prisoners through either parliamentary action or presidential decree. In both situations, information about the decision must be disclosed. However, no such procedure was followed in this case, and as a result, Syrians on both sides of the conflict regard the regime’s decision with suspicion. For regime supporters, the prisoner release was baseless because the government failed to provide grounds for why the prisoners were no longer a threat to society.

For regime opponents, there seemed to be little justification for why these prisoners were released while many prominent human rights activists remain in detention, leading to speculation that the released prisoners were nothing more than petty criminals.

Syrian Human Rights Lawyer Michaal Shammas’ comments on the matter:

michaal shammas copy

The prisoner release came as a surprise and without prior notification — it appears that most of those freed are regular civilians and not [political] activists. Maybe — and I repeat, maybe — the prisoner release is related to the upcoming Moscow II conference. All of those freed were released from security branches…none were released by the Terrorism Court, nor from civilian or military prisons. Until now, we have been unable to obtain the names of those freed; in the event we do acquire that information, we will post their names on my personal facebook page.

The military’s actions shortly after the release also cast a shadow over the government’s sincerity. Before retreating from a rebel advance on Idlib, military intelligence officials arbitrarily executed at least 15 prisoners who had been held at the Idlib detention facility. The executions were a gross violation of international criminal and human rights law and signals that the regime does not intend to sincerely pursue reconciliation.

In principle the Syria Justice and Accountability Centre welcomes the release of prisoners as an important component of the transitional justice process, but cautions that such decisions must be transparent and not arbitrary. In Northern Ireland, where prisoner releases were central to the peace process, the Good Friday Agreement providedspecific guidelines on the individuals eligible as well as the justification and conditions of the releases. The provisions explained to society what they could expect, an essential component of citizen buy-in to the reconciliation process. Unless similar protocols are followed for future prisoner releases in Syria, such actions will continue to be viewed with derision by the vast majority of Syrians and fail to fulfill Syria’s need for principled and open justice processes.

A corresponding duty of the Syrian regime is to address ongoing human rights concerns vis-a-vis detentions, including the situation of the tens of thousands not released. The regime is obligated to prosecute detainees still awaiting trial in a fair and timely manner, and release all prisoners held without charge as well as those who have completed their sentences.

Basic human rights principles also require that the regime make information regarding the number of detainees and their status publically available, and allow families, lawyers, and international monitoring groups like the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to visit detainees and monitor prison conditions.

Finally, confidence building is a fantasy as long as the Assad regime refuses to respond officially to allegations of torture, such as those explicitly documented in the Caesar report, and detail methods of holding officials accused of committing torture accountable.

Assad: “When it Bleeds it Leads;” Syrian Dictator Accuses Media of Engaging in Propaganda

By Kathryn Maureen Ryan
Impunity Watch, Managing editor

DAMASCUS, Syria – Syrian’s President Bashar al-Assad, whose regime has been engaged in a brutal civil war in Syria since 2011, sat down with CBS News journalist Charlie Rose for a 60 Minutes interview last week. During the interview Assad dismissed charges that his regime has used chlorine gas against his own people and has systematic used indiscriminate barrel bombs against civilian targets as media propaganda. Assad argued that claims that his regime has committed war crimes, including the use of chemical weapons against civilians, is part of the malicious propaganda against Syria.”

Charlie Rose of CBS’ 60 Minutes, interviews Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Thursday, March 26, 2015, in Damascus, Syria. (Photo courtesy of the Washington Times)

Assad accused the media of participating in “malicious Propaganda” against his regime. He argued that calls for chemical weapons inspectors and accusing that his regime used chemical weapons against the Syrian people were “part of the propaganda because, as you know, in the media when it bleeds it leads. And they always look for something that bleeds, which is the chlorine gas and the barrel bombs.” He also argued “chlorine gas is not military gas” because “you can buy it anywhere” he also argued that Chlorine gas is ineffective and said that if it were more effective as a weapon “the terrorists” would have used it on a larger scale.

While Charlie Rose addressed several alleged atrocities committed by the Assad regime during the interview some journalists criticized 60 Minutes for allowing the interview to move forward, arguing that it simply gives a mouthpiece and a degree of legitimacy to an alleged war criminal. The interview was given under the condition that it be filled by Iranian television cameramen leaving the regime with a great deal of control of the interview.

Despite Assad’s continued denial that chemical weapons have been used by his regime the international community has little uncertainty about the source of the attacks. Last month, The United Nations Security Council passed a resolution condemning, in the highest terms, the use of chlorine gas as a chemical weapon in Syria. The Council also signaled it would take Chapter IV action if such weapons were used again in Syria. Resolution 2209 (2015) was adopted with a vote of 14 in favor, zero against, and only one abstention (Venezuela). The Council adopted the resolution expressing deep concern that toxic chemicals had been used as a weapon in Syria, as concluded with a “high degree of confidence” by the Organization for the prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) fact-finding mission in Syria.  Syria’s Civil war has killed more than 200,000 people and has created more than 4 million refugees.

For more information please see:

The Washington Times – Assad Interview Just Latest Case of Malfeasance for ‘60 Minutes’ – 1 April 2015

CBS News – Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad on 60 Minutes – 29 March 2015

CBS News – Assad: Chlorine Gas, Barrel Bomb Claims “Propaganda” – 27 March 2015

United Nations Press Release – Adopting Resolution 2209 (2015), Security Council Condemns Use of Chlorine Gas as Weapon in Syria – 6 March 2015