International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)

Syria : Open letter to the members of the UN Security Council

http://www.fidh.org/Open-letter-to-members-of-the-UN

Attn members of the UN Security Council

Damascus, New-York, Paris, August 2, 2011
Re. Situation in Syria

Excellencies,

FIDH and its Syrian member and partner organisations are
deeply concerned about the ongoing repression in Syria, the increasing level of
violence reported on a national scale, the deterioration of the humanitarian
crisis in some targeted areas, and the blackout on the human rights violations
committed by the Syrian authorities, as the latter continue to refuse
territorial access to independent human rights NGOs, foreign journalists, and
UN bodies such as the Fact finding mission on the situation in Syria mandated
by the Human Rights Council of the United Nations.

These crimes may amount to crimes against humanity, yet, members of the UN Security
Council have so far failed to a react in line with their mandate under chapter
VII of the UN Charter and in application of their Responsibility to Protect.

Since the beginning of the uprising in Syria in March 2011, FIDH and its Syrian
member and partner organisations have received a considerable amount of
information on the commission of extra-judicial killings, the systematic use of
violence by governmental forces, mass arrests, abductions, enforced
disappearances and detention of civilians, acts of torture, degrading or
inhumane treatments, repression of the freedom of peaceful assembly and
violations of the right to freedom of information, in particular by targeting
the media and human rights defenders, military operations and actions
undertaken to besiege cities, and practices amounting to collective punishment
and to the deprivation of food, water, and medical supplies, as well as the
restriction and denial of access to hospitals. A compilation of this
information released last week, has been sent to your attention.

The UN High Commissioner for Human rights, the UN Human Rights Council, and the
UN Secretary General have all called the Syrian authorities to put an end to
the repression, but this has not had an  impact on the situation. On July
22, United Nations watchdogs, Francis Deng, the UN Special Adviser of the
Secretary General on the prevention of Genocide and Edward Luck, the Special
Adviser on the Responsibility to Protect alerted that crimes against humanity
may have been committed and continue to be committed.

Yet, in spite of these repeated calls, the repression continues to unfold
before our eyes. Over the past few days, between July 31st and August 1st , the
repression in Syria reached a higher degree of gravity. In the city of Hama alone,
on July 31st, more than 100 people were killed as the Syrian authorities
reportedly used heavy artillery, such as tanks, to bomb houses and civil
infrastructures. On August 1st, the first day of Ramadan, at least 41 civilans
died in several cities and villages across Syria including Hama, Arbeen,
Moadamieh, Daraa, Al-Bokamal, Der Al Zour, and Homs. The use of lethal weapons
by Syrian forces and raids of arbitrary arrests as well as with further
allegations of torture were also reported.

As the death toll since the beginning of the uprising comes close to 2000
deaths, the Syrian authorities continue to open fire on the civilian
population, while several villages and cities across Syria are still besieged
by the Syrian army, causing the civilian population to remain in urgent need of
food and medical care. The nature of the violations under way allow us to
conclude that crimes against humanity under the jurisdiction of the
International Criminal court are being perpetrated by the Syrian authorities.

We thus call upon members of the United Nations Security Council to intervene
urgently in application of Chapter VII of the UN Charter, as well as of their
Responsibility to Protect, which world leaders affirmed at the World Summit of
2005, in order to prevent the commission of further crimes, protect the
civilian population and prosecute those responsible, in adopting a resolution
which, inter alia,

• Calls
  upon the Syrian government to:

• Immediately
  put an end to the use of force and violence against the civilian
  population, and to put an end to the perpetration of human rights
  violations and violations of international humanitarian law;
• Release
  all the individuals arrested and detained since the beginning of the
  uprising;
• Respect
  in all circumstances the right to peaceful assembly;
• Ensure
  the safe passage of humanitarian and medical supplies, and humanitarian
  agencies and workers, into the country;
• Enable
  unrestricted access, including to all places of detention, to Syrian and
  international human rights monitors, notably the mission dispatched by the
  Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in application of the UN
  Human Rights Council resolution A/HRC/RES/S-16/1 of 29 April 2011;

• Decides
  to refer the situation in Syria to the Prosecutor of the International
  Criminal Court, in application of Article 13b of the Rome Statute;
• Establishes
  an embargo to prevent the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer of
  arms and related material to Syria or through Syrian officials;
• Establishes
  a list of individuals and authorities responsible for these violations and
  their submission to a travel ban and the freezing of their financial
  assets and economic resources.

Thanking you for your attention, we trust that you will react promptly. I
remain,

Sincerely Yours,

Souhayr Belhassen, FIDH President

-END-

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