{"id":253,"date":"2011-05-14T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-05-14T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"-0001-11-30T00:00:00","slug":"","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/?p=253","title":{"rendered":"We must not turn a blind eye to the continuous crackdown against protestors in Syria"},"content":{"rendered":"

\nOpen Letter by Arab Civil Society Organizations to HE,
\nAmr Moussa, Secretary General of the League of Arab States, Foreign Ministers
\nand Heads of Member States Delegations. <\/strong>\n<\/p>\n

\nWe must not turn a blind eye to the continuous crackdown
\nagainst protestors in Syria\n<\/p>\n

\nWe, the undersigned (100) Civil Society organizations from
\n(17) countries across the Arab World, appreciate the League of Arab States’
\nstatement of 25th April 2011 which strongly supports the calls for freedom and
\ndemocracy in the Arab world and condemns the use of violent force against
\nprotestors calling for these rights.\n<\/p>\n

\nThe ‘Arab Spring’ in Egypt and Tunisia has demonstrated to
\nthe world that cries for basic freedom and democracy can no longer be silenced
\nwith bullets. Yet Arab leaders in Syria, Bahrain and Yemen continue to respond
\nto calls for reform by using brutal force and weapons against unarmed
\ncivilians. We fear that the credibility of the League of Arab States, and the
\nstrength of leadership it has shown elsewhere, will be damaged irreparably
\nunless the League condemns and calls for a swift end to violence wherever it
\noccurs.\n<\/p>\n

\nSince the 15th March 2011, over 800 peaceful demonstrators
\nhave been killed and 9,000 arrested in 16 Syrian cities. The lack of running
\nwater and electricity in towns such as Derra and Homs has left innocent
\ncivilians, including many women and children, without essential basic services.
\nThe humanitarian situation is worsening day by day.  <\/span>As the suffering increases, the communications
\nblackout imposed since 22nd April continues to prevent the Syrian people from
\ncalling for help.\n<\/p>\n

\nOn Friday the 29th of April the United Nations Human Rights
\nCouncil (HRC) in Geneva issued a resolution unequivocally condemning the use of
\nlethal force against protestors and requesting the Office of the High
\nCommissioner for Human Rights to immediately dispatch a mission to Syria to
\ninvestigate all violations of human rights law committed with view to avoid
\nimpunity and ensure full accountability of the Syrian regime. However, over one
\nweek later, reports of the use of force and military artillery against
\ncivilians, collective punishment and large scale arbitrary arrest and detention
\nin Syria continue.\n<\/p>\n

\nWe commend the League’s position to prevent mass atrocities
\nin Libya; we now call on the League of Arab States to show consistent Arab
\nLeadership in dealing with the situation in Syria. United Nation member states
\nfrom around the world have now made clear that the situation in Syria is
\nunacceptable; we urge the League of Arab States not to become isolated in its
\nsilence.\n<\/p>\n

\n \n<\/p>\n

\nFurthermore, in solidarity with the Syrian’s people’s plight
\nto gain their basic Human Rights and freedom, we call upon the Ministerial
\ncommittee, meeting on the 15th of May 2011 to send a strong signal to the
\nSyrian Leadership by:\n<\/p>\n

\n \n<\/p>\n

\n–              <\/span>Condemning
\nthe excessive use of force against peaceful protestors in Syria.\n<\/p>\n

\n–              <\/span>Acting
\nin line with articles (8, 14, 18 and 36) of the Arab Charter for Human Rights
\nwhich state that Arab Governments must ensure that their responsibility for the
\nprotection of civilians in Syria is upheld, against all other political
\ninterests.\n<\/p>\n

\n–              <\/span>Calling
\non the Syrian authorities to abide by International Humanitarian and Human
\nRights Law, including respect for freedom of association and expression and the
\nprovision of humanitarian assistance.\n<\/p>\n

\n–              <\/span>Calling
\non the Syrian authorities to lift the communication blackout immediately and
\nend the ban on journalists entering Syria.\n<\/p>\n

\n–              <\/span>Finally,
\nthe league must support the work and findings of the International
\nInvestigative mission authorised by the UN Human Rights Council resolution
\nA\/HRC\/RES\/S-16\/1 on Syria.\n<\/p>\n

\nArab states did not stand still when confronted with the
\nlegitimate aspirations and suffering of the people in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya.
\nArab governments must now show that this region is capable of protecting its
\nown civilian populations during times of such acute need without hypocrisy and
\ndouble standards. The eyes of the world are on us and history will judge the
\nhumanity of this region according to our reaction to events in Syria and
\nelsewhere. We urge you to leave a record that we and our children are proud of.\n<\/p>\n

\nAs always, we believe that the League of Arab States has a
\nvital and essential role to play and we urge the League of Arab States to
\ndemonstrate continued constructive leadership at this crucial time.\n<\/p>\n

\nSincerely,\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Cairo
\nInstitute For Human Rights Studies (CIHRS) – Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Egyptian
\nInitiative for Personal Rights (EIPR)  <\/span>–
\nEgypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Arab
\nProgramme for Human Rights Activists (APHRA)– Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Ani
\nCentre for Human Rights and Developments – Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Egyptian
\nFoundation for Refugees Rights – Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Arab
\nNetwork for Human Rights Information (ANHRI) – Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Andalus
\nInstitute for Tolerance and anti-Violence Studies – Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Arab
\nFoundation for Civil Society and Human Rights Support  <\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Egyptian
\nAssociation for Community Participation Enhancement\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Association
\nof Freedom of Thought and Expression, Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Egyptian
\nfoundation for Advancement of the Childhood Conditions – Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Hesham
\nMubarak Law Center – Egypt\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Damascus
\nCentre for Human Rights Studies (DCHRS)– Syria\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>National
\nOrganization for Human Rights – Syria\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Arab
\nCommittee for freedom of expression – Syria\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Haitham
\nMaleh Foundation For the Defense of Syrian Human Rights Defenders – Syria\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Human
\nRights First Society (HRFS) – Saudi Arabia\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Bahrain
\nYouth Society for Human Rights – Bahrain\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Al
\nBahrain Centre for Human Rights – Bahrain\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Social
\nDemocratic Forum (SDF) – Yemen\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Yemeni
\nOrganization for Defending Rights and Democratic Freedoms  <\/span>– Yemen\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Human
\nRights & Democracy Media Center (SHAMS) – Palestine\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Palestinian
\nOrganization for Human Rights – Palestine\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Sudan
\nDevelopment Association – Sudan\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Al Khatim
\nCentre for Enlightenment & Human Development (KACE) – Sudan\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Sudan
\nSocial Development Organization (SUDO)\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>The
\nAlgerian League for the Defence of Human Rights – Algeria\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Permanent
\nPeace Movement (includes 20 member organisations) – Lebanon\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Palestinian
\nHuman Rights Organization, Lebanon\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Iraqi
\nHuman Right Association in Denmark\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>The
\nMauritanian  <\/span>Association for Human Rights
\n– Mauritania\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Kuwait
\nSociety for Human Rights for Human Rights – Kuwait\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Arab
\nCoalition for Darfur (includes 56 member organisations) – Regional\n<\/p>\n

\n•             <\/span>Arab
\nMedia Crisis Network (includes  <\/span>20
\nmembers) – Regional\n<\/p>\n

\n \n<\/p>\n

\n \n<\/p>\n

\n \n<\/p>\n

\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\nOpen Letter by Arab Civil Society Organizations to HE,
\nAmr Moussa, Secretary General of the League of Arab States, Foreign Ministers
\nand Heads of Member States Delegations. <\/strong>\n<\/p>\n

\nWe must not turn a blind eye to the continuous crackdown
\nagainst protestors in Syria\n<\/p>\n

\nWe, the undersigned (100) Civil Society organizations from
\n(17) countries across the Arab World, appreciate the League of Arab States’
\nstatement of 25th April 2011 which strongly supports the calls for freedom and
\ndemocracy in the Arab world and condemns the use of violent force against
\nprotestors calling for these rights.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-253","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=253"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/253\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=253"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=253"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dchrs.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=253"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}