HUMAN RIGHTS ROUNDUP: SARG CONTINUES ARREST

C O N F I D E N T I A L DAMASCUS 001723

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

LONDON FOR TSOU, PARIS FOR ZEYA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/12/2016
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SY
SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS ROUNDUP: SARG CONTINUES ARREST
CAMPAIGN; INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATION
STATEMENTS ON SYRIA WELCOMED BY CIVIL SOCIETY

REF: (A) DAMASCUS 01358 (B) DAMASCUS 1297

Classified By: Charge d'Affaires Stephen A. Seche for reasons 1.4(b)/(d
)


1. (C) ABDULLAH FAMILY MEMBERS REMAIN INCOMMUNICADO:
Father-and-son civil society activists Ali and Mohammed
Abdullah remain incommunicado following their March 23 arrest
(ref A). Abdullah's wife Wifa'a (and human rights activist
Rezan Zeituneh) told Poloff on April 13 that the whereabouts
of her husband and son are unknown, as is the identity of the
security service that arrested them. (NOTE: A second
Abdullah son, Omar, has also been detained since March 18 by
Air Force Intelligence for his connection to a pro-democracy
student group. END NOTE.) Following tips, Mrs. Abdullah and
Zeituneh have visited multiple security service branches to
inquire about the two men's fates with no success. Mrs.
Abdullah also made clear that she is focused on getting her
husband released, as she is most concerned that SARG
authorities would torture or even kill him: "If he is
released, he can then work for the release of the two boys."
Mrs. Abdullah expressed her frustration that the arrests had
received minimal coverage in the regional Arab press,
including even on al-Hurra. Zeituneh joked, "Soon we (human
rights activists) will have to turn to the Israeli press to
get any human rights coverage here..." Zeituneh also noted
that Mrs. Abdullah and her 17-year old daughter are facing
tremendous financial difficulties, as all three male
breadwinners are now in custody. Mrs. Abdullah asked that
the USG apply quiet, behind-the-scenes diplomatic pressure on
the SARG to release at least her husband.


2. (C) ARREST WAVE, DETENTIONS CONTINUE: The SARG has
continued its wave of arrests over the last several weeks.
Syrian officials arrested author Mohammed Ghanem on March 31
at his home in ar-Raqqah, in northern Syria. Ghanem, who is
thought to be Alawi, has been a vocal supporter of Kurdish
rights and had been previously detained for one month in

2004. He is thought to be held at the infamous Syrian
Military Intelligence (SMI) Palestinian Branch. Writer and
poet Faez al-Halaaq was arrested by SMI in Lattakia on March
26 and is also thought to be held at the Palestinian Branch.
Other politically-motivated arrests were reported in
as-Salamiya, Damascus, Idlib, and Lattakia. Meanwhile, an
estimated hundred people remain in custody in Aleppo
following their arrest at a candlelight vigil commemorating
the Kurdish New Year Now Ruz in late March (ref B).


3. (C) LENGTHY JAIL SENTENCES HANDED DOWN TO ACTIVISTS: In
two widely-covered decisions, the State Security Court
sentenced two civil society activists to lengthy jail terms
on April 2. Sheikh Riad Drar al-Hamood, an Arab cleric and
civil rights activist, was sentenced to five years in prison
for criticizing the SARG during a eulogy for the slain
Kurdish leader Mashook al-Khaznawi that Drar delivered in
June 2005. Meanwhile, former political prisoner Abdul Sattar
Qattan was sentenced to death, commuted to 12 years in
prison, for membership in the Muslim Brotherhood. Qattan has
been jailed since November 2004 after distributing aid to
ex-political detainees. Zeituneh commented that the Qattan
family is facing financial ruin, as Qattan's wife, divorced
daughter, and grandson are without a male breadwinner.


4. (C) INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS ORGANIZATIONS' STATEMENTS
ON SYRIA WELCOMED BY CIVIL SOCIETY: Public statements
condemning the recent SARG crackdown on civil society by
Human Rights Watch (HRW),Amnesty International (AI),and
Reporters Without Borders (RSF) have been welcomed by local
human rights activists. HRW received glowing praise from
Bunni, Zeituneh, and fellow activist Radwan Zyadeh, following
its release of a number of press statements on recent arrests
and an April 11 letter addressed to President Bashar al-Asad
from HRW's Executive Director for the Middle East and North
Africa's Division. On March 31, RSF distributed a press
release condemning the arrest of the Abdullah family members,
with another release dated April 7 condemning Ghanem's
detention. While welcoming AI's April 4 statement condemning
the recent crackdown, Zeituneh noted that AI had been
unusually hesitant in taking action. Zeituneh told Poloff
that in conversations with AI contacts prior to the statement
release, she challenged them as to why AI was taking so long
to make a statement and if AI had changed its policies on
Syria. Zeituneh also noted that press releases from
international organizations were especially helpful in
protecting local human rights organizations from the SARG and
giving them breathing room to work.
SECHE