HUMAN RIGHTS ROUND-UP: LABWANI TRIAL CONTINUES;

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 DAMASCUS 002976

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

PARIS FOR ZEYA, LONDON FOR TSOU

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/20/2016
TAGS: PHUM PGOV SY
SUBJECT: HUMAN RIGHTS ROUND-UP: LABWANI TRIAL CONTINUES;
JAMMOUS'S CHARGES REDUCED, RELEASE EXPECTED; PM FIRES 17
ACTIVISTS; ABDULLAH CASE MOVED TO MILITARY COURT

REF: (A) DAMASCUS 2487 (B) DAMASCUS 002263

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


1. (C) LABWANI TRIAL CONTINUES: The trial of political
activist Kamal Labwani continued June 19 at the Damascus
Criminal Court, with numerous family members and Syrian
activists present, as well as Poloff and a Finnish Embassy
representative. Labwani, who faces charges of inciting a
foreign power to invade Syria (ref A),asked the court to
reveal with which country he is being accused of
collaborating, to which the judge answered "the United States
of America." The judge later quoted the public prosecutor as
saying that Labwani's calls for increased economic and
political pressure via diplomatic channels was tantamount to
calling for an invasion. While citing Labwani's interview
with al-Hurra as the basis for the charges, the judge
announced he would consider allowing a video of the interview
to be shown in the courtroom. The judge also ruled that
Labwani could present an oral defense on his own behalf,
rather than the traditional written defense by the defense
team. Human rights lawyer and defense team member Rezan
Zeitunah told Poloff June 20 that the defense lawyers are
skeptical that the judge will permit the video to be shown,
but that they support Labwani's decision to present his
defense personally. The next trial date is scheduled for July

16.


2. (C) JAMMOUS'S CHARGES REDUCED AS HE FACES MISTREATMENT
IN PRISON: According to press reports, the charges against
Communist Action Party leader Fatteh Jammous have officially
been reduced from a felony to a misdemeanor by the judge
presiding over his case. Jammous, who was arrested May 1,
will thus face a maximum sentence of six months in prison
rather than the life sentence or even execution posed by the
initial charge of encouraging a sectarian civil war (ref B).
Post contacts have also reported that Jammous is expected to
be released shortly (as per normal criminal court standards
for defendants accused of misdemeanors) until his trial. No
trial date has been set.


3. (C) The London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights
has reported that Jammous is being beaten by his fellow
inmates without any effort by prison guards or officials to
stop the abuse. Both Jammous and his family have lodged
unsuccessful complaints in the last two weeks with the Adraa
prison administration asking that he be moved to a different
cell. Jammous is being held with prisoners facing or
convicted of criminal charges, separate from all other civil
society activists also being held on criminal charges in
Adraa.


4. (C) PM FIRES 17 DAMASCUS-BEIRUT DECLARATION SIGNATORIES
AND SUPPORTERS FROM PUBLIC SECTOR JOBS: According to press
reports, Prime Minister Mohammed Naji al-Otri has dismissed
17 signatories and supporters of the Damascus-Beirut
Declaration (DBD) from their public sector jobs. The 17
individuals worked for the ministries of education, higher
education, health, oil, local administration, electricity,
information, and agriculture. Five dismissed individuals,
including DBD detainee Suleiman Shummar, signed the DBD
itself, while the others signed the Suweida Declaration, a
document issued in early June in support of the DBD and its
signatories. Otri dismissed the government employees under
article 137 of the 2004 Law #50, which allows the government
to dismiss employees without citing a reason. According to
press accounts, the dismissals took place at the request of a
committee that included the ministers of justice and labor.



5. (C) ABDULLAH CASE MOVED TO MILITARY COURT: According to
Zeitunah, a Criminal Court investigatory judge ruled June 20
that Syrian Military Court is the correct jurisdiction for
the pending cases against father-and-son activists Ali and
Mohammed Abdullah. This marks the third time the case has
been moved, having been initiated at the Supreme State
Security Court (SSSC) in early May and subsequently moved to
the criminal court (ref B). Zeitunah noted that the initial
charge of insulting a public official (in this case, SSSC
judge Faez al-Nouri) is in fact only prosecutable in the
military court system as it falls under the Emergency Law.
In addition, the Abdullahs face charges of inciting a riot.
According to Zeitunah, the investigatory judge indicated that
elder Abdullah, a journalist, may also face charges of

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weakening the country's dignity during a time of war based on
his writings. Zeitunah noted that this latest decision was
probably not a SARG stalling tactic, but instead a further
indication of the judicial system's confusion regarding the
case.
SECHE