Top British news site reveals the "veneer of democracy" in Syria

One of the UK's most influential news websites has today carried an article slamming Syrian abuses of human rights and urging the UK Foreign Secretary to be more robust in his dealings with Damascus.

Conservativehome.com features the article 'Syria - Corruption, censorship, and the veneer of democracy' by Dan Hamilton, who runs the civil liberties campaign group Big Brother Watch. In the article, Mr Hamilton highlights the suppression of press and internet freedoms and significant cases of human rights abuses. He also raises serious questions about a Syrian regime insider. Mr Hamilton states:

"Global security concerns aside, my organisation Big Brother Watch is keen to draw urgent attention to the regime’s treatment of bloggers and journalists – the very people who are playing an increasingly important role in the struggle for freedom and democracy in the Arab world. In July of last year, Reporters Without Borders ranked Syria 165th out 175 countries in their Press Freedom Index, and they regard Syria as one of the world’s 40 worst “predators of press freedom” and as an “Enemy of the Internet.”

"As is de rigueur in undemocratic regimes, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube are banned inside the country. Sensing that other news sources cannot be so easily suppressed, the Syrian government has sought to take further concrete steps to assert their control over the free press... Indeed, under the new internet law which is awaiting final assent from the Syrian Parliament, a new legal framework has been established which would require both ordinary bloggers and journalists to register as members of the country’s state-controlled journalism union – a move which would see their comments subjected to the veto-power of the government’s powerful media regulator.

"The regime is fundamentally hostile to criticism whether it comes from teenage bloggers or elderly poets, academics or housewives. In November, a teenage girl was arrested and jailed on charges “spying for a foreign government” for writing “dissident” poems while the 79 year old human rights lawyer Haytham Al-Maleh was sentenced to three years in prison last year for “transferring false and exaggerated news that weaken national sentiments” after criticising the regime’s continued use of emergency laws designed for times of war. At the other end of the spectrum, cartoonist Ali Farzat has faced intimidation for his gentle ribbing of political figures (no national newspaper dares any longer publish his content).

"At the 2009 party conference in Manchester, the then Shadow Foreign Secretary William Hague spoke of his intention to conduct “robust dialogue with Syria” when in government. In light of the deteriorating human rights situation in Syria today, now Foreign Secretary Hague must now put that plan into action."

Commenting on the article, Dr Charles Tannock MEP, the Foreign Affairs and Human Rights Spokesman for the UK Conservative delegation in the European Parliament, said: "Nice analysis piece Dan and I too had hoped in vain we could decouple Syria from Iran but am afraid Syria remains a one party Baathist (the only one left after Saddam's demise)dicatorship with brutal repression of all pluralist democratic dissent and overt support for islamist terrorist organisations. About the only thing going in its favour is that its on paper secular (but still sadly supports jihadi Hamas and Hezbollah) and has protected the fleeing Assyrian Christians from Iraq and women are allowed to be educated and not repressed. I have met many Syrian opposition figures in exile and will continue to campaign for more freedom and democracy in what is actually one of the most sophisticated societies in the middle east and its long suffering people certainly deserve a lot better!"

Commenting on the article, ODFS Director Ribal Al-Assad, said: "I am pleased to see that the work we have been doing at the ODFS has started to influence British political debate and, most importantly, British political attitudes towards the Syrian regime. We will continue to work tirelessly to inform British politicians of the truth about Syrian politics, and I am glad that our concerns are shared by others."