Sacrifices of Prisoners of Conscience Should Not Be in Vain

By Jane Morse

The sacrifices of those who have been jailed in Syria for their beliefs must not be made in vain nor forgotten, says Ausama Monajed, who was himself a prisoner of conscience.

Monajed spoke of his experiences and those of his compatriots in Syrian jails during a special panel discussion hosted July 24 by the U.S. Mission to the United Nations in New York.

The other panelists, who represented Belarus, Burma, Cuba, Eritrea and Uzbekistan, were all former prisoners of conscience or family members of people imprisoned for peacefully expressing their internationally recognized human rights. They spoke to a room packed with more than 120 diplomats, journalists and representatives of nongovernmental organizations. (See "World Community Renews Call to Free Prisoners of Conscience ( http://www.america.gov/st/hr-english/2008/July/20080730104553ajesrom0.1260187.html?CP.rss=true ).")

Although they have received very little publicity, there are many prisoners of conscience in Syria, according to Monajed.

"They are not terrorists, or extremists, or rabble-rousers or foreign agents," he said. "They are like you here in this room: decent people who believe in the same things as you believe in - freedom of expression, the right to elect one's government, a just and independent judiciary, and equality before the law. They are conscientious individuals fighting for their human, political and social rights in Syria. They want to restore pride in Syria and in themselves as Syrians."

He shared the names and told the stories of the many doctors, businessmen, poets and artists who endure torture and detention under what Monajed called "a sadistic regime."

"The United Nations," he said, "as representing the will of the international community, bears a responsibility to these prisoners that they shall not be forgotten, and that the regime which imprisons them shall not be allowed to continue in its repressive practices unchecked."

The panel discussion aimed to underscore the Declaration on Prisoners of Conscience issued in June. That declaration, co-sponsored by the United States and 63 U.N. member states, calls for a global commitment to releasing prisoners being detained solely because of the peaceful expression of their beliefs.

The declaration seeks to reinforce commitments made by nations under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the U.N. General Assembly in 1948. Among its 30 articles, the Universal Declaration recognizes that all people have the right to freedom of thought and freedom from unlawful detention.

FIGHTING FOR REFORM IN SYRIA

Monajed has been persecuted, interrogated and detained several times because of his activities as a university student in Syria.

During his last detention by political security forces in Damascus in 2004, he was interrogated and tortured for a week. He was arrested while doing interviews and taking photos in rural and poor areas in Syria. His goal had been to highlight the plight of poor people in these areas by telling their stories in regional and international media.

It was only after Monajed signed an oath promising not to be involved in any further political or social activities that he was released.

Now Monajed refuses to be silenced. Fortunate enough to have survived his prison experience, he said he feels it is his "duty to tell the whole world what is happening to those who are still in prison, and who have chosen to make a stand knowing full well the price that they will have to pay."

Today Monajed, a frequent commentator on Syrian politics, serves on the National Council of the Damascus Declaration, an umbrella group of leading Syrian opposition parties, prominent figures, intellectuals and reformers.

He is the director of public relations for the Movement for Justice and Development, which leads the struggle for peaceful and democratic change in Syria and the creation of a modern state that respects human rights and promotes economic and social development.

"Regimes which stunt the growth of democracy and civil society and continue to respond to their people's legitimate calls for change with harsh repression should not be welcomed but shunned," Monajed said.

"Prisoners of conscience should be recognized as such by the international community and should be afforded support and encouragement," he said.

Source: U.S. Department of State

judythpiazza@newsblaze.com