Dilemma of
the Lebanese detainees in Syrian jails
By: Elias Bejjani
August 19/08
Like parrots, the Syrian Baathist regime's officials keep rhetorically
insisting that there are no arbitrarily Lebanese detainees incarcerated in their
notorious and Nazi like jails.
Logically and legally these false allegations and big lies cannot be acceptable
unless a United Nations team is formed to investigate the whole matter without
any kind of involvement or pressure from both the Lebanese and Syrian
authorities.
For thirty long painful years families of the detainees and Human rights
organizations have been calling for the release of all the Lebanese detainees
(700 -1000) arbitrarily held in Syria's jails and for the end of this human
tragedy. Unfortunately their calls have fallen on deaf ears, complete disregard
for laws, disrespect for human dignity, and stony-like consciousness.
The Free people of Lebanon are extremely concerned and frustrated because of the
way that their officials have been handling this humanitarian calamity. The
Syrian and Lebanese officials' conduct is mostly characterized by complete
disregard for human rights, and an apparent shameful contempt for the dignity of
the Lebanese citizens.
Concerned Lebanese citizens are wondering for how long these officials are
going to keep pretending that this predicament does not exist?
Do they really think it will disappear and die without clear knowledge of the
fate and whereabouts of each and every detainee?
The newly elected Lebanese president Michel Suleiman has paid last week an
important visit to Syria and met Syria's ruler Bashar Al Assad. The detainees'
file topped his agenda as was officially announced.
Unfortunately Suleiman returned home empty handed. Knowing the Syrian regime's
vicious mentality of camouflaging and elusiveness, that was not a surprise. The
joint Syrian- Lebanese statement that was released after the visit stated that
the detainees' file will be dealt with by joint committees.
It is worth mentioning that committees in Lebanon's and Syria's political
dictionaries denotes to graves where taboo files are usually buried.
For the last 30 years this on-going human tragedy has been advocated for
locally, regionally and world wide through the highest level of diplomacy.
These efforts forced Damascus in year 2000 to comply partially with the issue
and release 54 detainees. Sine then very few releases took place.
Human rights' atrocities inflicted by the Syrian regime on the Lebanese
peaceful citizens are not new; they have been unfolding on almost a daily
basis during the years of the horrible Syrian occupation (1976-2005) of Lebanon.
The Syrian invading army had fought vigorously with many Lebanese and
Palestinian factions, groups and parties. Its Intelligence Services had abducted
many citizens from all across Lebanon. Some were abducted for being members of
parties opposing the Syrian hegemony, while others for taking up an armed
struggle against them. In addition, hundreds of Lebanese soldiers and citizens
are still currently held arbitrarily in Syrian Nazi-like jails for years without
any knowledge of their whereabouts.
The procedures used by the Syrian army and intelligence to abduct Lebanese
citizens are as follows:
1-Directly kidnapped by the Syrian forces in Lebanon and transferred to Syria.
2-Indirectly kidnapped by militias and armed individuals collaborating with
Syria.
3-Held by Lebanese internal security and then handed over to the Syrians
illegally.
According to a pile of testimonies delivered by Lebanese citizens released from
Syrian jails and documented by Human Rights' Organizations, the abducted went
through the same routine criminal interrogative procedures. After being arrested
and questioned for hours or days at times under torture and abuse, they are
either let go, or transferred to Syria for more questioning, lasting at times
for months or years. They could be held indefinitely unless someone with some
political clout intervene on their behalf and set up their release.
However, a great number of the detainees remain held for questioning for
years. Once the questioning is over the detainees are transferred to one of the
many notorious Syrian jails without any kind of trial nor the presence of a
lawyer. They then undergo a series of torture and abuse that differs in
intensity according to their charges.
They are stripped of their names and instead given numbers. Those who dare to
utter their names are harshly punished. Their detention is kept secret, and no
information whatsoever is given to the detainees' families, to the Red Cross or
to the Human Rights International organizations.
For the last 30 years Syria has continuously refused to allow the Read Cross or
any of the international Human Rights' organizations to visit its jails. The
Syrian authorities has also been adamantly refusing to issue a list with the
names of the detainees held in its jails.
The detention conditions in all the Syrian jails is far from humane. The rooms
are dark with no sunlight. No proper sanitation facilities; detainees have to
relieve themselves inside the room. Very poor hygienic conditions, food is the
left over crumbs and very few lucky detainees escape malnutrition, asthma, heart
problems, cancer, tuberculoses and many other health threatening diseases.
Charges inflicted on the detainees were always the same; collaboration with
Israelis against Syria, or spying for an opposition party such as the Lebanese
forces, Free Patriotic Movement and other Lebanese opposition groups. Such
atrocities have never been reported that bad anywhere in the whole world
according to statements issued by lawyers and scholars worldwide.
The security agreement signed between Lebanon and Syria under the so-called
brotherhood collaboration does give in any of its articles the Syrian army any
right to abduct or jail any Lebanese for questioning inside or outside Lebanon.
According to an earlier Lebanese-Syrian agreement drafted in 1951, Lebanon
reserves the right to reject the extradition of any individual to the Syrian
authorities even if he was a Syrian citizen. The individual will have to undergo
his trial in Lebanon in compliance with its laws. All agreements signed between
Syria and Lebanon do not allow such Syrian atrocities. All the practices that
the Syrian army and its intelligence services had conducted in Lebanon are
illegal and were practiced against all local and international laws.
The Syrian regime will not put an end to this 30 year ongoing dilemma unless the
whole file is referred to the United Nations. This regime knows no mercy and
pressure is the only language that its officials comprehend. Accordingly, we
call on the Lebanese officials, politicians and human rights NGOs to work
seriously on handing over this file to the United Nations. All free world
countries should come to the rescue of our living Lebanese victims in those
notorious jails and spare no effort in pressuring the Syrian regime to put an
end to this human dilemma.
Elias Bejjani
Chairman for the Canadian Lebanese Coordinating Council (LCCC)
Human Rights activist, journalist & political commentator.
Spokesman for the Canadian Lebanese Human Rights Federation (CLHRF)
E.Mail
phoenicia@hotmail.com
LCCC Web Site
http://www.10452lccc.com
CLHRF Website http://www.clhrf.com