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SYRIA: 'Gay Girl in Damascus' blog case a hoax; serious concerns remain for all other detained dissident writers in Syria
PEN International’s Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) | 13 June 2011 RAN 21/11
PEN International’s Writers in Prison Committee (WiPC) has learned that the widely reported case of Amina Abdallah Araf (f), purportedly a young Syrian American blogger allegedly abducted in Damascus on 6 June 2011, was fabricated. For further details on how this hoax was disclosed, go to The Washington Post. For more on the reaction from the Syrian gay community go to The Guardian. Please remove all reference to this case when sending your appeals.
In spite of a limited presidential amnesty announced on 2 June 2011 in which several dissident writers were freed (see previous alert), the crackdown on anti-government protests continues. PEN remains concerned about the following cases who have not been included in the amnesty and remain at risk of ill-treatment in detention:
Blogger and poet Tal Al-Mallouhi (f) was arrested on 27 December 2009 and sentenced to five years in prison on 14 February 2011. http://www.internationalpen.org.uk/go/news/syria-blogger-and-poet-sentenced
Writer and editor Najati Tayara was arrested on 12 May 2011, remains detained without charge. He has reportedly been transferred to a detention centre in Damascus.
PEN reiterates its call for the immediate and unconditional release of all those currently detained in Syria for the peaceful exercise of their opinions, including blogger and poet Tal Al-Mallouhi and writer and editor Najati Tayara, and urgently seeks guarantees of their safety. It reminds the Syrian authorities of their obligations to protect the right to freedom of expression as guaranteed by Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Syria is a signatory, and is alarmed at the apparent use of excessive force to suppress peaceful dissent.
Useful links:
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Please send appeals immediately to the Syrian authorities:
- Welcoming the release of writers journalists and bloggers Raghdah Sa’id Hassan, Mahmoud Issa, Khaled Sid Mohand, Zaid Mastu, Khaled Sid Mohand, Mohamed Dibo and Dorothy Parvaz;
- Protesting the continued detention of all those currently held solely for the peaceful expression of their opinions, including writer and editor Najati Tayara and blogger and poet Tal- Al-Mallouhi;
- Condemning the widespread arrest of journalists and bloggers for reporting on the recent protests, which the WiPC believes is a clear violation of their right to freedom of expression;
- Calling on the Syrian authorities to investigate allegations of torture of detainees;
- Calling for the release of all those currently detained in violation of Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) to which Syria is a signatory.
APPEALS TO:
His Excellency President Bashar al-Assad
President of the Republic
Presidential Palace
Abu Rummaneh, Al-Rashid Street
Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic
Fax: + 963 11 332 3410
His Excellency Said Sammour
Minister of Interior, Ministry of Interior
Merjeh Circle
Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic
Fax: + 963 11 222 3428
Email: admin@civilaffair-moi.gov.sy
Please copy appeals to the diplomatic representative for Syria in your country if possible.
***Please contact this office if sending appeals after 30 June 2011***
For further information please contact Cathy McCann at International PEN Writers in Prison Committee, Brownlow House, 50/51 High Holborn, London WC1V 6ER, Tel.+ 44 (0) 20 7405 0338, Fax: +44 (0) 20 7405 0339, email: cathy.mccann@pen-internationalpen.org
