Press release

The undersigned organizations have received information that a presidential amnesty has been issued for Syrian blogger Karim Arbaji, who has spent more than two and half years in a Syrian prison since his arrest in June 2007 for his role in administrating internet forums. Arbaji was accused of disseminating false news that might weaken the nation’s morale. He was detained until an exceptional State Security court sentenced him to three years in prison in September 2009.
The undersigned organizations welcome the release of Karim Arbaji, though it comes only a short time before the completion of his official prison term. We look forward to the Syrian authorities taking serious measures to end all harassment and abuse of political activists, critics of government policies and practices, human rights defenders, advocates of reform and democracy, and those who fight against the systematic discrimination against Syrian Kurds. The undersigned organizations urge the Syrian authorities to end the exceptional state of emergency in force in Syria since 1963, suspend all emergency law provisions, abolish the system of exceptional State Security courts, undertake a thorough review of all penal provisions that restrict the freedom of expression and other public liberties, and legalize the right of non-governmental organizations to take action to protect and strengthen human rights.
The undersigned organizations also call on the Syrian president to issue a blanket amnesty for all those who have had their freedom revoked because of their dissident opinions, advocacy work, or demands for democratic reform. We would particularly like to mention attorney Muhannad al-Hassani, the chair of the Syrian Human Rights Organization-Sawasiyah, who has been imprisoned because of the role he played in exposing the proceedings of exceptional State Security courts; attorney Haitham al-Maleh, the former chair of the Syrian Human Rights Association; the leaders of the National Council for the Damascus Declaration for National Democratic Change; Kamal al-Labwani, the founder of the Liberal Democratic Union; well-known rights advocate Anwar al-Bunni; dissident political writer Habib Saleh; and dozens of people working to defend the rights of the Kurdish minority, especially Meshaal al-Tammo, the official spokesman for the Kurdish Mustaqabal Movement.

1. Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
2. Arab Program for Human Rights Activists (Egypt)
3. Association for the Defense of Rights and Liberties-ADDL (Lebanon)
4. Palestinian Association for Human Rights-RASID
5. Egyptian Association Against Torture
6. Human Rights First Society-Saudi Arabia
7. Human Rights Center for the Assistance of Prisoners (Egypt)
8. Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights
9. Arabic Network for Human Rights Information (Egypt)
10. Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
11. Human Rights Legal Aid Organization (Egypt)
12. Land Center for Human Rights
13. Bahrain Center for Human Rights
14. Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights
15. Nadim Center for the Rehabilitation of Victims of Violence (Egypt)
16. Andalus Center for Tolerance and Anti-Violence Studies (Egypt)
17. Egyptian Center for the Rights of the Child
18. Damascus Center for Human Rights Studies
19. Center for Egyptian Women’s Legal Assistance
20. Hisham Mubarak Legal Cener
21. Arab Organization for Criminal Reform (Egypt)
22. Egyptian Organization for Human Rights
23. Yemeni Organization for the Defense of Rights and Democratic Freedoms
24. Palestinian Women’s Organization