Syrian activists and European politicians have called on EU institutions to pressure Damascus to respect human rights in exchange for officially relaunching high-level diplomatic ties.
A year and a half after the fall of the 53-year Assad regime, the Sunni-majority authorities have done little to address the open wounds left by last year's massacres of Druze and Alawite minorities.
The new ruling class has yet to deliver on promises to protect religious minority and women's rights, said Linda Othman, from all-female Syrian legal accountability NGO Huquqyat. “The EU has to be really cautious when engaging with Syria,” Ms Othman told The National.
This comes despite statements made by Foreign Minister Asaad Al Shibani in Brussels on Monday. Speaking alongside EU Commissioner Dubravka Suica, Mr Al Shibani said there are no minorities in Syria, “just one Syrian people, and all citizens protected by law”.
Deepening relations
Mr Al Shibani's visit marked the first high-level EU-Syria political dialogue since Brussels broke off ties with Damascus at the start of the civil war in 2011. It came five months after the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and the European Council president Antonio Costa met Syrian President Ahmad Al Shara in Damascus and announced a €620 million aid package.
Europeans have welcomed the agreement of Syria's new authorities to indirect talks with Israel in an attempt to de-escalate after Israel's unilateral takeover of a buffer zone in a border area and air strikes on Syria. Syria wants “calm and stable” relations with Israel despite its “threats” and “destabilisation” attempts, Mr Al Shibani said in Brussels.
Speaking to IMI Media's Hadley Gamble in February, Mr Al Shibani denied minority groups had been subjected to violence. He also pointed out that some are represented in public office, though civil society says their numbers are too low, as is female representation. There is only one female minister out of 23 cabinet members, and six female MPs.
The EU's diplomatic outreach to Syria is welcome, but it has to include a “real and clear benchmark for human rights”, said Ms Othman on the sidelines of a panel on protection, accountability and an inclusive transition in Syria at the European Parliament. It was organised by Italian socialist MEP Marco Tarquinio and European NGOs including the EuroMed Rights network.
With more than 90 per cent of Syrians living under the poverty line, Syria remains a “deeply fragile” country that “requires more than economic investment”, Ms Othman told MEPs. “It requires justice, truth and trust that only an inclusive process can build.”
Empty words?
Last year, the EU lifted most of its sanctions on Syria but said it would be attentive to the human rights situation and would reinstate them if needed.
Speaking to The National, Swedish MEP Evin Incir said she feared these would remain empty words. In Syria, accountability efforts so far remain largely restricted to crimes linked to the Assad regime.
Having grown up in Sweden with Kurdish origins, Ms Incir said it was important that minority rights be recognised in the constitution of the country so that it does not depend on government decisions.
“The Syrian government hasn’t gone from words to actions,” Ms Incir said. “There’s been lots of promises on respect for human rights, international law, inclusiveness, but at the same time, last year, we saw violations against all those principles and all those laws [with] attacks on Druze, Kurds and other groups in Syria.”
The area of Sweida in southern Syria has become a de facto autonomous zone after sectarian clashes last year left hundreds dead. In the north-east, Kurdish groups struck a fragile agreement with Damascus to integrate state institutions after heavy fighting in January.
Investigative committees set up after sectarian violence are disproportionately Sunni Muslim-dominated, said Riad Ali, a Syrian judge who defected in 2012. There should be “at least one person” from the affected sectarian group to gain the trust of victims, he said.
