Concerned about ailing political prisoner deprived of treatment, Reporters Without Borders urges Sarkozy to raise human rights during Damascus visit

Reporters Without Borders has written to French President Nicolas Sarkozy asking him to raise the issue of Syria's political prisoners when he meets Syrian President Bashar el-Assad during a visit to Damascus this week. The press freedom organisation is particularly worried about the health of Ali Abdallah (photo), an independent journalist held since 17 December 2007. Abdallah's family's is very concerned about a loss of hearing in his left ear as a result of blows receiving during interrogation in the days following his arrest, and about the fact that he was last examined by a doctor on 28 January. He was transferred more than two months ago to section 13 of Adra prison (on the outskirts of Damascus), where conditions are much harsher. The transfer was a punishment for refusing to stand up during an argument with a guard. In its 28 August letter to President Sarkozy, Reporters Without Borders says: “In recent months, you have expressed France's firm desire to reconcile with the Syrian government led by Bashar el-Assad. We understand France's interest in not turning its back on the Syrian leader, an important actor in the region. We were, it is true, deeply shocked by his presence on the VIP stand during the Bastille Day celebrations on 14 July because of the repressive nature of his regime. “You are about to go to Damascus on 3-4 September. During your visit, we hope you will publicly express your concern about the human rights situation in Syria. We think that it is vital that you should raise the cases of the hundreds of prisoners of opinion - opposition politicians, defenders of the Kurdish minority, and journalists - who are rotting in Syrian jails. “Their fate deserves to be raised by the French president. During your last trip to Tunisia, which is governed by an insidious and authoritarian regime, you said to our great astonishment that you did not want to try to ‘teach any lessons' in a country where ‘the space for freedoms is growing.' That statement could not have been farther from the truth. “Mr. President, whomever you talk to, we would like to see you speak out in defence of freedom and human dignity, firmly and in plain language. Men and women pay a high price for being outspoken in Syria. Twelve of the people who signed the Damascus Declaration, which calls for ‘democratic and radical change' went on trial on 30 July. Held since the start of the year in Adra prison, they are charged with publishing false information with the aim of harming the state, membership of a secret organisation designed to destabilise the state and inciting ethnic and racial tension. “They face the possibility of getting very heavy prison sentences on these charges, like writer and journalist Michel Kilo, who is currently serving a three-year jail sentence for advocating the restoration of diplomatic relations between Syria and Lebanon, although these relations are now in the process of being restored. This diplomatic initiative of prime importance makes his detention even more arbitrary. “The state of emergency law that has been in force in Syria since 1962 is a powerful repressive tool that enables military and civilian courts to jail the leading members of the Damascus Spring. Pro-democracy activists, who are stifled by the ruling Baath Party's intelligence services, need to see you as an ally able to defend the message for which they have been deprived of their freedom.”