24/11/2011 Bureau
Strasbourg, 24.11.2011 – The Bureau of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), meeting in Edinburgh today, is deeply concerned about and strongly condemns the continuing systematic use of violence by the Syrian authorities against their own people, resulting in thousands of deaths, including children.
The Bureau urges the Syrian authorities immediately to stop the bloodshed and put an end to all human rights violations and abuses. The authorities in Damascus must instead create the conditions for the peaceful expression of the democratic aspirations of their people.
The Bureau also calls upon the Syrian authorities, as a minimum, to implement the plan put forward by the Arab League earlier this month. Under this plan, Syria was given 15 days to pull back its troops from the cities that were the focus of anti-government protests, release detainees, allow free movement for observers and media, and negotiate with the opposition. The Arab League, for its part, was to send 500 members of human rights groups, media representatives and military observers to Syria to monitor the situation on the ground and help implement the peace plan. The Bureau regrets that the deadline expired last weekend with no compliance on the Syrian side.
The Bureau fully supports the Arab League and Turkey in their efforts to end the violence and bloodshed in Syria and pave the way for peaceful democratic transition in the country.
The Bureau wishes to recall that, only a few weeks ago, the Assembly, in its Resolution 1831 (2011) on Co-operation between the Council of Europe and the emerging democracies in the Arab world, called on the authorities of the Council of Europe member states to impose firm and effective sanctions on those who have contributed or are contributing to violence against the people in Syria. It regrets that some Member States have failed to implement the spirit of this Resolution. It further recalls that the Assembly stated that “there must be no impunity for crimes against humanity, whoever committed them”, and called on the international community, including, as appropriate, the International Criminal Court, to ensure that all such crimes are investigated and punished.