Bar Association Urged to Drop Accusations Against Lawyer

The Kurdish Organisation for the Defence of Human Rights and General Freedoms in Syria called on the Bar Association in an August 19 statement to drop its accusations against a jailed Syrian lawyer.



On August 4, the Syrian Bar Association accused Mohannad al-Hassani, a prominent civil rights activist and the head of the Syrian Organisation for Human Rights, of leading an “unlicensed organisation” and “spreading false information”.



Hassani, who for years monitored the trials of dissidents at the state security court, was arrested by the state security services on July 28.



Hassani, whose case is being reviewed by the bar association’s disciplinary committee, could be permanently disbarred and prevented from working as a lawyer if he is found guilty of the accusations against him.



The Kurdish organisation’s website reported that the advocate was taken from the Adra prison in Damascus on August 18 to the bar association’s premises where he underwent a secret hearing despite calls from a number of lawyers to make his case public .



It added that during the hearing, Hassani denied all the accusations against him and declared, "The unity of any country springs from the protection its citizens’ rights, freedom and dignity.”



“You are responsible before God, history, your conscience and future generations,” Hassani told the Bar Association’s jury, the group said.

The hearing was adjourned until next week, the website said.



The statement expressed deep concern at the deterioration of human rights in Syria and actions against human rights advocates, like arbitrarily removing them from their jobs or expelling them from unions.