Recent Hike in Travel Bans Against Dissidents

The number of travel bans imposed on perceived dissidents by the Syrian authorities has increased substantially in the past three years, according to the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression.



The report by the local human rights watchdog named 417 intellectuals, activists and opposition figures banned from leaving the country, although it noted that the real number was much higher.



According to the report, around 70 per cent of those affected are political activists, while a quarter of them work in the human rights field.



Ninety-one per cent of those banned from leaving are males, it added.



The organisation noted that in the Seventies and Eighties, thousands of political prisoners were banned from leaving the country without the prior approval of the Syrian security apparatus after they were released from jail.



It added that between 2002 and 2006, the authorities widely resorted to travel bans to quell all activities related to the Damascus Spring, a short period of political and social debate which followed the death of President Hafez al-Assad in 2000.



Since 2006, certain dissidents have been outlawed travelling outside the country – even for exceptional reasons, such as visiting family, seeking medical care or pursuing studies – as a form of “pressure and punishment” imposed by the authorities, added the report.