NGO launches petition for release of Syrian women

ISTANBUL

An international non-governmental organization launched a petition Thursday demanding the immediate release of women and children imprisoned by the Syrian regime.

Once the signatures reach a sufficient number, the petition will be presented to the United Nations as well as the Turkish, Russian and Iranian governments for their endeavors within the Astana process to achieve peace in Syria, said Murat Yilmaz, spokesman for the Conscience Movement, in an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency.

Noting that the signatures would help raise awareness of the plight of these Syrian women and children, he said there has been no other state or body that has seriously highlighted or worked on the issue.

"If the leaders of the countries carrying out the Astana process are determined on this issue, we hope that all women and children will be unconditionally released from these prisons," Yilmaz said, referring to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.

The campaign can be supported on the Conscience Movement’s official website at vicdanhareketi.org, which is available in six languages.

The Conscience Movement is an alliance of individuals, rights groups and organizations aiming to secure urgent action for the release of women and children in the prisons of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad regime.

The Astana process, spearheaded by Turkey, Russia and Iran, has been successful in establishing a cease-fire in Syria and led to the creation of de-escalation zones throughout the war-torn country.

According to the initiative’s statement, more than 13,500 women have been jailed since the Syrian conflict began in March 2011, while more than 7,000 women remain in detention, where they are subjected to torture, rape and sexual violence.

International Women's Day

Yilmaz noted that the initiative had several activities planned before International Women’s Day on March 8 in Turkey as well as other countries, including the Philippines and Venezuela, to support those women and children who are languishing in Syrian prisons.

"Press releases will be issued, dialogue with decision makers will be established, various activities with human rights organizations will be carried out," he said, underlining that Syrian women who had previously suffered in such prisons and have now been released would also lend their support.

"On March 8, simultaneous actions will take place across the world," he said, adding multiple social media campaigns were set to continue.

Yilmaz said the initiative's main event in Turkey will be a press release at Istanbul’s Sultanahmet Square at 2:30 local time (11:30GMT).

"Our goal is to carry out this work [of the initiative] until the last woman and child detained in Assad's prisons are free," he added.

The Conscience Movement is an international initiative founded last year after an all-woman international convoy made global headlines by raising awareness of the abuses suffered by women jailed by the Assad regime.

On Feb. 20, the international initiative held a conference in Istanbul that drew participants from 45 countries, including Syria, Britain, South Africa, Ecuador, Qatar, Kenya, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Greece, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Malaysia.

During the conference, the participants called on the global community to take urgent action to secure the release of women and children held in Syrian prisons.

Syria has only just begun to emerge from a devastating conflict that began in early 2011, when the Assad regime cracked down on demonstrators with unexpected ferocity.

According to UN figures, hundreds of thousands of civilians have been killed or displaced in the conflict, mainly by regime airstrikes in opposition-held areas.

Writing by Meyem Goktas