Member of the Syrian Opposition Coalition’s (SOC) political committee, Salwa Aksoy, welcomed the statements of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, regarding the right of families of the missing in Syria to know the fate of their loved ones. She stressed the importance of reaching binding UN Security Council resolutions regarding the release of detainees and the disclosure of the fate of those forcibly disappeared by the Assad regime.
Aksoy made it clear that the course of events in Ukraine demonstrated the possibility of taking serious action in Syria in order to implement UN Security Council’s resolutions on Syria, especially those related to detainees and missing persons.
Aksoy called on Syrians from all backgrounds to demand, through human rights and humanitarian platforms, the immediate release of detainees in the prisons of the Assad regime.
Bachelet talked before the member states of the UN General Assembly about the fate of the missing in Syria via a video link on Friday. She welcomed the request of the General Assembly in resolution 76/228 to obtain a report to study how to step up efforts to disclose the fate and whereabouts of the missing persons in Syria, identifying the bodies, and provide support to their families.
Bachelet pointed out that despite the tireless work of Syrian victims and survivors, family associations and other civil society groups, and the efforts of many international bodies, the current status, whereabouts and fate of tens of thousands of people are still unknown.
She stressed that the families of the missing in Syria have the right to know the truth, stressing that the realization of this right is an essential step towards achieving accountability.
(Source: SOC’s Media Department)
