Briefing of the Director of the Release Me Organization, Thoraya Hegazy, at the political session of the Security Council
Syrian women
We wrote our words Bamanana and read our voice.
Briefing by the Director of Free Me Organization Thuraya Hejazi at the political session of the Security Council on January 26, 2022
on civil society.
With loving support from
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
Your Excellency the President of the Security Council, Ladies and Gentlemen
Good evening and greetings,
I am Soraya Hijazi, a feminist and political activist, director of the Free Me Organization working to empower survivors of violence and civil peace programs in northwestern Syria, and a former detainee in the prisons of the Syrian regime.
I will speak today in an attempt to convey the voices of women in my country, because, as you know, we are approaching the eleventh year of the start of the Syrian revolution, which has become a deep crisis, amid successive frustrations of all Syrians who dreamed of bringing about political change.
Here is the Syrian regime still going on without accountability with unlimited Russian-Iranian support, and in light of the silence of the international community, while the Syrian opposition has failed to structure itself as an alternative to this regime due to international interventions.
Only an entire people pays the price in all regions of Syria. Today, Syria has turned into four Syrian women, more like large prisons that captivate those who live in them.
90% of Syrians live below the poverty line and 60% of them suffer from food insecurity. There are 9 million Syrians living in areas outside the regime’s control, 5.6 million in need of humanitarian aid and relief mechanisms, which are always politicized in the Security Council.
Also, in Syria, more than 2.4 million children are out of school, of whom approximately 40% are girls. Women who are one of the most vulnerable groups, you can imagine what future awaits them.
Ladies and Gentlemen
Despite all the efforts made, especially the efforts of the Special Envoy to Syria, the Security Council has so far failed to find a political solution to the Syrian issue, so Syria has become a human tragedy and a hostage issue to regional and international conflicts that made us Syrians lose hope for a just political solution.
This is reflected in the spheres of influence in the Syrian geography that are subject to the de-facto forces, and which are supported by some countries, which has earned them immunity against all their violations and violations of international humanitarian law.
We know that the de-facto forces, after the organizational, administrative and military forms they have achieved, want a future political solution that guarantees their control and gains in their areas of influence.
We also know that you are aware of the attempts of Russia and some Arab regimes to normalize with the regime despite all the massacres it has committed against Syria and the Syrians. Such as the Arab Gas Pipeline, the efforts of the United Arab Emirates to pressure Syria to return to the Arab League and other things that you know.
We also followed with fear the recent statements of Mr. Geir Pedersen to support normalization with the regime under the pretext of "participation".
All this sent us negative messages about the implementation of Caesar's law without an international alternative or economic and diplomatic measures that contribute to achieving justice and peace in Syria.
Ladies and Gentlemen:
As a witness to the participation of Syrian women since the start of the revolution, as well as a witness to the many violations committed by the Syrian regime against women inside and outside the prison, I will tell you that women’s problems are not limited to the spread of systematic violence, and the lack of deterrent laws for the perpetrators, but extend to the UN reports that monitored violence She explained the severity of its spread and its effects on women and society, but unfortunately it did not provide any measures as if the victims were numbers only.
As political feminists, we know the roots of the violations that women are subjected to, and their connection to the political economy of war and violence, and we know the impact of sexual violence on the position of women, and on their productive and political roles.
We also know that the politicization of humanitarian issues by the Syrian regime and its international allies has contributed to strengthening the economic and legal vulnerability of women and depriving them of education and health.
If the conflict continues, Syria will be a source of extremism and a regional center for organized crime, especially with the spread of drug trade, which constitutes a major source of revenue for the regime. The camps and shelters - which lack services - will remain sites for perpetrating all forms of violence against women and girls.
Ladies and Gentlemen:
The Syrian woman, with her strength and will, seeks to transcend the role of the victim in all that she has been through, including killing, arrest, displacement, displacement and asylum.
That is why we ask the Council to:
1. Putting pressure on the Syrian regime to release detainees, reveal the fate of the forcibly disappeared, and make the file above negotiation.
2. Finding mechanisms to ensure that there is no normalization with the regime
3. Putting pressure on the regime and the de-facto forces by allowing international organizations to investigate crimes that were committed by force of arms and removing the perpetrators’ immunity
4. Emphasizing that any leadership for Syria must represent the will of the Syrian people, including the experiences of young men and women, and free from any external interference.
5. Improving the political process to reach a comprehensive and sustainable political solution with the effective participation of women in accordance with the Geneva Declaration 1, Resolution 2254 and related resolutions.
6. Linking the political settlement to accountability that guarantees women's rights
7. Linking the reconstruction file to a comprehensive political solution and to the voluntary and safe return of Syrian refugees.
8. Support the criminalization of any violence against women, with the guarantee of a gender-compliant constitution based on all international conventions. And that gender analysis and feminist policies are on the agenda of the negotiations.
Therefore, we urge your council to pressure to start real negotiations that include all the countries involved in the Syrian war, under your patronage and in the presence of international law, so that our dream may come true to build Syria as a civil and democratic state without the Assad regime and without any form of tyranny.
And when we women see your hard work, you will find hundreds of women ready for active political participation and we will be able to compete for all positions and levels of decision-making as we deserve.
