OHCHR PRESS BRIEFING NOTES - (1) Syria, (2)
Central African Republic
Spokesperson
for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights:
Rupert Colville
Location: Geneva
Subjects: 1) Syria
2) Central African Republic
1)
Syria
We welcome reports that the parties to the
conflict in Syria have agreed to extend the humanitarian pause in Old Homs for
three more days. The delivery of long-awaited and much-needed humanitarian aid
to Old Homs is a very welcome development, as is the fact that hundreds of
beleaguered, traumatized, sick and injured civilians have finally been allowed
to leave the conflict zone.
It is, however, disgraceful that UN and
Syrian Arab Red Crescent aid workers delivering food and medical aid on Sunday
were clearly targeted when the previous agreement to halt the fighting during
the humanitarian operations was breached. It is a war crime to deliberately
fire on those carrying out humanitarian operations.
We are also deeply concerned to learn that
a number of boys and men and their families were seized by the authorities as
they left the besieged area. It is essential that they do not come to any harm,
and along with our colleagues in other UN organizations we will continue to
press for their proper treatment according to the international humanitarian
and human rights law.
Those not engaged in hostilities must be
free to move to safe areas. Evacuations must be voluntary and should not amount
to forced displacement or evictions. It is important that all parties to the
conflict respect international humanitarian law and international human rights
law, including the prohibition on indiscriminate and disproportionate attacks.
The protections contained in Common Article
3 of the Geneva Conventions, as a minimum must be respected. These include the
absolute prohibition of a number of acts against persons taking no active part
in the hostilities, including members of armed forces who have laid down their
arms, and those placed ' hors de combat ' by sickness, wounds, detention, or
any other cause. The prohibited acts are violence to life and person, in
particular murder of all kinds, mutilation, cruel treatment and torture; taking
of hostages; and outrages upon personal dignity, in particular humiliating and
degrading treatment.
There must not be an assumption that those
who remain in Old Homs and other besieged areas are all combatants. In
addition, attacks against individuals who are hors de combat due to sickness,
injury, capture or surrender, are prohibited by international humanitarian law.
The High Commissioner and other UN and
humanitarian partners have, for many months, been urging safe passage for
civilians and humanitarian access to all besieged areas of Syria. At least
240,000 people are estimated to be in areas under siege in the country, and we
plan to issue a wider analysis of this situation in the coming days.
We renew our calls for unimpeded, continued
and safe access to all the besieged areas of the country.
Under international human rights law, notably
the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, States are
bound by core obligations to ensure minimum essential food which is sufficient,
nutritionally adequate and safe, to ensure freedom from hunger; essential
primary health care, including essential medicine; essential basic shelter and
housing, including sanitation; access to the minimum essential amount of water,
that is sufficient and safe for personal and domestic uses to prevent disease.
Almost none of these obligations have been
met in Old Homs, and various other besieged areas in recent months, and it is
important that the small breakthrough we are seeing in Homs is rapidly
expanded, so that more people are delivered from the atrocious suffering ,
deprivation and constant risk of injury and death they are currently facing in
many locations across Syria.
2)
Central African Republic
The security situation in Bangui continues
to deteriorate, with targeted assassinations, increased violence and
criminality on the streets. There are reports that anti-Balaka militants are
extorting money from small businesses and individuals.
On Sunday, a member of the National
Transitional Council, Jean-Emmanuel Ndjaroua, was assassinated in front of his
residence in broad daylight, weeks after two of his children were killed.
Houses of Séléka ministers, including that of the former Minister of Justice,
were looted. Two magistrates were attacked, with one wounded and taken to
hospital while another managed to escape. Also on Sunday, the Rwandan component
of MISCA, the African Union peacekeeping mission, intervened to stop a mob from
killing a Muslim man accused of attacking a woman.
UN human rights staff in the Central
African Republic also conducted a mission to Boda, a town about 100 kilometres
west of Bangui, where 92 people were reportedly killed between 30 January and 5
February in tit-for-tat attacks on religious grounds. Upon the departure of
ex-Séléka from the town on 29 January, anti-Balaka launched an offensive
against the Muslim population of Boda. Young Muslims from the town then
retaliated in a killing spree and by burning down businesses. The team found
houses scorched and the population displaced, split along religious lines.
Particularly worrying is the climate of
complete impunity in the country, illustrated most glaringly by public
statements from anti-Balaka elements claiming responsibility for the crimes and
murders they have committed. Such brazen admissions are furthering the culture
of impunity and encouraging more people to resort to violence. We are also
concerned that some members of the National Transitional Council itself have
made public statements within parliament which could instigate inter-communal
violence. A number of parliamentarians reportedly stated that the brutal
lynching of a man on 5 February, during which his body was dismembered and
burnt by the armed forces of the Central African Republic, was justified.
We are working with various parties to try
to re-start the judicial process in Bangui towards combating the pervasive
impunity in the country. We also welcome the preliminary examination by the
International Criminal Court into the crimes committed in recent months in the
Central African Republic.
We take this opportunity to recall that
fundamental rights of Central African people and foreigners must be respected
in all circumstances and that the leadership of ex-Séléka, anti-Balaka and
FACA, the armed forces of the country, have the responsibility to protect those
rights in the areas under their effective control. They will be held personally
accountable for human rights violations perpetrated by those under their
control.
ENDS
For more information or media requests,
please contact Rupert Colville (+41 22 917 9767 / rcolville@ohchr.org) or
Ravina Shamdasani (+41 22 917 9169 / rshamdasani@ohchr.org )
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