In November 2019, a group of Syrian plaintiffs filed criminal complaints with Norwegian police and asked for investigations of named heads of Syrian intelligence services and other institutions responsible for torture and other grave abuses.
On this background, we ask politicians, legal experts, activists, and victims who have found protection in Norway, how Norwegian authorities and authorities in other democratic countries can contribute to fighting impunity in Syria.
Panel
Petter Eide, MP Socialist Left Party, Norway
Ibrahim Olabi, Director of Syrian Legal Development Programme
Brynjulf Risnes, lawyer, Matrix Advokater – Defense and Litigation Attorneys
Sofie Høgestøl, Associate Professor, Juridical Faculty UiO
Gunnar Ekeløve-Slydal, Director of policies, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee
Lawrence Almala Ali, torture survivor from Syria.
Britta Redwood, Legal Fellow, European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR)
Moderator: Stig-Arild Pettersen
In cooperation with HUMAN Film Festival and SPACE.
The event will be in English and Norwegian. Free entrance.
The movie “Syria’s Disappeared: The Case Against Assad” will be shown before the debate.
UK/ 2017 / 50 min / Dir: Sara Afshar
Tens of thousands of Syrians have been tortured and killed in secret prisons, by the Assad regime. The Film Syria’s Disappeared – The Case Against Assad by Sara Afshar brings forward testimonies from victims and asks the question; is it possible to prosecute the people behind these crimes?
Mazen Alhummada is one of the characters in the film. He was arrested and brutally tortured in a state controlled prison. Today he lives in exile and fights for justice for the victims of torture and murder in Assads prisons.
We also meet investigators, journalists and lawyers working to fight impunity in Syria.