IDC organized a Side Event during the 23rd session of the UN Human Rights Council
The
Permanent Mission of the Russian Federation, the Imperial Orthodox
Palestine Society and the Institute of Democracy and Cooperation in
Paris held its second Side Event entitled "Syria: the Path to Peace" on 7
June in the Palais des Nations during the 23rd session of the Human
Rights Council at the United Nations in Geneva. The first Side Event
with the same title was held on 7 March 2013.
The
meeting was opened by Naventhem Pillay, UN High Commissioner of Human
Rights. Then speeches were made by: the Permanent Representative of the
Russian Federation to the UN and other international institutions in
Geneva, Ambassador Alexei Borodavkin; Mrs Elena Agapova, Deputy Chairman
of the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society; Mairead Corrigan Maguire,
winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976; Bishop Isaac Barakat, Bishop of
Aphameia, the personal representative of His Beatitude John X, the
Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch and all the East; Archpriest Mikhaïl
Gundiaev, representative of the Russian Orthodox Church to the
international institutions in Geneva including the World Council of
Churches; Mother Agnes Mariam of the Cross, Mother Superior of the
Monastery of St James the Mutilated in Qara, Syria; Natalia
Narochnitskaya, president of the Institute of Democracy and Cooperation
in Paris. A declaration by the Grand Mufti of Syria, His Excellency Dr
Ahmed Badreddin al-Hassoun, was read out: he could not attend the event
in person because of the impossibility of guaranteeing his security
outside Syria.
In
her speech, the High Commissioner stressed the effect of the civil war
on civilians and the need for all sides in the conflict to respect the
laws of war. She deplored the atrocities committed by both sides in the
conflict.
Ambassador
Borodavkin thanked the Imperial Orthodox Palestine Society and the
Institute of Democracy and Cooperation for their relentless efforts
which made the event possible. He deplored the violations of the rights
of minorities and the radical Islamist elements within the rebel ranks
who have been committing atrocities. He said that certain minorities -
Christians, Alawites and Druze - would face annihilation if the goals of
certain Islamists were achieved. He said, "A peaceful solution is
imperative to resolve the crisis. Russia will continue its efforts to
convene and international conference on Syria that hopefully will stop
the bloodshed and open a door for a really democratic future for
everyone in Syria."
Mrs
Agapova spoke about the consequences of the humanitarian catastrophe in
Syria and about the work of IOPS in delivering significant amounts of
humanitarian aid to the people of Syria, aid which was given via the
Greek-Orthodox Patriarch and the Grand Mufti. She called on the Human
Rights Council "to study the evidence brought to the Council by the
religious leaders on the panel in order to gain a better understanding
of the reality of the conflict ... There are a lot of myths and
unilateral assessments which are far from reality."
Mairead
Maguire drew on her experience in grass-roots peace-making in Northern
Ireland to argue vehemently that peace and not war is the way forward
for Syria. "We are deeply convinced," she said, "that peace is possible
in Syria if the Syrians are given the opportunity to realise their
fundamental rights."
Bishop
Barakat deplored the mass exodus of Christians from the Middle East. He
said that many Christians were being forced to pay an Islamic tax, as
in the early Muslim empires, and he said that many churches had been
destroyed and vandalised.
Archpriest Gundiaev described the fate of the two kidnapped Orthodox hierarchs, one of whom is the brother of the Patriarch, John X. The IPOS decided to send a statement to the Human Rights Council about this very unfortunate incident and calling on the international community to intervene for their liberation and safe return.
Mother
Agnes Mariam gave a detailed commentary of the latest Commission of
Inquiry report and, while welcoming certain positive evolutions in the
position of the Commission, nonetheless called for an even greater
degree of objectivity in future reports.
Mother
Agnes also read out, on the personal request of the Grand Mufti, a
declaration by him, in which he invited all United Nations bodies to
visit Syria in order the learn the truth. He said, "People have profited
from the chaos to take up arms in the name of change and to start to
kill in order to sow discord between citizens ... We call urgently on
the international community and the Human Rights Council to intervene
with the decision-makers concerned to stop the influx of arms and
terrorists into our blessed land."
Natalia Narochnitskaya spoke about the geopolitical stakes of the Syrian conflict and regretted the fact that Western countries were giving political and military support to the rebels. She said that the EU was playing with fire by deciding to end the arms embargo to the rebels and that Islamist elements would soon be active in Europe itself.
The organisers hope that the evidence given during the meeting by the religious leaders from Syria will be objectively reflected in the documents of the United Nations and will be widely made known to international public opinion.