Fighting War Crimes in Syria – Can Norway Play a Part?

Film: Syria’s Disappeared: The Case Against Assad

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.

Panel talk: Fighting War Crimes in Syria – Can Norway Play a Part?

War crimes that go unpunished, leaves a crippled society. Countless human rights violations, and crimes have been committed in Syria since the beginning of the uprising in the spring of 2011. Those responsible remain largely unpunished.

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

• Ibrahim Olabi, Barrister at Guernica 37 and Director of Syrian Legal Development Programme
• Brynjulf Risnes, lawyer, Matrix Advokater – Defense and Litigation Attorneys
• Sofie Høgestøl, Associate Professor, Faculty of Law UiO
• Gunnar Ekeløve-Slydal, Director of policies, the Norwegian Helsinki Committee
• Lawrence Almala Ali, torture survivor from Syria.
• Petter Eide, MP Socialist Left Party, Norway
• Britta Redwood, Legal Fellow, European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR)
• Moderator: Stig-Arild Pettersen

This event is part of HUMAN International Documentary Festival, in cooperation with The Norwegian Helsinki Committee and SPACE.