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November 5, 1999
His Excellency Hafez al-Assad
President of the Syrian Arab Republic
Presidential Palace
Damascus, Syria
Your Excellency,
The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is deeply concerned about the health
of Nizar Nayyouf, a Syrian journalist, writer, and human rights activist who is
currently serving a 10-year prison sentence in solitary confinement at Mezze
military prison in Damascus. Our organization has recently received reports
that Nayyouf continues to suffer from Hodgkin's disease, a form of cancer,
and that his life may be in jeopardy unless he receives proper treatment.
For more than a year, CPJ has been issuing regular, urgent appeals to Syrian
officials on Nayyouf's behalf. These appeals followed disturbing reports that
Syrian authorities had refused to treat his Hodgkin's disease unless he pledged
to refrain from political activity and renounced alleged "false statements" that
he had made about the human rights situation in Syria.
According to information recently provided by the New York-based organization
Human Rights Watch, Nayyouf received treatment for Hodgkin's disease in early 1999
and his condition improved as a result. However, medical tests conducted in
August 1999 indicated that the disease "had returned in full force, and that
chemotherapy treatment could prolong [his] life."
Nizar Nayyouf is a founding member of the independent Committees for the
Defense of Democratic Freedoms and Human Rights in Syria (CDF). Until his arrest
in January 1992, he served as editor-in-chief of its monthly publication,
Sawt al-Democratiyya. In March of that year, the Supreme State Security
Court convicted him of disseminating false information and holding membership in
an unauthorized organization.
In addition to Hodgkin's disease, Nayyouf reportedly suffers from several
other serious ailments, including partial paralysis of his lower extremities,
the result of torture he allegedly sustained while under interrogation. He is
also said to suffer from kidney failure and deteriorating eyesight.
Sincerely,
Ann K. Cooper
Executive Director
Join CPJ in
Protesting Attacks on the Press in Syria
Send a letter to:
His Excellency Hafez al-Assad
President of the Syrian Arab Republic
Presidential Palace
Damascus, Syria
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