L'UIA dénonce la radiation de Me Al Hassani, président de Sawasiyah, organisation syrienne de défense des droits de l'homme, à la suite d'une procédure qui ne respecte pas les standards du procès équitable

1. UNION INTERNATIONALE DES AVOCATS
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LAWYERS
UNION INTERNACIONAL DE ABOGADOS
INTERNATIONALE ANWALTSUNION
UNIONE INTERNAZIONALE DEGLI AVVOCATI
UNIÃO INTERNACIONAL DE ADVOGADOS
Rassembler les avocats du monde ♦ Bringing Together the World's Lawyers ♦ Reunir a los abogados del mundo
Corrado DE MARTINI STUDIO LEGALE DE MARTINI
Président Via Francesco Siacci, 2/B
President 00197 ROME - ITALIE
Presidente Tel.: +39 06 80 81 34 2 / Fax: +39 06 80 81 58 3
E-mail: corrado.demartini@studiodemartini.it
Paris, November 25, 2009
Mr. Nizar SKIF
Bar President of the Syrian Bar Association
Rue Mayssaloun BP 7541
DAMASCUS
Transmitted by fax: (3 pages)
+963 (11)221 40 99
+963 (11) 222 28 64
Cc: Mr. Mohammad Jihas Al Lahham,
Bar President of the Damascus Bar (+963 11 222 2514)
Subject: Disciplinary proceedings against Mr. Muhannad Al Hassani
Mr. Bar President,
Dear Colleague,
We have been informed of the decision by the disciplinary board of the Damascus section of the Bar
Association to permanently bar Mr Muhannad al-Hassani, president of the Syrian Organization for
Human Rights (Sawasiyah), from practising law as a result of the disciplinary procedure held against him
on August, shortly after an investigating judge charged him on 30 July with criminal charges of
“weakening national sentiment” and “spreading false information that could debilitate the morale of the
nation and harm the reputation of the state abroad”.
Today we are gravely concerned by the gravity of the sentence.
Following our information, this decision is based on the following five grounds:
- “being the president of the Syrian Organization for Human Rights, which has been established
without an official licence and without obtaining the Bar Association’s approval”;
- “having the organization carry out its activities in a way that is harmful to Syria”;
- “publishing false and exaggerated information that weakens the state and its reputation abroad”;
Association Internationale Sans But Lucratif (AISBL) – N° AISBL : 0408.288.242
Correspondance à : UIA – 25, rue du Jour – 75001 Paris (France)
Tél. : +33 1 44 88 55 66 / Fax : +33 1 44 88 55 77 / E-mail : uiacentre@uianet.org / Web : www.uianet.org
Siège Social : Palais de Justice - Place Poelaert - 1000 Bruxelles (Belgique)

2. - “attending and documenting the proceedings of the Supreme State Security Court without being
the lawyer of those involved in these proceedings”; and, consequently,
- “violating the law governing this profession as well as the [Bar Association’s] internal rules, and
harming the dignity, honour and traditions of this profession”.
Like several other international human rights defence organisations, we condemn the circumstances
surrounding this condemnation only motivated by his activities as a human rights defender reporting on
the trials of individuals brought before the Supreme State Security Court, whose proceedings fall far short
of international standards for fair trial.
We recall our letter dated August 24, 2009, by which the UIA, as an organisation attached to the
protection of the legal profession and, more generally, the protection of persons working towards the
defence of human rights, recalled the principles related to the protection of the legal profession as stated
in particular in the Basic principles on the Role of Lawyers adopted by the United Nations in September 1990.
Principe 23 provides for the following:
“Freedom of expression and association
23. Lawyers like other citizens are entitled to freedom of expression, belief, association and
assembly. In particular, they shall have the right to take part in public discussion of matters
concerning the law, the administration of justice and the promotion and protection of human
rights and to join or form local, national or international organizations and attend their meetings,
without suffering professional restrictions by reason of their lawful action or their membership in
a lawful organization. In exercising these rights, lawyers shall always conduct themselves in
accordance with the law and the recognized standards and ethics of the legal profession”.
Adopted unanimously by the States represented during the Eighth United Nations Congress on the Prevention of
Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, the UIA considers that the said Principles have a normative value by
virtue of international customary law. This is all the more so for Syria, which was represented at the said
Congress and therefore approved the Basic Principles.
In the same way, the Recommendation of the Council of Ministers of the European Council on the freedom of exercise of
the legal profession of October 25, 2000 provides in its Principle I, 3 that lawyers must enjoy the freedom of
opinion, expression, movement, association and meeting, and, in particular, be able to take part in public
discussions on the administration of justice and legislative reforms.
Finally, we would like to draw once more your attention, in you capacity as a UIA member, to Article 14
of UIA's International Charter of Legal Defence Rights, adopted in Quebec in 1987, which provides that lawyers
play a fundamental function by representation and by reporting on rights and grievances in society; and
that they must enjoy the freedom of association, belief, opinion and expression. It further states that they
must have the right to take part in public debates on law and the administration of justice as well as the
right to become members of local, national or international organisations or to establish them freely and
without any interference.
As said in our previous letter, we consider that these provisions only confirm the fact that no proceedings
could be taken by the State Ministry against our colleague for activities undertaken within the framework
of his work as an observer of the administration of justice.
This holds all the more true with regard to the proceedings initiated by a disciplinary body, which cannot,
moreover, take the place of the Public Prosecution.
On the contrary, it is up to the Bar to defend the lawyer's role in society, in particular in his capacity as a
human rights defender, and to encourage debates on law reforms and the application of law.
These principles have been repeated in the two international texts referred to below, which moreover
stress the role of professional legal associations in representing lawyers' interests, safeguarding these, their
independence and their professional integrity.
Association Internationale Sans But Lucratif (AISBL) – N° AISBL : 0408.288.242
Correspondance à : UIA – 25, rue du Jour – 75001 Paris (France)
Tél. : +33 1 44 88 55 66 / Fax : +33 1 44 88 55 77 / E-mail : uiacentre@uianet.org / Web : www.uianet.org
Siège Social : Palais de Justice - Place Poelaert - 1000 Bruxelles (Belgique)

3. In the same way, UIA's International Charter of Legal Defence Rights provides that:
“The functions of the Bar, in ensuring the independence of the legal profession, are among other
things:
(…)
c) to uphold the role of lawyers in society and to preserve the independence of the profession and
the defence;
(…)
f) to promote the right of everyone to have his case heard fairly and in public by a competent,
independent and impartial court, according to valid legal procedure, in all matters”.
Furthermore, with regard to ethical standards that are purported to have been violated and the concerned
disciplinary proceedings, we would like to once again recall the Basic Principles on the role of Lawyers:
“26. Codes of professional conduct for lawyers shall be established by the legal profession
through its appropriate organs, or by legislation, in accordance with national law and custom and
recognized international standards and norms.
27. Charges or complaints made against lawyers in their professional capacity shall be processed
expeditiously and fairly under appropriate procedures. Lawyers shall have the right to a fair
hearing, including the right to be assisted by a lawyer of their choice.
28. Disciplinary proceedings against lawyers shall be brought before an impartial disciplinary
committee established by the legal profession, before an independent statutory authority, or
before a court, and shall be subject to an independent judicial review.
29. All disciplinary proceedings shall be determined in accordance with the code of professional
conduct and other recognized standards and ethics of the legal profession and in the light of these
principles”.
The European Council's Council of Ministers' Recommendation No. R(2000)21 also reiterates these
principles, adding that: “disciplinary proceedings should be conducted with full respect of the principles
and rules laid down in the European Human Rights Convention, including the rights of the lawyer
concerned to participate in to take part in the proceedings and to apply for judicial review of the
decision”.
We are informed that Muhannad al-Hassani’s lawyers now plan to appeal the decision by the Damascus
section of the Bar Association before a review mechanism of the national Bar Association.
We call on the Bar Association to ensure that our colleague is granted a fair trial and the disciplinary
decision overturned since there are no legal grounds for banning Mr Muhannad al-Hassani from practising
law on the basis of the charges held against him by the disciplinary body of the Damascus section of the
Bar.
Thanking you for your attention to the present letter, we assure you, Mr. President, of our highest
consideration.
____________________
Corrado DE MARTINI
UIA President
Association Internationale Sans But Lucratif (AISBL) – N° AISBL : 0408.288.242
Correspondance à : UIA – 25, rue du Jour – 75001 Paris (France)
Tél. : +33 1 44 88 55 66 / Fax : +33 1 44 88 55 77 / E-mail : uiacentre@uianet.org / Web : www.uianet.org
Siège Social : Palais de Justice - Place Poelaert - 1000 Bruxelles (Belgique)