Doha: From our special correspondent in Turkey and Syria In 2011, when many Syrians rose up to contest Bashar al-Assad’s unchallenged power, the regime arbitrarily arrested thousands of men, women, and children. In notorious detention centres, the regime used rape and sexual violence as weapons of war against Syrian women.
According to France24.com, Asma was arrested in 2016 for delivering aid to the besieged population of Eastern Ghouta, an opposition stronghold suburb of Damascus. She was detained for a year in Bashar al-Assad’s prisons and repeatedly raped. Her gang rape was brutal and included anal and vaginal penetration. Yasmine, a 22-year-old virgin when arrested in 2015, shared similar harrowing experiences.
During the 13-year uprising against Assad’s Baathist regime, Syrian women found themselves on the frontline of the war against their will. The Syrian regime used women as weapons, explained Hala Haza, co-founder of Women Survivors, an NGO known as Najiyat in Arabic. This method was particularly used to terrorize the populace when the regime’s power was at its weakest on the ground.
Since 2012, the LDHR has documented more than 700 cases of sexual violence across Syria. Al Sharif, a physician trained in the Istanbul Protocol, has worked on 107 cases involving men, women, and children. Each detention centre had its own practices, with women often raped or forced to undress, according to Al Sharif.
In Syria, where rape is a taboo topic, few victims dare to speak out. The regime’s widespread use of rape in the detention system has done little to break this taboo. Victims of the former regime’s atrocities now face societal stigma. Dr. Zina Hallak, who has documented 53 cases, acknowledged that survivors cannot resume their lives because of the stigma. Fears of rejection and despair have prompted many victims to go into hiding.
The fall of the Assad regime has sparked hopes for justice. However, according to Ali al-Zeer, a lawyer specializing in transitional justice, achieving justice is difficult. Many women do not file complaints to avoid shaming their families. Drafting laws to condemn sexual violence and establish specific procedures for investigations and trials is essential.
In recent years, several countries have brought prosecutions for crimes against humanity or war crimes against senior officials of the former Syrian regime. However, a referral to the International Criminal Court seems impossible due to Syria’s non-ratification of the Rome Statute and Russia’s veto power in the UN Security Council.