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Source: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/jul/16/syrian-human-rights-unchanged-assad
Syrian Human Rights Record Unchanged under Assad
(Guardian-UK) Ian Black - Syria's record on freedom and human rights has failed to improve in the ten years since President Bashar al-Assad came to power, according to a report released Friday by Human Rights Watch that reviews Assad's record on political and human rights activity, freedom of expression, torture and the treatment of the country's Kurdish minority. In the last few weeks, Syrian courts separately sentenced two leading human rights lawyers, Haytham al-Maleh, 78, and Muhanad al-Hasani, 42, to three years in jail for criticizing the country's human rights record. Repression has continued despite a thaw since 2007 in relations with both the U.S. and EU. Media censorship remains prevalent and covers websites such as Facebook and YouTube. Journalists and bloggers are arrested and tried in a state security court. Politically, Syria remains a de facto single-party state with only the Ba'ath party able to operate freely.