Rick Sterling maakt op overtuigendewijze duiudelijk dat Amnestie International op de cruciale momenten door de Neocons als wapen in de strijd wordt gebruikt.
Ze doen een laatste wanhopige poging om tòch Assad te verwijderen.
Note: there are many 'links' in this article, but not very visible, alas. Anyone has an adviose how to make them visible? Here is the original article:
http://www.globalresearch.ca/amnesty-internationals-kangaroo-report-on-human-rights-in-syria/5574195
Amnesty
International’s “Kangaroo Report” on Human Rights in Syria
Global Research, February 12, 2017
Introduction
Amnesty International (AI) has done some good
investigations and reports over the years. This has won them widespread
support. However, less well recognized, Amnesty International has also
carried out faulty investigations contributing to bloody and disastrous
actions. One prominent example is in Iraq, where AI “corroborated” the false story that Iraqi
soldiers were stealing incubators from Kuwait, leaving babies to die on the cold
floor. The deception was planned and carried out in Washington DC to influence
the public and Congress.
A more recent example is from 2011 where false accusations were being made about
Libya and its leader as Western and Gulf powers sought to overthrow the Gaddafi
government. AI leaders joined the campaign claiming that Gaddafi was using “mercenaries” to
threaten and kill peacefully protesting civilians. The propaganda was
successful in muting criticism. Going far beyond a UN Security Council
resolution to “protect civilians”, NATO launched sustained air attacks and
toppled the Libyan government leading to chaos, violence and a flood of
refugees. AI later refuted the “mercenary” accusations but the damage was done.
The Sensational New Amnesty International Report
On 7 February Amnesty International released a new
report titled “Human Slaughterhouse: Mass Hangings and Extermination at
Saydnaya Prison”. It has received huge uncritical review in mainstream and
liberal media.
Like the Iraq/Kuwait incubator story and the Libyan
‘mercenary’ story, the “Human Slaughterhouse” report is coming at a critical
time. The consequences of the AI report are to accuse and convict the Syrian
government of horrible atrocities against civilians. AI explicitly calls
for the international community to take “action”.
As will be shown below, the AI report is biased and
partial. To the extent that it is resulting in a widespread kangaroo conviction
of the Syrian government, the AI release can be called a “Kangaroo Report”.
Problems with the Report
1) The Amnesty International report on Syria violates
their own research standards. As documented by Prof Tim Hayward here, the Secretary General of Amnesty
International, Salil Shetty, claims that Amnesty does its research ‘in
a very systematic, primary, way where we collect evidence with our own staff on
the ground. And every aspect of our data collection is based on
corroboration and cross-checking from all parties, even if there are, you
know, many parties in any situation because of all of the issues we deal with
are quite contested. So it’s very important to get different points of
view and constantly cross check and verify the facts.’ As
documented below, the Amnesty report fails on all counts: they rely on third
parties, they did not gather different points of view and they did not
cross-check.
2) The report conclusions are not based on primary sources,
material evidence or their own staff; they are solely based on the claims of
anonymous individuals, mostly in southern Turkey from where the war on Syria is
coordinated.
3) Amnesty gathered witnesses and testimonies from
only one side of the conflict: the Western and Gulf supported opposition. For
example, AI consulted with the Syrian Network for Human Rights which is
known to seek NATO intervention in Syria. AI “liased” with the Commission for
International Justice and Accountability. This organization is funded by the
West to press criminal charges against the Syrian leadership. These are
obviously not neutral, independent or nonpartisan organizations. If AI was
doing what the Secretary General claims they do, they would have consulted with
organizations within or outside Syria to hear different accounts of life at
Saydnaya Prison. Since the AI report has been released, the AngryArab has published the account of a
Syrian dissident, Nizar Nayyouf, who was imprisoned at Saydnaya. He contradicts
many statements in the Amnesty International report. This is the type of
cross-checking which Amnesty International failed to do for this important
study.
4) Amnesty’s accusation that executions were
“extrajudicial” is exaggerated or false. By Amnesty’s own description, each
prisoner appeared briefly before a judge and each execution was authorized by a
high government leader. We do not know if the judge looked at documentation or
other information regarding each prisoner. One could argue that the process was
superficial but it’s clear there was some kind of judicial process.
5) Amnesty’s suggestion that all Saydnaya prisoners
are convicted is false. Amnesty quotes one of their witnesses who says
about the court: “The judge will ask the name of the detainee and whether he
committed the crime. Whether the answer is yes or no, he will be convicted.” This
assertion is contradicted by a former Saydnaya prisoner who is now a refugee in
Sweden. In this news report the former prisoner says
the judge “asked him how many soldiers he had killed. When he said none,
the judge spared him.” This is evidence that there is a judicial process of
some sort and there are acquittals.
6) The Amnesty report includes satellite photographs
with captions which are meaningless or erroneous. For example, as pointed out
by Syrian dissident Nizar Nayyouf, the photo on page 30 showing a Martyrs
Cemetery is “silly beyond silly”. The photo and caption show the cemetery
doubled in size. However, this does not prove hangings of prisoners who would
never be buried in a “martyrs cemetery” reserved for Syrian army soldiers. On
the contrary, it confirms the fact which Amnesty International otherwise
ignores: Syrian soldiers have died in large numbers.
7) The Amnesty report falsely claims, based on data
provided by one of the groups seeking NATO intervention, “The victims are
overwhelmingly ordinary civilians who are thought to oppose the
government.” While it’s surely true that innocent civilians are
sometimes wrongly arrested, as happens in all countries, the suggestion that
Saydnaya prison is filled with 95% “ordinary civilians” is preposterous.
Amnesty International can make this claim with a straight face because they
have effectively “disappeared” the reality of Syria. Essential facts which are
completely missing from the Amnesty report include:
a) western powers and Gulf monarchies have put up
billions of dollars annually since 2011 to fund, train, weaponize, provide
salaries and propaganda in support of a violent campaign to overthrow the
Syrian government; b) tens of thousands of foreign fanatics have invaded
Syria;
c) tens of thousands of Syrians have been radicalized
and paid by Wahabi monarchies in the Gulf to overthrow the government;
d) over 100 THOUSAND Syrian Army and National Defense
soldiers have been killed defending their country. Most of this
is public information yet ignored by Amnesty International and other media in
the West. They have done a massive distortion and cover-up of reality.
8) Without providing evidence, Amnesty
International accuses the highest Sunni religious leader in Syria, Grand Mufti
Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, of authorizing the execution of “ordinary civilians”.
The Grand Mufti is a personal victim: his son was murdered by terrorists near
Aleppo. Yet he has consistently called for reconciliation. Following the
assassination of his son, Grand Mufti Hassoun gave an eloquent speech
expressing forgiveness for the murderers and calling for an end to the
violence. What does it say about Amnesty International that they make these
kind of specific personal accusations, against people who have personally
suffered, yet provide zero evidence?
9) Amnesty uses sensational and emotional accusations
in place of factual evidence. The title of the report is “Human
Slaughterhouse”. What goes with a “slaughterhouse”? Why of course ….. a
“meat fridge”! The report uses the expression “meat fridge” seven
separate times, presumably in an attempt to buttress the association.
Even the opening quotation is hyperbolic: “Saydnaya is the end of life – the end
of humanity”. This report is in sharp contrast with fact-based objective
research and investigation; it is closer to perception management and
manipulation.
10) Amnesty International accusations that the Syrian
government is carrying out a policy of “extermination” are contradicted by the
fact that the vast majority of Syrians prefer to live in government controlled
areas. When the “rebels” were finally driven out of East Aleppo in December
2016, 90% of civilians rushed
into government controlled areas. In recent days, civilians
from Latakia province who had been imprisoned by terrorists for the past 3
years have been liberated in a prisoner exchange. The following video shows the
Syrian President and first lady meeting with some of the civilians and gives a
sense of the joy.
11) The Amnesty report is accompanied by a 3 minute cartoon which
gives the false narrative that Syrian civilians who protest peacefully are
imprisoned and executed. The cartoon is titled “Saydnaya Prison: Human
Slaughterhouse”. Apparently Amnesty International is in denial of the fact that
there are many tens of thousands of violent extremists in Syria. They set off
car bombs, launch mortars and otherwise attack civilian areas every day. While
there are mistakes from time to time, and also cases of corruption and bribery,
it makes no sense that Syrian security or prison authorities would be wasting time
and resources with non-violent civilians when there are tens of thousands of
foreign sponsored actual terrorists in the country. The AI accusation is also
contradicted by the fact that there are many opposition parties in Syria. They
compete for seats in the National Assembly and campaign openly for public
support from both the right and left of the Baath Party.
12) The Amnesty claim that Syrian authorities brutally
repress peaceful protest is also contradicted by the Syrian reconciliation
process. For the past several years armed opposition militants have been
encouraged to lay down their weapons and peacefully rejoin society. This is
largely unreported in western media because it contradicts the false stereotype
presented by Amnesty International and western media in general. A recent
example is reported here.
13) The Amnesty report cites the “Caesar” photographs
as supporting evidence but ignores the fact that nearly half the photographs
show the opposite of what was claimed. The widely publicized “Caesar
photographs” was a Qatari funded hoax designed to sabotage the 2014 Geneva
negotiations as documented here .
14) The Amnesty report makes many accusations against
the Syrian government but ignores the violation of Syrian sovereignty being
committed by western and Gulf countries. It is a curious fact that big NGOs
such as Amnesty International focus on violations of “human rights law” and
“humanitarian law” but ignore the crime of aggression, also called the crime
against peace. According to the Nuremberg Tribunal, this is “the supreme
international crime, differing only from other war crimes in that it contains
within itself the accumulated evil of the whole.” Former Nicaraguan Foreign
Minister and former President of the U.N. General Assembly, Father Miguel
D’Escoto, is someone who should know. He says, “What the U.S. government is
doing in Syria is tantamount to a war of aggression, which, according to the
Nuremberg Tribunal, is the worst possible crime a State can commit against
another State.” Amnesty International ignores this.
Background and Context
The co-author of this Amnesty International report is
Nicolette Waldman (Boehland). She was uncritically interviewed on DemocracyNow on 9 February. The
background and previous work of Waldman shows the inter-connections between
influential Washington “think tanks” and the billionaire foundation funded Non
Governmental Organizations that claim to be independent but are clearly not.
Waldman previously worked for the “Center for Civilians in Conflict”. This
organization is directed by leaders from George Soros’ Open Society, Human
Rights Watch, Blackrock Solutions and the Center for a New American Security
(CNAS). CNAS may be the most significant indication of political orientation
since it is led by Michele Flournoy, who was predicted to become Secretary of
Defense if Hillary Clinton had won the election. CNAS has been a leading force behind neo-conservatives
plan to escalate war in Syria. While past work or associations do not always
define new or future work, in this case the sensational and evidence-free
accusations seem to align with neoconservative political goals.
Conclusion
Amnesty International has previously published false
information or “corroboration” which justified western aggression against Iraq
and Libya. This seems to be the same role they are playing now in Syria.
The Amnesty International report is a combination of
accusations based on hearsay and sensationalism. Partially because of Amnesty’s
undeserved reputation for independence and accuracy, the report has been picked
up and broadcast widely. Liberal and supposedly progressive media outlets
have dutifully echoed the dubious accusations. In reality this report amounts
to a Kangaroo court with the victim being the Syrian government and people who
have borne the brunt of the foreign sponsored aggression. If this report sparks
an escalation of the conflict, which Amnesty International seems to call for,
it will be a big step backwards not forward ….just like in Iraq and Libya.
Rick Sterling is
an investigative journalist based in the SF Bay Area. He can be reached at rsterling1@gmail.com
The original source of this article is Global Research
Copyright © Rick Sterling, Global Research, 2017
Copyright © Rick Sterling, Global Research, 2017
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