We’ve heard their names before; Martin Luther King Jr., Susan B. Anthony, Jane Fonda, and many more. What all of these people have in common is that they were activists, specifically in America. But what we rarely ever see are the activists who work in some of the most dangerous places in the world. Yes, there are times when a phenomenon like Malala Yousafzai appear before us due to widespread news coverage, but what about those activists, those brave men and women who have been fighting for much longer?
Source: http://syrie.blog.lemonde.fr/2013/05/17/syrie-liberez-le-journaliste-mazen-darwich-et-ses-collegues/
To spread some light on one of the foremost but unsung activist heroes, allow me to introduce you to Mazen Darwish. Darwish is a Syrian lawyer, journalist, and free speech activist who has worked for many years on human rights, freedom of expression and freedom of the press in Syria. News organizations including Reuters and the Associated Press have described him as one of Syria’s most prominent activists.
Born in 1974 and graduating with a law degree from Damascus University in 1998, Darwish started his activism career in 2000 by helping to establish the Committees for the Defense of Democratic Freedom and Human Rights (CDF) with a group of Syrian activists. His claim to fame however was in 2004 when he founded the Syrian Centre for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM), the first non-profit organization advocating human rights and defending freedom of speech in Syria. The activities the SCM undergoes includes posting monitoring information online, publishing reports on human rights and the state of media in Syria, and keeping records of the names of people detained, missing, or killed in the course of the Syrian conflict. Darwish has stated that his aim was to “raise awareness and spread freedom of opinion and expression, belief and tolerance within Syrian society, while promoting the work of journalists and defenders of these freedoms” (Human Dignity Forum).
According to The Human Dignity Forum, “as a key figure in advocating human rights in his country, Darwish organized peaceful sit-ins in front of Parliament and Ministry buildings and co-launched the first electronic magazine on human rights in Syria, ‘The Voice’. He also published the first report on press freedom in Syria and developed a methodology to monitor media websites”. At the beginning of the Syrian revolution in March 2011, Darwish also participated in a sit-in for the release of political prisoners in front of the Ministry of Interior, where he was arrested and beaten by security forces. Throughout the course of his career as an activist, Darwish continued his activist activities despite the constant fear of jail and abuse.
Most recently, Darwish has become a phenomenon in the activist world after his arrest in 2012 by the Syrian government, and his further detention for the last three years. According to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and his wife Yara Bader, Darwish was “forcibly disappeared for nine months, during which time he was severely tortured and then referred to the Damascus central prison, Adra”. He has since been charged with committing “Publicizing” under article 8 of the anti-terrorism law (The Guardian, 2015). The written indictment dated 27 February 2013 explicitly refers to his work to promote and protect human rights – actions which are held against him as part of an attempt to promote terrorist acts and to “stir the internal situation in Syria and so provoke international organizations to condemn Syria in international forums” (Free Syria’s Silenced Voices). The charges have inspired a myriad of backlash from organizations and individuals alike, appealing for his release.
Despite the controversy surround Darwish in his home country, it has not stopped his accumulation of prestigious humanitarian awards. In 2014 he shared with Salman Rushdie the Pinter International Writer of Courage Award given by English PEN, to which he responded with by writing of his hope of freeing his country from tyranny. Just a few weeks ago on March 5th, 2015, The International Press Institute (IPI) named him as its 67th world press freedom hero which is “given to journalists who have made significant contributions to the promotion of press freedom, particularly in the face of great personal risk” (The Guardian, 2015).
For Darwish’s bravery in the face of overwhelming political power and danger for a freer Syria, and his constant role as a humanitarian activist, his plight and his fight for his country are worthy of recognition.
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