Syrian Intellectuals Ask: Why Are We Banned From Travelling?

Travel ban is used as a weapon against dissidents in Syria.

SMN No. 14, February 16, 2011

A number of Syrian writers and intellectuals have created a Facebook group calling for the abolition of a travel ban which imposed by the security services on some citizens without any legal documents or court order.
The group, which attracted about 200 members within hours of being set up “is open to all friends who are banned from leaving Syria and who wish to participate in stopping such practices which are not appropriate for our country”.

Human rights activists have repeatedly asked the regime to stop this illegal practice, but the Facebook group is the first initiative started by people from different walks of life.  The  group is gathering the names of individuals banned from travelling in order to complete lists previously issued by human rights organisations.

Some group members tell their personal stories on the Facebook page. “To be prevented from leaving [the country] for 15 years,” recounts one member, “without notice from anyone… to be forced to visit all branches of immigration and passports and security in order to get approval for travelling for once and to oblige yourself to come and see them again as soon as you return … to reveal what you did [during your trip]…. Is there a bigger waste of human dignity?”
Another member asks, “Does the security [service] think preventing Syrian opponents from travelling will make them less opposed or turn them into ‘loyalists’? Do they think that preventing intellectuals from travel will make Syria more ‘secure’?

“This reminds us of the Ottoman times,” he continued, “when ‘prevention’ was the norm and any ‘permission’ had to be granted by the Sultan.”

The travel ban in Syria is imposed without any official or legal procedure by various security branches against former political detainees and prisoners of conscience, as well as against civil society activists from all fields. During the last few years this practice has increased and now affects hundreds of writers and intellectuals.