Foreign minister Maxime Verhagen has urged the Syrian president to release Syrian human rights defender Haytham al-Maleh immediately pending his trial. The 2006 winner of the Geuzen Medal was arrested by state security in October 2009 after he had given an interview to an independent TV station.

‘It would be a generous gesture for the Syrian authorities to release Mr Al-Maleh today, on Human Rights Day, considering his fragile medical condition, and allow him to await his trial at home,’ Mr Verhagen said yesterday.

Haytham al-Maleh is a prominent human rights lawyer. He was awarded the Dutch Geuzen Medal in 2006 for his courageous work in defence of human rights. ‘Haytham al-Maleh has stood up for the civil and political liberties of other human rights defenders. Freedom of expression is a universal human right, which should be respected in Syria as elsewhere,’ Mr Verhagen said.

Around the world, many people are still persecuted, imprisoned, tortured or murdered for having the courage to stand up for their rights and the rights of others. Human Rights Day and the work of human rights defenders were highlighted at Dutch embassies yesterday. The embassy in Damascus is following Mr Al-Maleh’s case closely.



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