Mazen Darwish
Mazen Darwish is a Syrian lawyer, regarded as one of the country’s most prominent activists and advocates of free speech. He is the president of the Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (CMFE), which has to operate in secret because of prohibition by the Syrian government. Having already been arrested back in April 2008 and imprisoned for 10 days after reporting on riots near Damascus, he was then was arrested in February 2012. He’s being held along with 15 other journalists but has not been charged with any offence. There has been no news from him since his arrest. In 2012, Darwish was honored as the Reporters Without Borders Journalist of the Year, for his tireless efforts for freedom of expression in Syria. In June of 2014, President Bashar al-Assad announced a general amnesty and began releasing prisoners from government jails. Rights lawyers have said that prominent prisoners of conscience, including Mazen Darwish, were expected to be freed under the amnesty.
Mazen Darwish was RELEASED on August 10, 2015 and charges against him were subsequently dropped on August 31, 2015.
Updates:
- IPI demands explanation after Turkey stops Mazen Darwish, Turkish authorities detained Darwish at Istanbul’s Ataturk Airport as he traveled to the International Press Institute’s World Congress in Doha, Qatar. Darwish reported that Turkish authorities claimed his Visa was forged and sent him back to Geneva. Turkish authorities have promised an investigation into the incident. (International Press Institute, Mar. 20, 2016).