The United Nations Office at Geneva
Multimedia Newsroom
Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Pedersen appeared upbeat – but realistic - about the upcoming face-to-face meeting of the 150-member body, featuring 50 representatives each from the Government, opposition and civil society.
“The good news is we will meet here on 30 October and hopefully have a successful beginning,” he said. “A Committee in itself will not solve the crisis in Syria, and I think no-one has ever said that. But what we have said is of course a Constitution could help to bridge differences within the Syrian society, it could help to build trust and it could also be a door-opener to the broader political process.”
A smaller, 45-person body consisting of 15 Government, 15 opposition and 15 civil society members will also meet separately in the Swiss city to prepare and draft proposals, Mr. Pedersen explained, in line with agreed terms that are framed by the key principles of respect for the UN Charter, Security Council resolutions, Syria’s sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity.
At the same time, the Syria Envoy acknowledged the need to address concerns about ongoing clashes in Idlib, where Government forces stepped up their military campaign in April, as well as insecurity concerns elsewhere.
“We need to make sure we are able to move forward on several tracks,” he told reporters. “I said in my briefing to the (Security) Council, that we also need of course to work on the situation in the north-east, this I said, Idlib is a particular challenge, the situation in the north-east is a challenge, but also we are increasingly worried also about the situation in the south-west and what is happening there.”
After more than eight and a half years of war, hundreds of thousands of Syrians are believed to have been killed in the fighting. Millions more have fled the country, which has also suffered massive destruction that’s likely to cost at least $400 billion to rebuild, UN experts said in 2018.
Focusing on the situation in the formerly largely Kurdish-controlled north-east, on the border with Turkey, the Special Envoy insisted that the situation should be handled “with respect to Syrian sovereignty, independence on territorial integrity”.
In addition, legitimate Turkish security concerns needed to be taken on board, he said, along with respect for all the different communities in the north-east.
“If all of these three issued are addressed, we believe we can be able to move forward,” he said.
Confirming that the Constitutional Committee included Kurdish delegates, Mr. Pedersen insisted that “all segments” of Syrian society were represented, including women, at nearly 30 per cent of the civil society element taking part.
This “unique representative body” alone would take decisions on rewriting the Syrian constitution, the Special Envoy insisted, noting that while he might have “several ideas” about it, he was convinced after meeting the Government and opposition that they were able to “handle this for themselves”.
Reiterating that “we don’t have much time” ahead of the 30 October meeting at United Nations Geneva, Mr. Pedersen also cited the need for the release of more combatants, as a confidence-building measure. To date, there have been four rounds of releases so far, but far greater numbers should be liberated, he suggested.
“Obviously this is an issue that is touching too many families in Syria and is causing too much pain,” he explained. “We believe that addressing this …would be an important way forward for the Syrian people. And it would also help us I believe in start to build trust in Syria again.”
Asked about the possibility of a nationwide ceasefire, Mr. Pedersen said that it was something that he and his team was taking “very, very seriously…It’s also linked as I said earlier to the situation in Idlib and the importance of hopefully keeping the calm in Idlib in the days, weeks and months ahead and we believe that a nationwide ceasefire could help to solidify this.”
Similar Stories
1
1
1
Edited News | UNHCR , UNMAS , WHO
Just how many people are still trapped in the Sudanese city of El Fasher?
That’s the burning question for relatives of the many thousands of people believed to still be there, since paramilitary fighters overran the regional capital of North Darfur last month, after a 500-day siege.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva, UN Human Rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan made the following remarks on the ongoing violence in the occupied WestBank.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
At a Special Session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva today, the UN Human Rights Chief, Volker Türk made the following remarks on the situation in El-Fasher, Sudan.
2
1
2
Statements , Conferences , Edited News | HRC
UN Human Rights Council holds special session on Sudan as mass atrocities reported in El Fasher
The UN Human Rights Council convened an emergency session on Friday on the situation in and around El Fasher, Sudan, following reports of mass killings in the North Darfur capital. States passed a resolution that will mandate an investigation into likely mass atrocities during the capture of El Fasher by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on 26 October.
1
1
2
Edited News | UN WOMEN
Sudan: Women’s bodies ‘a crime scene’ as tens of thousands flee El Fasher atrocities – UN Women
In war-torn Sudan, rape is being systematically used as a weapon and simply being a woman is “a strong predictor” of hunger, violence and death, the UN’s gender equality agency warned on Tuesday.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR
The UN human rights office (OHCHR) on Friday called for an end to continuing expansion of Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, where “unchecked” settler violence has surged since the war in Gaza began more than two years ago.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
The crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) continues to worsen amid ongoing fighting that has driven tens of thousands of people from their homes and created acute hunger, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) said on Friday.
1
1
1
Edited News | WFP
Gaza: One million receive food parcels as humanitarians race to ‘push back hunger’
Food is slowly returning to the shelves in Gaza amid “apocalyptic scenes” but supplies are still desperately inadequate, UN humanitarians said on Tuesday, as they issued fresh calls for wider access and continued financial support.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango today told the bi-weekly UN press briefing in Geneva of more details that are emerging on the atrocities committed in El Fasher, in Sudan during and after its takeover by the Rapid Support Forces.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Seif Magango made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , UNOG
UN Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani made the following comment on Friday at the bi-weekly press briefing in Geneva.
1
1
1
Edited News | OHCHR , WHO
Sudan: UN Raises Alarm Over Mass Atrocities in El Fasher as Survivors Report Executions, Killings and Rapes
More details continue to emerge about atrocities committed during and after the fall of El Fasher to the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in Sudan on 23 October. Since the powerful paramilitary group made a major incursion into the city last week, the UN Human Rights Office has received “horrendous accounts of summary executions, mass killings, rapes, attacks against humanitarian workers, looting, abductions and forced displacement,” said Seif Magango, spokesperson for the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).