Democracy activists beaten by students

Democracy activists condemned the violent break up of a peaceful demonstration against the country's emergency laws by a crowd of several hundred pro-government students on Thursday. "We had organised a peaceful sit-in demanding basic freedoms," said Hassan Abdul-Azim, a spokesman for the self-styled “Damascus Declaration” group, which draws its name from a statement in support of democratic reform endorsed by opposition figures. "The students beat the activists with sticks, not distinguishing between women and children, young or old. Such violent opposition is not acceptable in the 21st century." The demonstration, held outside Damascus’ Justice Palace, had been organised to coincide with the 43rd anniversary of Syria's emergency laws, introduced when the ruling Ba'ath Party took power in 1963. The legislation has been widely condemned by rights groups for permitting citizens to be tried outside constitutional safeguards when charged with crimes related to national security. Several democracy activists participating in the protest were attacked and beaten by groups of young men carrying flags and portraits of President Bashar al-Assad. The majority of the attackers appeared to be members of the Syrian Students' National Union (SSNU), reputed to be controlled by the security services. "You’re a traitor. You’re an agent of America," screamed the young men as they attacked one activist who tried to escape the melee. "We want to say to the west that we’re with our leadership and against those who were paid by America to be here and are dreaming of changing the regime," said Saddam Abdullah, a 15-year-old student who participated in the violence. While roads around the palace were closed and riot police were on hand during the counter-demonstration, they appeared to do little to stop the violence. According to Abdul-Azim, the student activists had misunderstood the nature of his group. "We’re working to strengthen Syria against all foreign challenges,” he said. “The Damascus Declaration is working for national democratic change and we reject both violence and financial help from abroad." The declaration, signed in October by opposition parties in the Syrian National Rally, eight Kurdish parties, the Committee for the Revival of Civil Society and a number of prominent opposition figures, demanded democratic reform, the lifting of the country's emergency laws and the release of political prisoners. The declaration was later signed by the head of the outlawed Syrian Muslim Brotherhood and a further 450 opposition figures both inside and outside Syria, uniting the historically divergent opposition to Ba'ath Party rule for the first time. Syria has come under intense US-led pressure over the past year, arising from accusations that it has failed to stop insurgents crossing its border into Iraq and from two UN reports suggesting Syrian complicity in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in February 2005.