United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres has said that for twelve years, the Syrian people have suffered brutalities of war,systematic atrocities, grinding deprivation, and human grief on a massive scale.
Guterres who expressed sympathy for Syrian people in his remarks at the interactive dialogue on the report of the Secretary-General on missing persons in Syria on Monday.
UN Chief added that last month’s devastating earthquakes further worsened humanitarian needs that were already at their highest levels. “Millions of Syrians inside country – and millions of refugees outside – grapple with deep trauma and despair.
According to him, “Syria’s children are becoming teenagers having never lived a day without war. The Syrian people deserve a measure of hope for the future. They deserve peace and security. And they deserve to know the truth about the fate of their loved ones.
“Justice demands it – peace and reconciliation depend on it. That is the heart of the issue of detained, abducted, and missing persons. The whereabouts and fate of estimated 100,000 Syrians remains unknown”.
He stated further that people in every part of the country and across all divides have loved ones who are missing, including family members who were forcibly disappeared, abducted, tortured, and arbitrarily detained.
“The majority are men, leaving women relatives to support their families in impossible conditions, while at the same time undertaking the often terrifying and treacherous search for their sons, husbands, brothers, or fathers”, he lamented.
UN Chief called on the global Communities to work together to resolve this deeply painful situation with determination and urgency.
Commending the courageous work of Syrian family, victim, and survivor associations and other civil society groups together with the efforts of many international bodies to chart a path forward.
Guterres said the cornerstone is the establishment by the General Assembly of a new international institution to clarify the fate and whereabouts of the missing, and to provide support to victims and their families.
“Guided by their views and advice, my report of last August outlined the framework for a solution”. He urged all Member States to act and called on the Government of Syria and on all parties to the conflict to cooperate.
“It is essential to help Syrians heal – and remove an obstacle to securing sustainable peace. The international community has a moral obligation to help ease their plight. Let us live up to this obligation.
UN Chief also urged the establishment of an institution centred on the needs and rights of victims, survivors, and their families. “Let us heed their demands for truth. And let us restore a measure of hope, dignity, and justice to the Syrian people”.
