Swiss appeal to UN for action on Syria

The Swiss ambassador to the United Nations has called on the UN Security Council to refer the situation in Syria to the International Criminal Court.

Addressing the 66th General Assembly in New York on Monday, Paul Seger said Switzerland deemed it necessary for the council to act immediately “in view of the gross violations of human rights that have been committed, coupled with the unwillingness of the Syrian authorities to prosecute the perpetrators”.

The 193-member Assembly met to discuss the report of the UN Human Rights Council from December last year in which that body strongly condemned abuses by Syrian authorities carried out as part of the crackdown.

The meeting comes in the wake of the Security Council’s recent failure to agree on collective action on the issue after Russia and China vetoed a draft resolution endorsing Arab League efforts to end the crisis.

Seger said Switzerland endorsed the actions of the Human Rights Council in connection with the “ruthless repression” taking place in Syria and called upon the Syrian government to cooperate to the fullest extent with the body.


(2012-02-14/swissinfo.ch)