Riad Seif
Encyclopedia
Riad Seif is Syria
n political dissident, formerly a member of the Parliament of Syria and prominent businessman, who founded and lead the Forum for National Dialogue
. Seif was elected to parliament in 1994 as an independent and again in 1998. For many years held the Adidas
franchise in Damascus
.
Corporation.
Following the death of Syrian leader Hafez al Assad in June 2000, Seif assembled "leading [Syrian] intellectuals and independent voices" to discuss "how to open up Syria's ... political system." The group - which met on Wednesdays evenings, in Seif's living room and was later dubbed the Forum for National Dialogue
- "debated human rights, pluralism, press and academic freedoms, and how to build a civil society," and was the first of several forums that "marked the onset" of the Damascus Spring
. In January 2001, Seif announced his intention to create a new political party to compete with the ruling Ba'th Party. Around this time he also questioned the monopoly on the new cellular telephone system granted to the family of Hafez al Assad's wife Anissa Makhlouf. Calling the deal `a big scandal that would cost Syria, an underdeveloped country, millions and millions of dollars`, Seif `spoke against it loudly in parliament and forced them to investigate it.` After a major meeting of the Forum for National Dialogue on 5 September 2001 which several hundred people attended, Seif was arrested. Charged with "defying the state and trying to change the constitution by illegal means," he was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison and released in January 2006. Since then Seif has told journalists that he and his family have been threatened by Syrian Mukhabarat
demanding that he not talk to diplomats or any other foreigners, and that his businesses have been forced into bankruptcy. `It started when they cut off supplies for my factories.`
Amnesty International
reports that since his release from prison he "has been subjected to various forms of harassment and ill-treatment," including the refusal to allow him to leave the country in late August 2007 for treatment of his prostate cancer
, "which has advanced to a stage where it is liable to start spreading to other parts of his body without specialist treatment, which is only available outside Syria."
He was again arrested in early 2008 and imprisoned for trying to "overthrow the government", in reference to his work as a leader in the Damascus Declaration
. He was then incarcerated in Adra Prison
together with other leaders of the Damascus Declarations.
He was arrested on 6 May 2011 in Damascus.
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
n political dissident, formerly a member of the Parliament of Syria and prominent businessman, who founded and lead the Forum for National Dialogue
Riad Seif Forum
The Riad Seif Forum is or was a political forum, or muntadat, founded by "businessman-turned-dissident" Riad Seif, promoting political debate and freedom in Syria...
. Seif was elected to parliament in 1994 as an independent and again in 1998. For many years held the Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
franchise in Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
.
Overview
According to Seif, his career in industry started with "a workshop for manufacturing shirts in 1963." In 1993, he began "building the New Adidas Company in 1993 ... the first of its kind in Syria", after acquiring a franchise for Syria from the AdidasAdidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
Corporation.
Following the death of Syrian leader Hafez al Assad in June 2000, Seif assembled "leading [Syrian] intellectuals and independent voices" to discuss "how to open up Syria's ... political system." The group - which met on Wednesdays evenings, in Seif's living room and was later dubbed the Forum for National Dialogue
Riad Seif Forum
The Riad Seif Forum is or was a political forum, or muntadat, founded by "businessman-turned-dissident" Riad Seif, promoting political debate and freedom in Syria...
- "debated human rights, pluralism, press and academic freedoms, and how to build a civil society," and was the first of several forums that "marked the onset" of the Damascus Spring
Damascus Spring
The Damascus Spring was a period of intense political and social debate in Syria which started after the death of President Hafiz al-Asad in June 2000 and continued to some degree until autumn 2001, when most of the activities associated with it were suppressed by the government.- Background...
. In January 2001, Seif announced his intention to create a new political party to compete with the ruling Ba'th Party. Around this time he also questioned the monopoly on the new cellular telephone system granted to the family of Hafez al Assad's wife Anissa Makhlouf. Calling the deal `a big scandal that would cost Syria, an underdeveloped country, millions and millions of dollars`, Seif `spoke against it loudly in parliament and forced them to investigate it.` After a major meeting of the Forum for National Dialogue on 5 September 2001 which several hundred people attended, Seif was arrested. Charged with "defying the state and trying to change the constitution by illegal means," he was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison and released in January 2006. Since then Seif has told journalists that he and his family have been threatened by Syrian Mukhabarat
Mukhabarat
Mukhābarāt is the Arabic term for intelligence, as in intelligence agency. In the West, the term is sometimes used negatively, connotating repression, often by means of secret police or state terror, in Arab countries...
demanding that he not talk to diplomats or any other foreigners, and that his businesses have been forced into bankruptcy. `It started when they cut off supplies for my factories.`
Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
reports that since his release from prison he "has been subjected to various forms of harassment and ill-treatment," including the refusal to allow him to leave the country in late August 2007 for treatment of his prostate cancer
Prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is a form of cancer that develops in the prostate, a gland in the male reproductive system. Most prostate cancers are slow growing; however, there are cases of aggressive prostate cancers. The cancer cells may metastasize from the prostate to other parts of the body, particularly...
, "which has advanced to a stage where it is liable to start spreading to other parts of his body without specialist treatment, which is only available outside Syria."
He was again arrested in early 2008 and imprisoned for trying to "overthrow the government", in reference to his work as a leader in the Damascus Declaration
Damascus Declaration
The Damascus Declaration was a statement of unity by Syrian opposition figures issued in October 2005. It criticized the Syrian government regime as `authoritarian, totalitarian and cliquish,` and called for `peaceful, gradual,` reform `founded on accord, and based on dialogue and recognition of...
. He was then incarcerated in Adra Prison
Adra Prison
Adra Prison is a prison in Syria, on the north-east outskirts of Damascus.Civil prisoners and leading political prisoners are held in the prison. In 2010, the prison held 7,000 prisoners, a dozen of them women...
together with other leaders of the Damascus Declarations.
He was arrested on 6 May 2011 in Damascus.
Awards
- "Menschenrechtspreis der Stadt WeimarWeimarWeimar is a city in Germany famous for its cultural heritage. It is located in the federal state of Thuringia , north of the Thüringer Wald, east of Erfurt, and southwest of Halle and Leipzig. Its current population is approximately 65,000. The oldest record of the city dates from the year 899...
" (Translation: "Human Rights Award of the City of Weimar"), GermanyGermanyGermany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
2003