There has been speculation that Ahmed Mustapha Mohammed, a Kurdish writer also known by his nickname Pier Rustem, disappeared while he was in Beirut, Lebanon on 24 October 2009. We now have confirmation from his wife, through the Kurdish organization for the Defence of Human Rights and Public Freedoms in Syria – DAD, that he is being held in a Syrian security detention centre in Damascus.
Pier Rustum was born in 1963 in a village – Sheikh Jaqli near Afrin town, Syria. He studied for four years as an engineer, and he is a well-respected writer of fourteen books based on society and politics. He was arrested at the beginning of December 2007 and held for one day; he was arrested on 15 to 23 March 2008 in Afrin by airforce security when his computer was also impounded. He was known to travel often between Beirut and Hawler in Kurdistan.
Pier Rustem is known to be a member of DAD – Defence of Human Rights and Public Freedoms in Syria, the Damascus Declaration, and the Central Committee of the Democratic Kurdish Party al-Party.
Previous reports:
Regarding his arrest and release in December 2007: http://en.euromedrights.org/mobile/http://en.euromedrights.org/index.php/publications/member_publications/3551.html
and ‘Pier Rustum Released; www.shril-sy.info/enshril/modules/tinycontent/content/March2008.doc
According to MAF, on 22-3-2008, the activist and writer Pieer Rustum, who had been detained by the Air Force Security Service since 15-3-2008, was released without any charges. Rustom is a member of the Kurdish Democratic Party in Syria, (al-Party), and member of the national council of DDDDCN.
CALL to the international community:
International Support Kurds in Syria – SKS joins the friends and family of Pier Rustem and many organizations in the appeal to the international community and international human rights organizations to exert the necessary pressure on the Syrian regime for his immediate release.
The State of Emergency is an excuse for the Syrian authorities to arbitrarily arrest Kurdish political activists, and to intimidate the Kurdish community. If the Syrian authorities have kidnapped Pier Rustum in another country and smuggle him over the border into Syria, this is outrageous, extremely concerning and it must breach international laws.
2 December 2009
