The Russian foreign ministry has developed a sudden enthusiasm for the work of Human Rights Watch after the New York based organisation issued a statement last week accusing armed opposition elements of committing abuses in Syria.

Konstantin Dolgov, the Russian foreign ministry's Commissioner for Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law, expressed "deep concern" at the violations – and his remarks were duly reported by 
Sana (the official Syrian news agency), Hizbullah's al-Manar in Lebanon and The Voice of Russia.

According to Sana, Dolgov also claimed that the statement from Human Rights Watch "stresses the correctness of Russia's principled stance that is committed to not allowing human rights violations". In fact, it said nothing of the kind.

Human Rights Watch has now issued a further statementcomplaining about Russia's selective use of its findings – ignoring all those that criticise the Syrian regime:

Since the beginning of the protests in Syria, Human Rights Watch has produced over 60 publications, including three extensive reports, on human rights violations by Syrian government forces. These publications contain detailed documentation of widespread and systematic abuses, including killings of peaceful protesters, shelling of residential neighborhoods, large-scale arbitrary detention and torture, “disappearances,” executions, denial of medical assistance, and looting ...

None of these findings have been ever acknowledged by Russian officials.

Instead, despite overwhelming evidence of egregious crimes committed by the Syrian security forces, Russia provides diplomatic and military support to Bashar al-Assad’s government and has repeatedly blocked international action aimed at stopping the violations and bringing those responsible for these crimes to justice ...

Russia should not pick and choose. If it relies on Human Rights Watch’s findings to support its condemnation of abuses by the Syrian opposition, it should pay equal attention to the extensive documentation of violations by government forces and support international efforts to stop those violations.

Posted by Brian Whitaker, 27 March 2012.