Fallacies not Facts: A critical legal study of the national report submitted by the Syrian Arab Republic in the third cycle of the universal periodic review in 2022

On the 28th of January 2022, Syria’s session of the Universal Periodic Review UPR was held before the Human Rights Council as part of the third cycle of the review. In this session, the Syrian government submitted its national report in addition to the compilation report submitted by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and the summary of stakeholders’ submissions. On the 30th of June 2022, the outcomes of the reports of this round were adopted. The session was concluded with a reference from the Syrian government to the progress made by Syria in protecting human rights despite facing exceptional external challenges.

The Syrian Legal Development Programme (SLDP) and the We Exist advocacy alliance conducted a critical legal analysis of Syria’s national report, called “Fallacies not Facts: A critical legal study of the national report submitted by the Syrian Arab Republic in the third cycle of the universal periodic review in 2022”, trying objectively to explore the government’s arguments based on international law obligations and the proven and documented context of the ongoing violations in Syria.

This critical legal study is endorsed by 33 NGOs and Victims’ Associations; it argues that the Syrian government has relied on providing disinformation and neglecting the full picture of the human rights situation in Syria – leading to an unrealistic portrayal of the state for the human rights situation in the country.

The report is available in English and Arabic (original version).