On 28th June 1998, the well-known British weekly newspaper, 'The Observer', published its Human Rights Index to launch the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. An evaluation of the world's countries from Human Rights perspective was carried out to measure each country's commitment to the human rights standards and how those countries deal with their citizens according to the said norms. With the backing of a panel made up of internationally recognised human rights campaigners and Nobel laureates, The Observer has drawn up the first comprehensive league table of countries according to their respect of human rights. Research results have been announced following wide studies of human rights records across the world and the extent each country has committed to them. 
The index has been constructed by careful deliberation, multiplying abuses of human rights over 13 categories. The first three most critical indicators marked out of 30, the other 10 marked out of 10. 
Syria under the rule of President Hafiz Asad occupies the worst seventh place in the world in violating the basic human rights of Syrian citizens and in humiliating their honour. It is worth to mention that this Index coincided the 'plastic surgery' announced by the Syrian regime by releasing scores of prisoners of conscience in order to fit the diplomatic and political moves of President Asad's rule. Despite all sorts of praise made by some states and human rights organisations to encourage the Syrian government for a further human détente, the truth is still saying without hesitation that the regime of President Asad is among the few and rare regimes in the world that practise all sorts of killings, repression and denial of the basic rights of their citizens. Then, from time to time, this regime flies empty balloons to delude the public opinion. 
Syrian citizens have been captured in thousands, isolated in Prison cells away from their families and the world, subjected to the most brutal sorts of torture under which hundreds have been killed. Others have been executed mercilessly or gunned down in their cells. During his visit to France, for example, the French press opened the Syrian government's record of human rights, Asad gave orders to release some detainees as an introduction to meet the French president with a better record. When asked by French press about prisoners of conscience in Syrian jail, he said in cold blood: ' I do not go into prisons, but I believe that there are not many prisoners any more'. 
Number of detainees has decreased- according to Asad's claim, when compared by their numbers years ago because of Tadmor's military prison massacre masterminded by the president's younger brother Rifa'at Asad when his elite forces (Defence Brigades) raided Tadmor prison on 27th June 1980 and gunned down all prisoners to death in a beastly and bloody way, incomparable to any incident in world history. Number has decreased because of the big number of innocents who have been hanged. Names and the exact number of victims are still not possible to be identified as the regime is still refraining to disclose any information neither to the detainees' relatives nor to human and legal groups who have been shocked by the news of the continuous campaign of prosecutions. The number has fallen after the president issued a 'presidency amnesty' to release a couple hundred prisoners whose bodies have been exhausted under torture in the most ill-reputed prisons in the world which are linked to blood, torture (at least 37 methods of torture , SHRC memorandum June 1998), massacres and human beasts. 
Now, after all this campaigns of killings and all releases, thousand of prisoners of conscience are still being kept in the prisons and detention centres erected by the Syrian regime of president Hafiz Asad. (30 prisons in Damascus and Aleppo, SHRC memorandum June 1998). SHRC has tables of more than 4500 detainees, this number constitutes only a part of a big number of imprisoned and repressed Syrian citizens. 
The Observer's Index reveals but a part of the Syrian regime nature, how it deals with its citizens or neighbouring countries' citizens who have been victimised by the Syrian security forces for several political and non-political purposes.

The table below presents The Observer's evaluation of Syria under Asad.