23rd session of the
Human Rights Council
Item 7
Human rights situation in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories
General Debate
Statement delivered by Enrica Barago
Thank you Mr President,
CIVICUS warmly welcomes Israel’s decision to pursue its dialogue with the Human
Rights Council and hopes it will cooperate with its mechanisms in a positive and meaningful spirit.
CIVICUS wishes to use this opportunity to reassert a number of concerns regarding the situation that prevails in Israel as well as in Palestine and in the Occupied Territories. Israel failed to comply with its legal responsibilities as the Occupying power. Additionally, in the context of the prolonged occupation, International Humanitarian Law shows its limits that should be addressed by the ICRC or by a special Commission of Inquiry as stated by Mr Falk.
In the context of the ever increasing foreign funding restrictions threatening civil society, CIVICUS recalls the adoption in 2011 of the Israeli Foreign Funding Law and other bills restricting the use of foreign funds by NGOs as part of a campaign to silence civil society groups.
As previously reported by CIVICUS, Israel’s enforcement of Military Order 1651 and the 2005 Internment of Unlawful Combatants Law is part of a broader strategy to silence the independent media. Israel’s intentional targeting of journalists that covered the Operation Pillar of Defence is a concern that has to be urgently addressed.
CIVICUS does not lose sight of the violations perpetrated by the Gaza authorities that keep repressing political dissent. In the West Bank, Palestinian Authority Security Services have beaten peaceful demonstrators, detained and harassed journalists as well as online activists.
CIVICUS wished to emphasise the need for:
acute awareness and accountability, human rights protection and effective tackling of impunity;
a courageous leadership able to lead the parties while dispelling the pervasive skepticism and improving the socio-political-economic conditions of Israelis and Palestinians;
providing for an enabling environment for civil society to develop and be a proactive partner in peace.
I thank you for your attention.