EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
2004 2009
Delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council
DRAFT REPORT by Kyriacos Triantaphyllides Chairman of the Delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council
8th European Parliament / Palestinian Legislative Council
Inter-parliamentary Meeting
31 October to 3 November 2008
Jerusalem/Ramallah/Gaza
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INTRODUCTION
From 31 October to 3 November 2008 a working group from the European Parliament Delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council visited East Jerusalem, Ramallah and Gaza.
The delegation was headed by Kyriacos TRIANTAPHYLLIDES (GUE, CY), accompanied by Margrethe AUKEN (Greens, DK), Frieda BREPOELS (PPE-DE, BE), Chris DAVIES (ALDE, UK), Proinsias DE ROSSA (PSE, IRL), Jamila MADEIRA (PSE, POR), Luisa MORGANTINI, Vice-President of the European Parliament (GUE, IT) and Georgios TOUSSAS (GUE, GR).
The last official contact between the two assemblies had been a visit from a European Parliament delegation two years earlier, in November 2006. The 2008 visit (the 9th inter-parliamentary meeting) took place at a particularly sensitive time in view of events in the region:
- the political and geographical partition of Palestine with the isolation (and siege) of Gaza;
- the difficulties in implementing the peace process (Annapolis and the 'roadmap’);
- the visit to the area in June 2008 by a delegation from the Working Party on the Middle East, which came to discouraging conclusions and was very critical of the behaviour of Israel;
- the resolution adopted on 4 September 2008 by the European Parliament on the situation of Palestinian prisoners, particularly elected members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, but also the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
Aware of these difficulties and of the short time available to it, the delegation tried to draw up a programme which could do justice to both aspects of its mandate: ascertaining the situation of the Palestinian prisoners, and establishing and maintaining the dialogue with the democratically elected representatives of an assembly split between two locations.
To that end, the delegation gathered the necessary information from the Commission’s representatives in East Jerusalem (ECTAO) and from the current and forthcoming Council Presidencies.
It then inquired into the situation of the Palestinian prisoners, by meeting – through the good offices of local NGOs – some freed prisoners and their families, and going to the prison where the Speaker of the PLC was held with a request to meet him (this was refused).
Not without some difficulties, the delegation was able to hold its 8th inter-parliamentary meeting with the PLC in two sittings, in Ramallah and Gaza.
Following a meeting with the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, the delegation was able to ascertain, by means of two on-site visits, the exact nature of relations between Palestinians and the Israeli authorities in the territories specifically recognised by the international community as belonging to Palestine.
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In a general way, the delegation noted the lack of support given by the Israeli authorities to the running of the mission, particularly in connection with access to Gaza (entry and departure), in spite of their having been supplied with information before the delegation set off.
I – INFORMATION MEETING WITH THE COMMISSION (ECTAO) AND THE COUNCIL PRESIDENCY (Legacy Hotel, East Jerusalem , 31 October 2008)
On the evening of its arrival, the delegation met first the representatives of the Commission (ECTAO) in East Jerusalem, then representatives of France and of the Czech Republic as holders of the current and forthcoming Presidencies of the Council of the EU.
1 – Meeting with the Commission:
Present: The EP delegation, Roy Dickinson, chargé d'affaires, Jérôme Bellion-Jourdan, Ryan Nieland (ECTAO) and Hervé Caiveau (ECHO).
- On the general situation, Roy Dickinson stressed the changes which had taken place since the EP delegation's meeting in May 2008:
At administrative level, the Palestinian Authority (PA) had shown an ability to manage relations with the Union, particularly by implementing itself the various payments of funding from the EU. PEGASE (the successor to TIM) had transformed the system into a genuine partnership and centralised the payment of contributions from all sources (EU and Member States). All expenditure was covered: infrastructure (water, roads, schools), training, education, judicial system, security / police equipment, officials’ pay and pensions, supply of fuel oil to Gaza to produce electricity.
It was the PA which determined, internally, the allocation of appropriations among the various projects.
Some 50% of the budget was devoted to Gaza, in an economic environment which was suffering particularly since the blockade. Growth, which had been 4% in 2007, was expected to fall.
The EU was the biggest contributor, with EUR 1.8 billion, expected to be cut to EUR 1 billion in 2009. It was the only donor to make its payment in January of the year in question.
Precise figures broken down by sector appeared in the progress report of 10 October 2008 and in PEGASE bulletin no. 32 for the period from 29 September to 10 October 2008.
The members of the delegation (the chairman, F. Brepoels, L. Morgantini) were concerned at the seriousness of the situation in Gaza, deprived of essentials (building materials, water, food) and resorting to smuggling (via tunnels), and wondered what action was being taken.
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Chris Davies confessed he could not understand why European taxpayers should have to foot he bill rather than the Israelis.
- On behalf of ECHO, Hervé Caiveau gave a detailed analysis of the situation:
Context: • The situation remained one of unceasing fragmentation and isolation in the West Bank and continued blockade in Gaza.
• Core principles of IHL were continually being neglected / violated, with most humanitarian indicators evolving negatively, thus placing protection of civilians as a central issue in this crisis.
• Access to food remained an essential factor of the crisis, economic access in particular, with 38% of the population food-insecure (25% in the West Bank and 56% in Gaza). Rising commodity prices and the weather shocks of last winter, further compounded by the blockade of Gaza and restrictions on access and movement, led to the Occupied Territories being among the top 30 countries affected by global rise in food / fuel prices.
Protection of civilians: • 428 Palestinians killed as a direct consequence of the conflict with Israel between January and August 08 (vs. 230 over the same period of 2007, i.e. an 86% increase)1
• 1775 Palestinians injured over the same period (+ 37% compared to the same period of 2007)2
• However, there had been a sharp decrease since the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel was put in place on 19 June.
• Inter-factional fighting decreasing (from 2007) with 94 Palestinians killed by the end of August 2008 (80 of them in Gaza), + 22 in handling explosives + 50 "tunnel connected" deaths.
Access and movement: • Further deterioration in spite of commitments made at Annapolis one year ago.
• Tight blockade on Gaza leading to severe restrictions in imports and movement of people, and a continued ban on exports, with an increasing tightening since 4 November.
• Main entry crossings to Gaza remained closed (Erez, Karni, Rafah). Alternative crossings such as Kerem Shalom were operating on an erratic basis (Sofa had been closed since August);
1 Source: OCHA Protection of civilians, October 2008. 2 Source: OCHA Protection of civilians, October 2008.
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• Quantities imported were well below needs: by August 2008 they had decreased to pre- ceasefire levels. In August 2008, imports were 4 times less than in May 2007, before Hamas takeover.
• In the West Bank, freedom of movement was severely constrained. Last UNOCHA count: 630 physical obstacles in September 2008, a 67% increase over the Access and Movement Agreement (AMA) baseline (August 2005).
• The barrier was now 57% completed, with a further 9% under construction. When completed, 9.5% of the West Bank and 385,000 settlers (85% of them) would lie west of the barrier.
• 35,000 Palestinians with West Bank IDs living in 35 communities, and most of the 250,000 Palestinians with East Jerusalem IDs would lie between the barrier and the armistice "green" line of 1949. Over 150,000 Palestinians would be surrounded by the barrier on 3 sides or more.
• In the Northern West Bank, the barrier was now completed. The enclave between the green line and the barrier had been declared a closed military area, with a tight permit regime.
Settlements: • The number of building starts on new housing units between January and June 2008 had increased by 42% over the same period last year (source: Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics). The population of West Bank settlements had increased by 4.6% in the first 6 months of the year, i.e. a 3 times higher rate than population growth in Israel (Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics).
Humanitarian access: • The ability of humanitarian workers and UN staff to reach vulnerable areas and isolated zones had deteriorated. UN personnel had also lost thousands of working hours at checkpoints in the West Bank in particular.
• New procedures for the passage of goods between Israel and the West Bank would be enforced in 2009, bringing down the number of checkpoints from 12 currently to 6 and possibly putting in place a back-to-back system.
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Conclusions: • Unhindered access for humanitarian personnel to Gaza should be guaranteed. Security and administrative arrangements must be clearly established and predictable. Under international humanitarian law, humanitarian operators should be entitled to positive discrimination. • Restrictions imposed on Gaza were a form of collective punishment against Palestinian civilians, which is a violation of the provisions of international humanitarian law, including the Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilians in Times of War of 1949. The international community, especially the High Contracting Parties to the Fourth Geneva Convention, should work towards ensuring immediate and free flow of basic supplies, including fuel, food and medicine, into the Gaza Strip.
• The EC humanitarian effort would remain high in 2009, with a specific emphasis on the protection of civilians. Main sectors of intervention would remain on food assistance and livelihood support, water and sanitation activities, health projects, psycho-social support (to children in particular), protection and coordination.
2 – Meeting with the Presidency of the Council of the European Union
Alain REMY, France’s Consul-General in East Jerusalem, gave a brief outline of the situation:
- On the peace process: the failure to form a new government in Israel was a destabilising factor. He admitted to being more pessimistic, in spite of the announcement that all Palestinian political groups would be present in Cairo on 9 November.
- On internal politics, discussions were continuing on the term of the presidential mandate and whether it was advisable to hold early elections so that the presidential and legislative elections coincided. The Prime Minister was facing challenges from within his own party. The 6th Fatah congress was constantly being postponed.
- On the economy, indicators (consumption, investment) were rising on the West Bank. It had been possible to pay overdue salaries (with a backlog of 18 months). There was a clear perception of growth.
- On security, some progress had been made. This was obvious in Jenin, though at Hebron it had been slower, ‘gradual’, and there had been no end to the violence. The Israeli police were playing their part in an area where cooperation is a requirement for the credibility of the peace process.
M. SILHAVY, Consul of the Czech Republic in East Jerusalem, agreed with the observations made by the Consul-General of France.
The clear relative weakness of political power meant that Europeans must not fail to give their support, otherwise hope and confidence in the peace process would fade once and for all.
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Several members of the delegation (the chairman, L. Morgantini, C. Davies, M. Auken) expressed very firm support for increasing pressure on the Israeli authorities to meet their obligations. The Consul-General of France stressed the importance of ceaseless action on the ground and with the Palestinian authorities . A lively exchange of views took place on the nature of Hamas's demands and their real desire for peace.
II - SITUATION OF PALESTINIAN PRISONERS
The delegation decided to allocate its work of inquiring into the fate of the Palestinian prisoners (and of the Israeli solder Gilad Shalit) as efficiently as possible in view of timetabling constraints, particularly the fact that Saturday was a non-working day in Israel. Accordingly, six activities were confirmed.
1 – Meetings with released prisoners and prisoners’ families: (Ramallah, Saturday 1 November)
An exchange of views was arranged between the delegation and eight people who were either former prisoners in Israeli jails, since released, or family members of prisoners. In this connection the role played by the NGO ‘Addameer’ – a prisoner support and human rights association set up in 1992, which offers legal aid to prisoners and seeks to end torture by launching various solidarity campaigns – should be stressed.
The chairwoman of Addameer, Khalida Jarrar, who is herself a Member of the PLC, assisted by Clare Holohan, the association’s lawyer, presented the guests, who each told their stories in turn:
- Myriam Saleh, a Hamas member, placed in administrative detention (no charge, no judgment), released on 25 June 2008;
- Abu Ali Yatta spent 28 years in prison, and was elected to the PLC (Fatah list) while behind bars. He told of his arrest at night, his interrogation, the sleep deprivation, the dogs, the eight months in total seclusion, transfers from one prison to another, etc., until he was freed on 25 August 2008;
- The sister of Ahmed Sa'adat, Secretary-General of the Popular Front. Her brother was accused of murder, imprisoned in 2001, and elected to the PLC while in prison. She herself was placed in administrative detention for 5 months in 2003. She has been forbidden for the past year to visit her brother;
- Salwa Jaradat, the sister of Ali Jaradat, who was placed in administrative detention in April 2008 for publishing, as a journalist, articles criticising the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli occupation. His detention has recently been extended for another 6 months.
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- Zghur Hamdan, mother of Yasmeen, who was arrested on 13 May 2003 and sentenced to 8 years’ imprisonment. She has not been allowed to see her daughter.
- Siham Salah, mother of Salwa, a 16-year-old student placed in administrative detention on 5 June 2008; her detention was extended for another three months on 6 October.
Salwa was arrested in together with another girl, Sarah Siureh.
The delegation decided to investigate what had happened to these two girls following the decision of the military appeal court in Ofer.
The delegation expressed its strong support for improving the conditions of the Palestinian prisoners, and its disapproval of the constant violation of international law.
It recalled the measures to that end in the European Parliament in the form of demonstrations, hearings, films, etc. and noted that the issue had also been raised at the last meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean.
2 – Support for Salwa and Sarah
The case of Salwa and Sarah illustrates this procedure of administrative detention which enables the Israeli authorities to arrest and imprison people without having to inform them officially what they are charged with or pass judgment on them. In this way, Salwa Salah and Sarah Siureh, both aged under 18, were sentenced to five and six months detention respectively, renewed for a further three months on 6 October 2008. Addameer’s lawyer has appealed against this decision. The appeal judgment is due on 2 November at the military court in Ofer.
That day, the delegation had decided to visit the Israeli prison at Hedarim, though it intended to monitor the Salwa and Sarah case closely.
When they learnt that the appeal had been dismissed by the military court, the delegation decided, on returning, to send letters of protest and support to President Shimon Peres, Major- General Gadi Shamni and Defence Minister Ehud Barak.
At the end of October 2008 the number of Palestinians in administrative detention was estimated at 750.
3 – Symbolic visit to Hedarim prison (Sunday, 2 November 2008, Hedarim, Israel)
The chairman of the delegation, Kyriacos Triantaphyllides, had approached the Israeli authorities on two occasions, on 29 July and 25 September, to obtain permission to visit certain Members of the PLC in Israeli prisons, and in particular the Speaker of the PLC, Aziz Dweik, and Marwan Barghouti. In both cases the request was refused. The refusal was reiterated, via the Israeli Ambassador in Brussels, by the Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs, Tzipi Livni, to whom President Pöttering had made the same request on 27 October.
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Lacking any specific authorisation, the delegation had to decide what to do. After a briefing by Addameer representatives, the delegation decided the best thing was to go to the Hedarim prison, north of Tel Aviv (Israel) to try and meet the Speaker, Aziz Dweik, who was thought (on the basis of information received) to be held there.
Once there, the delegation asked at the reception to meet the Speaker of the PLC, Aziz Dweik. After much toing and froing by duty officers and a hour and a half's wait, the delegation prepared to split into two groups (one to stay there, the other to continue with the programme). Just then, an officer came to inform the chairman of the delegation that the request to meet Palestinian prisoners was refused, as was a meeting with the prison governor . The chairman of the delegation officially registered his disapproval and left the prison entrance, followed by his colleagues.
The chairman mentioned this refusal at the press conference he held the next day in Gaza, and in the press release at the end of the mission.
4 – Meeting with children, freed former prisoners and their families (Ramallah, Saturday 1 November, Defence for Children International)
Gerard Morton, representing the Palestine Section of the NGO ‘Defence for Children International’ explained the situation under Israeli military law concerning minors.
There are nearly 1500 military regulations applying to Palestinians on the West Bank and these are enforced by two special courts.
Since 2000, almost 6000 minors have been imprisoned.
The military regulations deem the full age of criminal responsibility for Palestinians to be 16, as opposed to 18 for Israelis. Between the ages of 12 and 16, penalties of varying gravity can be applied, and stone-throwing can incur up to 20 [years’] imprisonment.
Violations of the rights of the defence and children's rights as set out by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child are increasingly common.
As of October 2008, some 300 minors are being held in Israeli prisons, 21 of them under 15, 255 aged 16/17, 13 of whom are in administrative detention.
These minors are very often subjected to physical and/or psychological ill-treatment. It is notable that 95% of these procedures result in ‘confessions’.
Furthermore, the age of the accused (affecting the sentence imposed) is deemed to be the age at the date of sentencing, not at the date on which the acts were committed.
The case of Mohamed: On 8 February 2008, Mohamed was about to turn 15. He was playing near the 'Wall' with a friend. He was arrested by the police, interrogated, and refused to make a
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confession. Mohamed was accused of throwing stones… Two days earlier, children had been seen throwing stones at the wall.
Eventually, Mohamed signed a document in Hebrew. He was then sentenced to 4 and a half months in detention by the military court. Intimidated, molested, moved from one prison to another, Mohamed was ultimately released on 31 May. He made a statement to the delegation.
"Defence for Children International" wonders how it might be possible to contest such procedures legally: before what international court could the case be brought?
Gerard Morton will use his next visit to London and Brussels to try and find out. He asked the European Parliament, and the European Union in general, to support them in their campaign.
5 – Meeting with Fatah Members of the PLC formerly imprisoned by Hamas in Gaza (Monday, 3 November, PCHR, Gaza)
The delegation saw another aspect of the detention of Palestinians at their meeting in Gaza, at the Palestinian Human Rights Centre, with three PLC Members who had recently left prison. These three men are Fatah militants living in Gaza, and were arrested by Hamas for their political activities. They were held for between one and three months in centres guarded by the Hamas militia in the Gaza Strip. They were among 22 Fatah militants arrested: 17 are still in prison.
Their spokesman, Ahmed Abujuleh, has just left prison after three months. He deplores this internecine strife between the two factions, which damages the unity and coherence of the Palestinian position, particularly towards Israel. The opposite situation obtains in Ramallah, where Fatah holds some Hamas prisoners.
Is this revenge or a matter of security? The delegation heard these statements with some amazement, while highlighting the work carried out on the ground by the Palestinian Human Rights Centre.
This interview complemented the Gaza portion of the inter-parliamentary meeting by making it possible to meet Fatah MPs.
6 – The exception: the fate of an Israeli prisoner: meeting with the father of Gilad Shalit (East Jerusalem, Saturday, 1 November)
In full accordance with the terms of Parliament’s resolution of 4 September 2008, the delegation wished to meet Noam Shalit, the father of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, who has been held by Hamas for 28 months at a secret location.
When contacted by the delegation, Noam Shalit insisted that the interview be preceded by contacts with a lawyer/journalist in France. He announced that he would be accompanied by Yossim Beilin, a Member of the Knesset and former minister.
The interview lasted an hour and a half and took place at the Legacy Hotel in East Jerusalem.
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Noam Shalit recalled how his son was ‘kidnapped’ on the Israeli border, and held in contravention of international law. The whole world took an interest in his fate, and the letter from Gilad which recently reached his parents via France has not succeeded in reassuring them.
Yossim Beilin welcomed the delegation’s approach in enquiring about Shalit’s case, which was ‘most exceptional’. He acknowledged that discussions were continuing about an exchange of prisoners, in which Gilad Shalit was regarded as a kind of hostage. Out of the hundreds of names of prisoners put forward, clearly some were hard for the Israeli authorities to accept, hence the need to lengthen the reference list so as to allow greater room for manoeuvre.
An exchange of views followed on the conditions for, and real chances of, access to Gilad Shalit. Everyone agreed that freeing him would be a major step towards improving the situation in Gaza, or more accurately, as the chairman of the delegation said, would be a sign of an improvement in the situation.
The delegation undertook to mention the Gilad Shalit case at its meeting in Gaza with representatives of Hamas on the PLC.
III – 8th EP / PALESTINIAN LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL INTER-PARLIAMENTARY MEETING
The 8th inter-parliamentary meeting between the delegations of the European Parliament and of the Palestinian Legislative Council took place in two sittings, in view of the political situation: the first in Ramallah, on Sunday 2 November, the second in Gaza on Monday 3 November 2008.
1 – EP-PLC Inter-parliamentary meeting (1st part): Ramallah, Sunday, 2 November, at the seat of the PLC.
The meeting officially opened following a lunch given by the PLC for the delegation, enabling members to get to know one another while carrying on an initial exchange of views.
In the absence of Azzam Alahmad, chairman of the Fatah parliamentary bloc on the Palestinian Legislative Council, the PLC delegation was headed by Abdullah Abdullah, of Fatah. It comprised ten members, mostly from Fatah, but also from the ‘Third Way’ list, the FPLP, the DFLP, the Independents and the PPP.
The PLC delegation greeted the European Parliament delegation and welcomed Parliament’s resolution of 4 September 2008 on the situation of Palestinian prisoners. It expressed satisfaction at the efforts made to meet these prisoners. Kyriacos Triantaphyllides reaffirmed his delegation’s wish to address this issue and regretted that the Israeli authorities had not shown more consideration for democratically elected parliamentarians. He stressed that the mission covered all Palestinian prisoners (estimated at 10 000) and their suffering families.
A discussion then began between the members of the two delegations:
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- On the prisoners: Jamal Abo Rob (Fatah) pointed to the failings of the Israeli authorities in their treatment of prisoners in Jerusalem: the Palestinian Authority had to make a financial contribution to ensure that the Palestinian prisoners were fed. This was an unacceptable situation showing a contempt with which he was all too familiar, having spent eight years in Israeli prisons.
Djamila Madeira, Chris Davies and Proinsias de Rossa stressed the need to put pressure on Israel by all possible means, including in the parliamentary assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean;
- On the association agreement between the European Union and Israel, the PLC delegation noted with some irony the EU’s ‘magnanimity and generosity’;
- On the Israel-Palestine conflict and the Cairo talks, the possibility of Egyptian mediation was discussed with the five committees which had been set up. The major unknown factors were: the election dates; the future electoral system; the nature of the government; and the terms of internal reconciliation. Everyone agreed in hoping that dialogue would get off to a constructive start in the next few days in Cairo.
- On the economic situation, in spite of increasing aid from the international community and the European Union in particular, the situation was still hard to deal with. The effects of the partition of Palestine (the encircling of Gaza) and the fragmentation of the West Bank, an ever lengthening wall, ever more checkpoints and the increasing time and cost of transport. A few figures were quoted: ‘1 kg of tomatoes cost more than EUR 2 in Ramallah, and EUR 0.5 in Gaza,’ or ‘the Israelis consume four times more water than the Palestinians, and this water comes from Palestine.’
What has become of the freedom to import and export? In Gaza, firms lack basic materials: wood, steel, cement. Supplies have been held up in Israeli ports for nearly 10 months.
- On security: there were maybe a few improvements on the West Bank, particularly in Jenin, but in Nablus and Hebron the situation was getting worse, with often aggressive interference by Israeli settlers. A PLC Member from Nablus had waited three hours that very morning at the checkpoint.
- On relations with the Knesset, the PLC Secretary-General replied to Frieda Brepoels acknowledging that such relations were very exceptional and were limited to brief meetings at a few international events.
The inter-parliamentary meeting was then followed by a joint press conference with the two delegation chairmen.
2 – EP/PLC joint inter-parliamentary meeting (2nd part): Gaza, seat of the PLC, Monday, 3 November 2008
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Monday was to be spent in Gaza for the second part of the inter-parliamentary meeting with PLC Members and meetings with UNRWA and the Palestinian Human Rights Centre (an NGO).
The information and requests for authorisation had been sent to the Israeli authorities well before the delegation had set off, with a view to easing the crossing of the Erez checkpoint. The day before departure, no reply had been received from the Foreign Ministry in Tel Aviv. It was only at 23.15 that a curt message (‘Let them go there’) was sent to the delegation by the Commission correspondents. The Israeli police had also decided, the previous week, to bring forward the closure of the Erez checkpoint to 16.00, thus reducing the delegation’s time on site accordingly.
After more than an hour and a half of waiting and arguing at the first guard post, then crossing the second checkpoint and then no-man’s land, it took the delegation a total of nearly three hours to joint the UNRWA vehicles. This was really a delegation ‘under supervision’!
The delegation abandoned its planned meeting with UNRWA and went straight to the seat of the PLC where a number of PLC Members were waiting, led by their vice-chairman, Ahmad Bahar (Hamas).
Accompanied by a dozen Members, all from Hamas (Change and Reform), apart from three Independents and Third Way Members, the vice-chairman, Ahmad Bahar, welcomed the arrival of the European Parliament delegation and its determination to address the cause of the Palestinian prisoners, particularly the PLC Members still being held. (currently 43 out of a total of the PLC’s 132 Members).
He referred to the alarming consequences of the ‘siege’ of Gaza, in particular the 3000 businesses destroyed or closed, the 100 000 people out of work, the shortage of food and building material.
The cutting of links between Ramallah and Gaza was weighing on the Cairo talks; the exchange of prisoners was at the heart of these negotiations, with no real prospect of a solution.
Kyriacos Triantaphyllides referred to the circumstances which had permitted the adoption of the 4 September 2008 resolution by the European Parliament. Luisa Morgantini then stressed how much the internal strife between political groups was harming the image of Palestinian cause. She referred to the ‘shame’ of seeing Palestinians being taken prisoner by other Palestinians. She called on all sides to assume their responsibilities with a view to reaching a genuine truce and the lifting of the siege of Gaza. Her opinion was shared by the whole European delegation.
The worsening living conditions in Gaza were the subject of a wide-ranging exchange of views in which the European Parliament delegation expressed its determination to address this issue (P. de Rossa, F. Brepoels, D. Madeira). The need for medicines was stressed, while Dr Khamis Al Najar described the efforts being made by the Gaza community.
The loan payments to Gaza did not really correspond to the amounts put forward by Ramallah, particularly as regards wages and the reimbursement of VAT income.
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When Proinsias de Rossa referred to the situation of the soldier Gilad Shalit, Yiehia Musa (Hamas) replied firmly that Shalit had been captured while in an Israeli army tank. He was offended at the concern expressed by the international community when almost 10 000 Palestinians were in Israeli prisons and their suffering and those of their families could not be neglected. On the question of respect for international obligations, Yiehia Musa noted the repeated violations on the Israeli side.
The PLC delegation, like its counterpart in Ramallah, called on the Europeans to keep up the pressure on the Israeli government in the interest of peace and the creation of a Palestinian state.
- Meeting with Fatah members: in the margins of the main meeting, and thanks to the good offices of the Palestinian Human Rights Centre, a meeting was held with three Fatah Members in Gaza, who had not wanted to take part in the first meeting.
3 - Invitation to the Palestinian Legislative Council for a further meeting in March 2009
At the end of the meeting, the chairman of the European Parliament delegation, Kyriacos Triantaphyllides, invited the Palestinian Legislative Council for another meeting which might be held during the European Parliament part-session week in Strasbourg in March 2009. This invitation, which was formally delivered to the deputy speaker of the Legislative Council, was extended to a delegation representing the main Palestinian political groups.
This information was released to the media at the two presidents’ press conference which followed the meeting.
One press agency gave rise to regrettable confusion by referring to 'an invitation by the European Parliament to Hamas'. This inappropriate form of words immediately evoked responses, some of them forceful, not least within the European Parliament itself.
The chairman of the delegation, with the support of all its members (representing five of Parliament’s political groups) was keen to clarify the matter very firmly in order to avoid any misunderstanding. It did so three times: once in press release, once in a joint letter to the President of Parliament, and once, somewhat later, to the Working Group on the Middle East.
The European Parliament Delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council was constituted, like the other inter-parliamentary delegations, by a decision of the plenary. It follows rules of operation drawn up by Parliament, in particular the alternation of meetings, as is the case in dozens of democratically elected parliaments around the world. The European Parliament, its decision-making bodies and its political groups had been fully informed of this visit and its programme.
The invitation to visit Strasbourg in 2009 was from one inter-parliamentary delegation to another, in this case the Palestinian Legislative Council, which was formed following the 2006 elections and is still in operation. The invitation was made formally to the Deputy Speaker of the Council in the absence of the Speaker, who is being held in an Israeli prison. A copy of the
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invitation was sent to the PLC Members in Ramallah, and accordingly all the political groups represented on the Council were informed of it.
IV – MEETING WITH THE PRIME MINISTER, SALAM FAYYAD (Sunday, 2 November, Ramallah)
The chairman of the European Parliament delegation resumed meetings with the Members of the PLC and said he had invited them to Strasbourg in 2009.
The Prime Minister appreciated the willingness of the delegation to address the prisoners’ situation, and regretted that it was still necessary to concern ourselves with this problem, which should no longer be on the agenda.
He wondered, as did members of the delegation, how to achieve significant progress from Israel on the road to peace. Salam Fayyad expected a great deal from the European Union, in spite of the disappointments, and indeed frustrations which the Palestinian people sometimes experienced as a result of measures to deepen relations between the European Union and Israel at a time when violations of international obligations were continuing.
The Prime Minister was particularly aware of the implications for peace of the political renewal which had taken place in the USA and of the forthcoming elections in Israel.
V – AT THE HEART OF THE PALESTINIAN COMMUNITY IN RAMALLAH: THE ‘PALESTINE INTERNATIONAL AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE AND CREATIVITY’ (Ramallah, Palace of Culture, Sunday, 2 November 2008)
The European Parliament delegation was invited to attend a major event on 2 November 2008 at which the Palestinian community sought to pay tribute to achievements and initiatives in the interest of Palestine. This initiative, entitled the ‘Palestine International Award for Excellence and Creativity Agenda’ was designed to reward Palestinians who had excelled in their own field, as well as international personalities whose commitment to the Palestinian cause deserved recognition.
An award in the second of these categories went to Luisa Morgantini, Vice-President of the European Parliament and Member of the Delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council, whose devotion to Palestine cannot be doubted. Luisa Morgantini was invited to receive this award together with Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Amer Mousa, Secretary-General of the Arab League, Abdel Yousef Al Hamad, chairman of the Arab Fund For Economic & Social Development, and the former Roman Patriarch of Jerusalem, His Holiness Michael Sabbah.
A moving tribute was also paid to the great Palestinian artist Mahmoud Darwish.
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The delegation strongly supported the powerful words chosen by Luisa Morgantini in her speech of thanks, when she referred to ‘dignity for the Palestinian people… courage and hope’, considering this award as a 'message of life'. She received a standing ovation.
It should be noted that one of the prize-winners from Gaza had not been allowed to travel to Ramallah. His chair was left empty.
Following an ‘all too brief’ series of meetings with various personalities, the delegation went to place a wreath on the grave of Yasser Arafat.
VI – VISITS ON SITE: DEMOLITIONS AND EXPULSIONS
The delegation had decided, on the advice of the Commission, that its programme would include two visits representing very clearly the ‘Israeli behaviour’ towards the Palestinians which had been widely criticised by the international community.
1 - Al Aqaba village: fighting for land rights (Saturday, 1 November 2008)
In the north-east of the West Bank, between Toubas and the Jordan valley, the village of Al Aqaba (population c. 300) illustrates perfectly the contradictions between the promise of a land set aside for Palestinians and the reality. Once a military area and an Israeli army exercise site (in which the current mayor of the village lost the use of his legs), Al Aqaba is the symbol of Palestinian resistance in the face of arms and law codes. The village is in area C of the West Bank and is thus subject to Israeli civil and military law. Its people, whose property was mostly expropriated under conditions which the Israeli High Court of Justice has acknowledge as illegal, are attempting to preserve their land rights by any means they can, and to live on the land in the face of the inexorable procedures of the Israeli civil administration.
Since the land and the (private and public) buildings were never formally registered by the Israeli administration in an urban planning document, the people have to undergo threats of demolition on the grounds of lack of planning permission and illegal occupancy.
Thanks to the tenacity of its mayor, Hadj Sami Sadeq, the village has been able to obtain financial support and real backing from the international community. The buildings funded by these gifts (a kindergarten, a mosque, etc.) are threatened with destruction.
The procedure which the Israeli authorities are pursuing has recently resulted in a judgment of 17 April 2008 authorising the demolition of 35 housing units, virtually the whole village.
The village’s defenders opposed this decision, particularly the NGOs Rebuilding Alliance, Bimkom and Gush Shalom, whose representatives (Shmuel Groag and Adam Keller) accompanied the delegation for the whole day. Rebuilding Alliance has proposed submitting a formally correct file with a view to registering the land on the cadastral plan. This is the option, relying on a precedent in the Jerusalem area, the villagers have decided to take.
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The mayor, with members of his municipal team, received the delegation. He had returned the day before from a visit to the USA seeking to gather the moral and financial support he needs.
Shmuel Groag, of the association Bimkom, gave a precise and well-documented presentation of the administrative and legal situation in the three areas (A, B and C) of the West Bank, and summarised what was at stake for the villagers of Al Aqaba and the means at their disposal. How could a new reservoir be built without the danger that it would be destroyed a few days later? How could the Israelis be believed when they said that buildings funded by ‘foreigners’ would be spared?
European support was particularly welcome, as the delegation could see by visiting this village miles from anywhere in the middle of the desert.
The lunch given before the delegation’s departure brought this instructive visit to a pleasant close.
Later, on its return, the delegation noted a declaration by the Council of the European Union of 10 November 2008 calling on the Israeli authorities to put an end to the destruction of Palestinian houses in East Jerusalem, which is illegal under international law.
2 – The Al Kurd family: the right to live in one’s own home... (East Jerusalem, Monday 3 November 2008)
Another aspect of the tense relationship between the Jewish/Israeli and Palestinian communities is the practice of expulsion.
Alerted by the Commission, the delegation decided, on the evening of its visit to Gaza and the day before its departure, to go to a quarter of East Jerusalem – Sheikh Jarrah – not far from the hotel, where the Al Kurd family was threatened with expulsion by the Israeli authorities.
A legal and psychological battle is taking place on behalf of this Palestinian family, who have lived there since 1956 and, together with 27 other families, occupy dwellings built by the Jordanian government and UNRWA for Palestinian refugees.
There have been years of procedural wrangling over title deeds and unpaid rent, instigated by Jewish settlers’ associations who have decided to turn Palestinian inhabitants into illegal occupants in order to have them expelled.
By judgment of 25 February 2007, the Israeli Supreme Court ordered the expulsion of the Al Kurd family. This was still the situation on the day of the visit. The members of the delegation were able to observe the situation and gauge the lack of security Palestinians must have in this part of Jerusalem, in spite of its being recognised as theirs by the international community.
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Deeply moved, the delegation learnt on returning home that, during the night of 8 November, just when President Shimon Peres and minister Ehud Barak were talking in Tel Aviv about the road to peace, the Israeli police force was expelling the Al Kurd family from their house.
The delegation then decided to present a motion for a resolution (pursuant to Rule 115 of the Rules of Procedure) concerning a human rights violation. Submitted by two political groups, the proposal became a joint motion for a resolution and was included on the agenda for Parliament’s sitting of 20 November.
As a result of oral amendments in plenary, the wording of the resolution was toned down somewhat, but nevertheless the delegation saw to it that Parliament stated as its official position that such practices could not be tolerated.
CONCLUSION Following its visit of 31 October to 3 November 2008 to East Jerusalem and the Palestinian territories, the European Parliament’s Delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council endorsed the following conclusions:
- As regards the situation of the Palestinian prisoners, recalls the terms of Parliament’s resolution of 4 September 2008 and calls for the Members of the Palestinian Legislative Council held by the Israelis to be freed… calls for the freeing of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.
- Is disturbed at the widespread practice of administrative detention, which is contrary to the elementary rights of the defence and to international conventions, particularly when applied to minors;
- Concerning the situation in Gaza, recalls the terms of Parliament’s resolution of 21 February 2008 and calls on all parties to put an end to the blockade of Gaza;
- Endorses the conclusions of the European Parliament’s Middle East Working Party following its visit of 30 May to 2 June 2008, on ‘security’, the situation in Gaza and the expansion of the settlements;
- Deplores the methods employed against the Palestinians which make the notion of Palestinian territory a nonsense, whether in East Jerusalem or on the West Bank as a whole, in particular the demolition of houses and the expulsion of Palestinian families;
- Confirms the invitation to a delegation of the Palestinian Legislative Council to meet it in Spring 2009 in Strasbourg, in full compliance with the rules governing the operation of inter- parliamentary delegations in the European Parliament;
- Plans to continue playing its role with a view to establishing a lasting peace in the region which will enable two states to live side by side.
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Delegation for Relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council
DRAFT PROGRAMME
8th Interparliamentary Meeting
European Parliament and the Palestinian Legislative Council
31 October - 4 November 2008
Jerusalem / Ramallah / Gaza
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Friday 31 October in Jerusalem
Individual arrival of participants (Ben Gurion Airport, Tel Aviv) and transfer to:
Hotel LEGACY 29 Nablus Road, Jerusalem Tel: +972-2-6270800 - Fax: +972-2-6277739 http://www.jerusalemlegacy.com/ mail: [email protected]
18:00-19:30 Briefing on the humanitarian and political situation in the oPT ECTAO and PEGASE by Roy Dickinson ECHO by Herve Caiveau
19:30-20:30 Meeting with the TROIKA Alain REMY, Consul Général de France à Jérusalem Ivo SILHAVY, Représentant de la République tchèque Roy DICKINSON, Chargé d'Affaires de la Commission européenne (ECTAO)
Followed by a buffet hosted by chair of the delegation Mr Kyriakos Triantaphyllides
Location: Hotel LEGACY
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Saturday 1 November in Ramallah/al-Aqaba/Jerusalem
7:30 Departure from Hotel Legacy to Ramallah
8:00 NGO - ADDAMEER Meeting with released PLC members and families of prisoners Location: Office of ADDAMEER in Ramallah
9:30 Departure of the delegation for visiting al-Aqaba village in Jordan Valley Visit of Area C village to highlight Israeli policies: house demolition orders; constraints on development and meeting with Mayor of al-'Aqaba village Haj Sami Sadeq/NGOs GushShalom/Bimkom
13:00 Lunch
13:45 Departure to Ramallah
15:30 NGO - Defence for Children International Meeting with former child detainees and their families Location: Office of DCI in Ramallah
17:00 Departure to Jerusalem
18:00 Meeting with the father of Gilad Shalit Noam Shalit - accompanied by Dr Yossi Beilin (Eretz party, member of the Knesset) Location: Hotel Legacy
19:00-20:30 Meeting with NGOs in Hotel Legacy ADDAMEER Palestinian Red Cross Society (PCRS) Applied Research Institute of Jerusalem (ARIJ) Followed by a buffet 20:15 hosted by chair of the delegation Mr Kyriakos Triantaphyllides
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Sunday 2 November in Ramallah
7:00 Departure from Hotel Legacy to Hedarim Prison
13:00 Lunch with Members and Secretary General of the PLC in Restaurant Azur hosted by chair of the delegation Mr Kyriakos Triantaphyllides
14:30 8th Interparliamentary meeting EP/PLC
15:30 Joint Press Conference in Ramallah
16:30 Meeting with Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad
17:00 Visit the tomb of Yasser Arafat, wreath laying ceremony
17:30 Palestine International Award for Excellence and Creativity Agenda Ramallah Cultural Palace
20:15 Departure to Hotel Legacy/Jerusalem
Free Evening
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Monday 3 November in Gaza
6:30 Departure from Hotel Legacy to Gaza
11:00-12:30 Meeting with VP of PLC Mr. Ahmad Bahar and 8th IPM EP/PLC
12:30 Joint Press Conference
13:00-14:30 NGO: Palestinian Centre for Human Rights Meeting with released PLC members and family of prisoner Location: Office of PCHR
14:30 Departure to Jerusalem via Erez
18:00 Visit Sheikh Jarrah neighbourhood committee
Free evening
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EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT
DELEGATION FOR RELATIONS WITH THE PALESTINIAN LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL 8TH IPM EP - PALESTINE
31 October - 4 November 2008
List of participants Members (8) Group Country Mr Kyriacos TRIANTAPHYLLIDES, Chairman of the Delegation GUE Cyprus Mr Proinsias DE ROSSA, Vice-Chair of the Delegation PSE Ireland Ms Margrethe AUKEN Verts/ALE Denmark Ms Frieda BREPOELS EPP Belgium Mr Chris DAVIES ALDE United Kingdom Ms Jamila MADEIRA PSE Portugal Ms Luisa MORGANTINI, EP vice-president GUE Italy Mr Georgios TOUSSAS GUE Greek
ABBREVIATIONS USED FOR POLITICAL GROUPS EPP-ED Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats PSE Socialist Group in the European Parliament ALDE Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe Verts/ALE Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance GUE/NGL Confederal Group of the European United Left – Nordic Green Left
DG ExPo Staff (2) Christian GARRIGUES Administrator and Head of Secretariat Mr Lars NIELSEN Administrative Assistant
Political group staff (2) Bruno MARASA PSE Niccolo RINALDI ALDE Stelios CHRISTODOLOU GUE/NGL
Interpreters (3) Jumana KAYYALI ABBAS Amal SAAD In Gaza: Mr Shaath
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