NGO MEETING CALLS FOR UN INTERNATIONAL MEETING ON PROTECTION OF PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

NGO MEETING CALLS FOR UN INTERNATIONAL MEETING

ON PROTECTION OF PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

Plan of Action Cites Need

For Public Campaign to 'Make the Occupation Visible'

(Received from a UN Information Officer.)

MADRID, 19 July -- Declaring that the occupation of the Palestinian territory was “the single most prohibitive obstacle to peace”, the United Nations Non-Governmental Organization Meeting in Solidarity with the Palestinian People today requested the United Nations to convene as soon as possible a United Nations Non-Governmental International Meeting on the Protection of the Palestinian People. 

The request was contained in a Plan of Action adopted at the close of the meeting, which also stressed that immediate protection of the Palestinian civilian population by an international presence was imperative.  Stating that most of the world remained ignorant or misinformed about the significance of the occupation and its impact on the daily life of Palestinians, the Plan called for public awareness campaigns to focus attention on “making the occupation visible”.  Suggested campaigns included an international campaign against the occupation; a campaign over Israel’s violation of human rights; a campaign to urge governments to fulfil their responsibilities under the 1949 Fourth Geneva Convention. 

Also under the Plan, the participants proposed the consideration of an international civil society corps of volunteers to monitor events on the ground and to participate with Palestinian and Israeli non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in actions opposing the occupation.  They requested more frequent consultations between the United Nations and NGO networks and coordinating bodies.

During the day-long session, which was sponsored by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, participants heard presentations from a number of experts on the mobilization of public opinion in support of the Palestinian people.  Speakers reviewed the work of NGOs worldwide and discussed the development of action-oriented proposals and mechanisms for their implementation. 

In an opening statement, Committee Chairman Ibra Deguène Ka said developments in the occupied territories called for urgent action by all sectors of the international community to bring the peace process back on track.  The Palestinian people must be able to count on support from governments, intergovernmental and civil society organizations.  Stressing the importance of civil society in educating its respective constituencies about the fundamental issues of the question of Palestine and in mobilizing public support for the

Palestinian cause, he praised the work of those NGOs that provided emergency relief for the Palestinian people.  He appealed to Israeli NGOs and peace camp

activists to continue to inform public opinion and to provide an alternative to the dangerous course embarked upon by the Israeli Government.  Much of the success of NGOs would depend on their ability to mobilize the broadest possible constituency for their specific initiatives.

Citing the need for sustained campaigns to inform public opinion, he said particular attention should be given to mobilizing support for the protection of the Palestinian people.  Governments should be encouraged to support the deployment of international observers throughout the occupied Palestinian territory to monitor the ceasefire and the implementation of the Mitchell report.  In the months to come, civil society should support any initiatives to bring about a political process that would lead the parties back to the negotiating table, focusing on issues such as Jerusalem, settlements, refugees and borders.  Promoting emergency assistance and rehabilitation of the Palestinian economy was another important area of civil society work.  He called attention to the Web site for NGOs maintained by the Division for Palestinian Rights.

The Vice-President of the Palestinian Council for Justice and Peace, Ramallah, Allam Jarrar, reviewed the history of Palestinian NGOs.  Recently, in cooperation with international NGOs, they had proposed an initiative to send representatives of civil society from Europe and the United States to act as observers on the ground in the occupied territory and report back to their constituencies.  The Security Council had failed to reach a decision on the protection of Palestinian civilians by ensuring an international presence in the occupied territory.  The initiative would draw attention to the urgent necessity of immediate intervention.  To support the initiative, Palestinian NGOs had formed a national umbrella of various networks to coordinate with European and American networks.  He called on Israeli peace groups to join the initiative.

Coordinator, Israeli Committee against House Demolitions (Jerusalem),

Jeff Halper, said everything that occurred in the occupied territory had to be evaluated in the context of one people’s occupation over another.  It was important to make the occupation visible.  Israel avoided the word occupation, using instead the term “civil administration”.  Before the Oslo accords, the United States used the definition “occupied territories”.  They had subsequently referred to “disputed territories”, thus indicating that both parties had a claim to the land.  The network of NGOs he represented actively resisted the occupation, taking as a prime issue Israeli demolitions of some 8000 Arab homes in order to confine Palestinians to little islands and give Israel more land to occupy and control.

Because the demolitions did not arouse public reaction, he said, his Committee had decided to make it an international issue, to make the human tragedy visible to the world public by physically blocking the bulldozers.  Bypassing the Israeli public, which did not want to know about the occupation, they shared information with the press, embassies and governments as well as with a global network of NGOs.  Only by generating international pressure on Israel would the occupation be ended.  The role of the international community and the global NGO network, and the possibility of generating global opposition were extremely important.  Without international support, Israeli NGOs were isolated and powerless.

The Chairman of the International Coordinating Committee for Non-Governmental Organizations on the Question of Palestine, Don Betz, said the most immediate issue was survival.  He appealed for international protection of Palestine and of Palestinians, warning that their survival might literally depend on the persistent attention of the world’s States, the United Nations and

the global NGOs.  Non-governmental organizations must support and disseminate the report of the United Nations Human Rights Inquiry Commission to investigate

practices during the Al-Aqsa intifada.  Through a high-profile international conference on the needs of the people and on the importance of international protection, the United Nations would reposition itself to be at the centre of the pursuit of peace and justice in the region.  NGOs were eager to mobilize and enlist support from their governments for such an initiative.  The United Nations and the NGOs must coordinate to target wider audiences and publicize the Palestinian side of the story and to produce and disseminate updated videos, literature and Web site material.  An informed international public would not accept the injustice that had been endemic to the question of Palestine. 

Technology offered instant communications and networking, he said, pointing out that actions of governmental leaders could be scrutinized and coalitions of NGOs mobilized to reply en masse.  NGOs could act as lobbyists and serve as reliable sources of information on the issues.  Insightful analyses could be moved around the globe in minutes.  An immediate critical mass could be created, disseminating information about every rally, alert, press release, petition, media event, refugee support initiative, teach-in, letter campaign and newspaper editorial response related to the question of Palestine.

Following his statement, Mr. Betz introduced the draft Plan of Action.

Other participants in today’s panel discussion included the Editor-in Chief of the Haifa newspaper Al-Ittihad, Ahmed Saad; the Chairman of the Federation of Human Rights Associations in Madrid, José Antonio Gimbernat Ordeig; the Secretary-General of the Spanish Non-Governmental Committee on the Question of Palestine, Juan Carmelo García García; and the Sub-Dean of International and Institutional Affairs at the University of Murcia School of Medicine, María-Trinidad Herrero.

Also taking part in the presentations were the Vice-Chairman of the European Coordinating Committee for Non-Governmental Organizations on the Question of Palestine and the Secretary-General of the Havana-based Organization of Solidarity among the Peoples of Africa, Asia and Latin America, Juan Carretero Ibáñez.

Following the adoption of the Plan of Action, the Chairman of the Committee made a closing statement.

The Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, established by the General Assembly, was mandated to promote the realization of internationally recognized Palestinian rights -– the right to self-determination, the right to national independence and sovereignty and the right of Palestinians to return to their homes.  The Committee includes

25 States with an additional 21 States as observers.  The Committee monitors the situation related to the question of Palestine and reports and makes recommendation to the General Assembly and the Security Council.

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