Hard truths

In an unprecedented move, a UN Special Committee calls for the imposition of sanctions against Israel for gross abuse of Palestinian human rights, reports Gamal Nkrumah

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The clock is ticking for a catastrophe of colossal proportions in the Occupied Territories to occur. The situation is currently deplorable and fast worsening. It now matters desperately that the condition of the Palestinians living under Israeli occupation improves. This was the conclusion of Ambassador Prasad Kariyawasam, the chairman of the Special Committee to Investigate Israeli Practices Affecting the Human Rights of the Palestinian People and Other Arabs of the Occupied Territories. Kariyawasam, the permanent representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, headed a three-man delegation to Egypt, on the first leg of their regional tour -- they are scheduled to visit Syria and Jordan, but were denied access to the Occupied Territories by the Israeli authorities.

The Special Committee prepared a 30-page report which they are to deliver to UN Secretary- General Kofi Annan for presentation at the UN General Assembly. The Special Committee was established in 1968, in the aftermath of the 1967 Arab-Israeli War as an initiative by the Non- Aligned Movement (NAM).

"The committee is impartial," Kariyawasam told Al-Ahram Weekly. "We look at the facts and then present recommendations. Our objectivity, however, is hampered by Israel which has been very hostile to our efforts and is pressing for the disbanding of the committee," he said. The other two members of the committee are the Permanent Representative of Malaysia to the UN Ambassador Hamidon Ali and Ambassador Mamadou Sow, the former Senegalese ambassador to Egypt. Traditionally, the committee is always composed of representatives from the three countries -- Malaysia, Senegal and Sri Lanka. The committee's reports are reviewed in the UN's Special Decolonisation Committee of the UN General Assembly. "The Special Committee bases its work on human rights standards and obligations as defined by the Charter of the UN, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil Rights and other international treaties," the committee chairman explained.

The report is based on individual testimonies, reports of non-governmental organisations and human rights groups including Palestinian and Israeli civil rights organisations. Just as in the previous three years, the Special Committee stressed the detestable impact of the expansion of construction of the Separation Wall in the West Bank. "In the West Bank, the expansion of the wall goes unabated, cutting off many Palestinian communities from access to their fields and business, schools and universities, as well as to Jerusalem and other cities in the West Bank" Ambassador Kariyawasam warned.

"Information received by the Special Committee highlights the detrimental effects of the wall surrounding Jerusalem," he noted.

"The effects of the wall are worsened by the closure system which aggravates the humanitarian crisis and poverty in the West Bank and Gaza and severely hampers access by Palestinians to health and education services, employment, markets and social or religious networks." Kariyawasam also warned of the disastrous consequences of checkpoints and other physical obstacles to travel, which the Palestinians believe are "persistent forms of collective punishment".

He stressed that "2006 will definitely remain a peculiar year in the records of the Special Committee's work over the years." While the committee's report singled out Israel for its harshest criticism, other parties such as the international community and the Hamas-led Palestinian government also came under fire.

"The major military operation 'Summer Rain' launched by Israeli forces led to the complete naval, air and land blockade of the Gaza Strip, isolating it totally from the outside world and preventing supplies to the population of much-needed international humanitarian assistance," Kariyawasam noted.

He explained that owing to spending limitations affecting the resources allocated from the regular budget of the UN to the Special Committee, its yearly field visit was rescheduled from June to August. He also noted that apart from the financial constraints, because of the seriously deteriorating security situation in the Middle East, which entailed travel restrictions both for the committee and the Palestinian witnesses, the Special Committee decided to reschedule its field visit from 11 to 22 November.

Kariyawasam also expressed concern about the detrimental impact of sanctions on the cash- strapped Palestinian Authority. "The suspension by major donors including the European Union, the United States, Canada and Japan of their financial assistance to the Palestinian Authority, combined with the stopping by Israel of the transfer to the Palestinian Authority of customs taxes and revenues collected on its behalf, triggered off a major crisis in Occupied Palestinian Territories with no apparent solution in view."

The news blackout of the UN Special Committee's efforts was disturbing, members of the committee said. There was hardly a mention of the report in the international media. "We are rather concerned because there is not enough media, not even in NAM member states," Kariyawasam told the Weekly. "Only in Syria do we go on TV," he said.

The Special Committee was also critical of the Hamas-led Palestinian government. "The absence of a clear commitment by Hamas to uphold the Quartet conditions including adherence to the principle of non-violence, recognition of Israel and acceptance of previous agreements and obligations, led to a situation whereby the new Hamas-led Palestinian government was gradually boycotted by the government of Israel and ignored by the international community, leading to a paralysis in its governance."

The report warned that should this "situation persist, poverty was expected to increase to 74 per cent by 2008". According to the report, the unemployment rate which stood at 44 per cent in Gaza, increased to 55 per cent during times of complete closure imposed by the Israeli Defense Forces. Per capita income was 40 per cent lower than three years ago.

The most significant new recommendation of the Special Committee is that it urged the UN General Assembly to request the UN Security Council to consider sanctions against Israel if it persists in ignoring its international obligations. The call for sanctions against Israel was an unprecedented development.