|
|
|
|
|
______________________________________________________________________
NPK-info 21-06-2004- Nederlands Palestina Komitee / www.palestina-komitee.nl
______________________________________________________________________
Kamerdebat over Midden-Oosten 22 juni
Wel over Irak, niet over [37 jaar bezetting, 56 jaar Nakba]
Palestina
Deels in dat verband twee demonstraties
- 22-6 13 uur Plein Den Haag
- 26-6 13 uur Dam Amsterdam
Hierna
- Israel's Use of Torture Must be Exposed, Mustafa Barghouthi
- BADIL: 20 June, World Refugee Day
Zie voorts
- Israeli Forces Fire At British MPs In Rafah
- "Irreversible Mental Damage", Uri Avnery
QUOTED EXCERPTS: Two weeks ago, the international community
made a
shocking declaration. Giving in to a demand by George Bush, the
"Quartet"
accepted the "Revised Disengagement Plan" of Ariel Sharon. This
means that
the United Nations, the European Union, the Russian Federation
and the
United States confirmed this document. I wonder if any one of
the honorable
diplomats has read the document with their own eyes. . . . the
international community has confirmed that the Palestinian
people has no
right to take part in the determination of its own fate.
Everything will be
decided by the Government of Israel alone, with the backing of
the United
States, whose position will be automatically accepted by the
other partners
of the "Quartet". . . . This is a scandalous step, unprecedented
in its
dimensions, and it passed without comment. Apart from Sharon and
his
minions, nobody noticed the implications. END QUOTE
VISIT PALESTINE THIS SUMMER
- International Solidarity Movement
Give voice to the Palestinian cry for freedom. Join us on
July 30!
Freedom Summer Palestine 2004 Campaign
See
www.palsolidarity.org or contact info@palsolidarity.org
- Universitaire zomerkampen in Palestina?
Zie
www.birzeit.edu
NPK/WL, 21-6-2004
______________________________________________________________________
Volg
www.wereldcrisis.nl
______________________________________________________________________
From: "Palestine Monitor" <palmon@hdip.org>
Sent: Monday, June 07, 2004 9:34 AM
Israel's use of torture must be exposed
Mustafa Barghouthi *
The pictures of American soldiers torturing prisoners at the Abu
Ghraib
prison in Iraq have shocked the world. To the Palestinian people
however, these photographs of hooded or naked figures come as no
surprise. For the tens of thousands of Palestinians who have
served time
in Israeli prisons, the pictures only bring back memories of
their own
torture.
In many cases, the treatment of the Iraqis in Abu Ghraib bear
striking
similarities to Israeli methods of torture. Accusations are now
circling
in the world's press that Israeli security officers have
actually
assisted in training private US security contractors being sent
to Iraq.
Regardless of whether there is any truth to these allegations,
the world
must recognize that torture is commonplace in Israel. It is not
enough
to condemn the actions of these American soldiers while ignoring
the
systematic human rights abuses imposed on the Palestinian
people.
Like the United States, Israel lays claim to the highest moral
standards, yet it is apparent that there are elements within the
Israeli
armed forces and indeed government for whom torture is a
necessary and
acceptable weapon. The two nations' refusal to accept the terms
of to
the International Criminal Court can only enhance the worldwide
suspicion that these two countries wish to legitimize the
torture of
prisoners without ever being held to account by those they
abuse.
An Israeli High Court ruling on 6 September 1999 prohibited a
number of
torture techniques. However, these methods were not completely
outlawed.
Instead the Court's ruling still allows the Knesset to enact
laws that
would give intelligence officers the authority to use such
methods. The
Court deemed the security difficulties faced by Israel to be
grave
enough to merit granting intelligence services the power to
torture.
This "ticking bomb" excuse now gives the Israeli security forces
carte
blanche to abuse any prisoners in their care, including
children. Human
rights groups maintain that the use of torture in Israeli
prisons has
increased and become more systematic since March 2002.
Violations of the
Convention Against Torture are now commonplace as the military
grip on
the Occupied Territories has been tightened.
The Israeli army and police also receive the unconditional
backing of
the country's legal system, perpetuating the culture of impunity
in
Israeli prisons. The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel
[PCATI]
has found that the Israeli Attorney General has approved every
case of
torture as a necessary security measure. The High Court has
rejected
every single one of 124 petitions submitted by PCATI, against
prisoners
being denied access to legal support.
The thousands of statements given by former Palestinian
prisoners bear
witness to the relish with which their Israeli tormentors went
about
their task. Just as in Iraq, any humiliation or abuse is
permissible if
it goes under the spurious banner of security. The casual
disregard for
human dignity and international law within the Israeli army and
police
is as breathtaking as it is despicable.
Despite all the evidence to the contrary, including the death or
maiming
of numerous Palestinian prisoners, Israel continues to deny that
torture
is used in its prisons. Over 7,000 Palestinian prisoners
currently
remain in Israeli prisons, many of them held without charge or
trial.
Most will have suffered some degree of torture before their
release. It
is shocking to recognize that around 650,000 Palestinians have
spent
time in Israeli custody since 1967, most of them adult males.
This means
that almost every second Palestinian adult male has been
imprisoned.
The torture in Abu Ghraib prison, has shaken the Bush
administration to
its very core. Photographic evidence is all that is lacking to
finally
expose and condemn Israel's barbaric treatment of its
Palestinian
prisoners. This is the only difference between the two cases,
yet the
weight of evidence against Israel, in the testimonies of former
prisoners and investigations by human rights organizations, is
overwhelming. It is not enough to condemn the actions of
American
soldiers in Iraqi jails while thousands of Palestinians continue
to
suffer. Israel's use of torture must also be exposed.
* Dr. Mustafa Barghouthi, Secretary General Palestinian National
Initiative
______________________________________________________________________
BADIL Resource Center for
Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights
Press Release, 18 June 2004 (E/22/04)
Living under occupation and in exile--
The Continuing Catastrophe 1967 to 2004
Part III of BADIL's three-part series on the
continuing Nakba is now on the BADIL web site.
>From the Naksa and Beyond, Palestinian life
under occupation and in exile, Bulletin No. 19,
marks 20 June, World Refugee Day.
This part covers establishment of Israeli
military government in West Bank and the Gaza
Strip; annexation of eastern Jerusalem, adoption
of UN Security Council Res. 242 calling for
Israeli to withdraw from occupied areas and a
just settlement of the refugee problem; the
beginning of illegal colony/settlement building;
the Oslo process and Res. 1544 of 19 May 2004
adopted after the recent Rafah incursions and
housing demolitions, calling on Israel to
respect its obligations under international
humanitarian law and adherence of both parties
to the "Road Map".
National days, anniversaries and holidays
usually celebrate positive events--the end of a
war, the signing of a peace treaty, the birth
date of a famous historical figure.
Palestine's days of commemoration, 15 May (Nakba
Day) and 6 June (Naksa Day), observe an on-going
catastrophe, not a fixed, one-time event.
Nakba day marks the mass expulsion and
dispossession of the Palestinian people during
the 1948 conflict and war in Palestine and Naksa
Day remembers the 1967 War and the occupation of
West Bank and Gaza. It is also a demand for the
respect of human rights and rule of law,
especially the right of refugees and internally
displaced Palestinians to return and repossess
their homes, lands and properties.
For most Palestinians the Nakba is a continuing
catastrophe with daily military attacks, house
demolitions, land confiscation, expanding Jewish
colonies, broken promises and make believe
withdrawals from Palestinian territory.
See BADIL's web site for Bulletins 17-19
The Continuing Catastrophe:
Part I-- Al Nakba-From 1878 to 1948
Part II-- The 1948 Nakba to the 1967 Naksa
Part III-- The Naksa and Beyond, Palestinian
life under occupation and in exile
BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency
and Refugee Rights takes a rights-based approach
to the Palestinian refugee issue and encourages
an understanding of this by supporting research
into refugee rights and international law;
advocacy; and promoting community participation
in searching for lasting solutions to the issue.
----------------
Badil-english is a dissemination list of BADIL Resource
Center. All communication with BADIL should be addressed
to: info@badil.org
In order to subscribe to this list, please send an empty
message to: badil-english-subscribe@p-ol.com
If you wish to un-subscribe, please send an empty message
to: badil-english-unsubscribe@p-ol.com
BADIL Resource Center aims to provide a resource pool
of alternative, critical and progressive information on the
question of Palestinian refugees in our quest to achieve
a just and lasting soluton for exiled Palestinians based
on their right of return.
PO Box 728, Bethlehem, Palestine;
Email: info@badil.org;
Website:
www.badil.org;
Telephone/Fax: 02-2747346
>From outside of Palestine: 972-2-2747346
_______________________________________________
Badil-english mailing list
Badil-english@p-ol.com
______________________________________________________________________
|
||
