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Palestinians' human rights are compromised daily by Israeli checkpoints |
Can Tony Blair perform a miracle for Palestine?
By abusing the rights of the Palestinians, Israel is betraying the foundations its own state was built on, writes Sir Geoffrey Bindman
INDEPENDENT Jewish Voices has been established by a number of Jews committed to universal human rights who believe that the broad spectrum of opinion among the Jewish population of this country is not reflected by those institutions which claim to represent them.
It aims to provide a forum for calm debate. It does not advocate particular policies.
A meeting last week addressed by two distinguished professors of international law, as well as myself, was an opportunity to explore the issue of the occupation of Palestine. It follows that the views here are entirely my own.
I have been to the West Bank and Gaza and I have seen for myself the appalling conditions of the Palestinians who live there. While there is no single cause for the humanitarian tragedy of the Palestinian people, the occupation of the West Bank and of Gaza – the recent “withdrawal” of Israel from Gaza has not removed its effective control – and the settlement of some 450,000 Israelis there has been a running sore.
Legality is at the heart of the Israeli state. But there is a paradox. There is a huge gulf between the high ideals of justice and democracy which are embodied in the constitutional structures within Israel itself, and the repressive policies carried out by Israel in the occupied territories.
The legal foundations of the state of Israel are derived largely from Anglo-American models of democracy. The Declaration of Independence adopted when the state was established in 1948 says that it “will foster the development of the country for the benefit of all its inhabitants; it will be based on freedom, justice and peace; it will ensure complete equality of social and political rights to all its inhabitants irrespective of religion race or sex; and it will be faithful to the principles of the Charter of the United Nations”.
These aspirations have arguably been achieved within the borders of the state itself for Israeli citizens. But there are two glaring exceptions.
Discrimination against Arab citizens remains rife at several levels, and the readiness of the courts to defer to “security considerations” has over the years undermined social and political rights.
The fundamental challenge is in the occupied territories.
There, sadly, Israel has defied international law.
The United Nations, the International Court of Justice, the International Red Cross and virtually every international lawyer consider that Israel is bound by the Fourth Geneva Convention to respect the rights of the Palestinian population of the West Bank and Gaza.
Among these is the prohibition of transfer by Israel into the occupied territory of any part of its own population. This is what makes the settlements illegal.
Not only are the constantly expanding Israeli settlements illegal, so is the converse – the transfer to Israeli prisons of Palestinian residents of the West Bank, now numbering some 9,000.
Most damaging is the brutal treatment and killing of civilians, many of them children.
Family homes are demolished – collective punishment which also breaches the Geneva Convention.
There is expropriation of land and the exclusion – condemned by the International Court of Justice – of many Palestinians from access to their land by the wall which now separates a large part of the West Bank from Israel. The Israeli government has chosen to ignore the ruling of the ICJ.
Much of the repression is associated with the perceived need to protect and advance the interests of the settlers. Thus the creation of a network of roads across the West Bank which Palestinians may not use – even if Israelis want to give lifts to Palestinians along these roads they are prohibited from doing so.
The West Bank is under military rule.
While the Palestinian Authority has nominal power in some areas, the military issues regulations and orders controlling virtually every aspect of Palestinian life.
The range and pettiness of these is disproportionate to any threat to security. Travel within the West Bank is seriously curtailed for Palestinians. On those roads which are accessible to them, checkpoints are a constant hazard. Many deaths and injuries have resulted from interaction with Israelis by Palestinians trying to carry on ordinary, peaceful lives.
How can the gulf between the high ideals of the Israeli constitution and judicial system be reconciled with the practice in the occupied territories?
By placing responsibility with the military, the government has tried to exclude judicial supervision.
To its credit, the Supreme Court has declined to be totally excluded and has been prepared to accept petitions for judicial review in some cases, but security almost always seems to lead to their rejection. The court has upheld house demolitions and for many years it permitted torture. Although its attitude has changed, torture seems still to be in regular use.
The Israeli Supreme Court has failed to do nearly enough to mitigate the abuses of the occupation.
It is a tragic disappointment for many of us that what once looked like a positive attempt to introduce an energetic and creative population into the Middle East, which could bring economic, social and political benefits to the region, has developed into an instrument of oppression in defiance of international law.
This is hugely damaging not only to the Palestinians but the citizens of Israel as well, particularly to its young soldiers, many of whom have been brutalised by their role in the occupation.
Disgracefully, the United States has failed to use its enormous influence to stop continuing gross human rights abuses.
Where then do we go from here? Will Tony Blair be the knight in shining armour who will rescue the Palestinians? We need a miracle.
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