To the Attention of Mr. Ban Ki-moon
As a Palestinian Feminist Human Rights Organization dedicated to the protection and promotion of women’s rights in Palestine, the Palestinian Working Women’s Society for Development (PWWSD) is gravely concerned at the increasing Israeli threats to Palestinian rights, and therefore asks the United Nations to commit to its charter, and to fulfill its obligations towards the Palestinian people.
Since Al-Nakba, Palestinians have faced continuous restrictions and violations of both their national, legal and humanitarian rights, which are protected by all international conventions and the UN’s charter. Forced evictions, destruction of homes, restrictions of movement, violence, arbitrary arrests, expropriation of land, and curtailment on employment and development have become the norm for Palestinians living in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza. A statistical view shows that the construction of the segregation wall in the West Bank used around 50,000 dunums of Palestinian lands as well as detaching around 725,000 dunums west of the wall and preventing Palestinians from accessing around 250,000 dunums which were classified as security buffer zone, according to the Land Research Center. Another indicates that since 1967, around 2,000 homes have been demolished in East Jerusalem, and the number of outstanding demolition orders is estimated at up to 20,000, according to The Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions.
The colonialist policies of the Israel occupation are specifically condemned by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICESCR), and the International Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Women specifically are protected by Security Council Resolution 1325, which sets out guidelines for the protection women in and post conflict situations. Discrimination is defined as resulting from laws, policies or practices that treat persons in similar situations differently due to, among other criteria, race, ethnic background, or religion, without adequate justification. Citizens within Palestine are also protected from destruction of personal property, expropriation of their resources, and brutalization of the civilian population under the UDHR.
Palestinian women are among the most vulnerable groups in society, as they are continuously exposed to immense oppression, which range from killing, demolitions of their homes, sexual harassment and assault, discriminatory treatment towards female prisoners, refusal of movement, to the refusal of access to healthcare during medical emergencies. As they directly suffer from implications of Israeli procedures, they also encounter indirect effects of Israeli occupation, such as poverty, unemployment and domestic violence. Due to the worsening economic conditions in the Palestinian Territory, women’s contribution to the labor market approximates 15% of the labor force, according to the PCBS statistics. This has deeply affected women’s representation in the public life in general, and in formal politics in particular. The impact of living under occupation for women includes extreme anxiety, stress related illnesses, loss of opportunities in education and gainful employment, and is detrimental to their relationships with husbands and children. The violence and personal insecurity that many women have witnessed and been subjected to causes extreme psychological distress, harming both family life and society as a whole.
It is difficult to convey the extent to which women’s lives are affected by the illegal practices of apartheid by the Israelis in Palestine. Psychologically, socially and economically it can be seen that women are adversely affected by the insecurity that they face within their own homes.
It is important that the UN, and all international bodies dedicated to upholding and implementing International Law are able to hold Israel accountable for their violations, thereby reinstating the rights of Palestinian women, men and children alike within their lives and homes.
In writing this letter the PWWSD hopes to draw attention to the war crimes implemented under Israeli occupation in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, and hopes for urgent action from the international community to prevent further violations and to stop the discrimination, violence and repression that occurs daily in the Palestinian Territories. PWWSD calls upon the UN to recognize the international consensus as indicated by UN General Assembly in September 2011, which supports an independent Palestine, and most importantly the Palestinian right to have an independent sovereign state, where they can live in peace and dignity.
The PWWSD hopes the international community will convene an international conference with IHL as its terms of reference in order to settle a just and durable peace.
Sincerely,
Amal Khreishe
On behalf of the Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development
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