Human rights situation in the OPT – CHR/Report of Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders (excerpts)

PROMOTION AND PROTECTION OF HUMAN RIGHTS

HUMAN RIGHTS DEFENDERS

Report submitted by Ms. Hina Jilani, Special Representative of

Secretary-General on human rights defenders, pursuant to the

Commission on Human Rights resolution 2000/61

Executive summary

This is the second report presented by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on human rights defenders, Ms. Hina Jilani, to the Commission on Human Rights.  It is submitted pursuant to Commission resolution 2000/61.  The report describes the activities undertaken by the Special Representative in the past year and contains a discussion of pressing issues, a brief summary of communications to and from Governments, as well as the Special Representative’s conclusions and recommendations.  With regard to country situations, the Special Representative has sent 134 urgent appeals and 27 allegation letters during the year.  A large number of communications were sent jointly with other thematic mechanisms, in particular the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, the Special Rapporteur on torture, the Special Rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, the Chairman-Rapporteur of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, the Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers, the Special Rapporteur on violence against women, the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights and fundamental freedoms of indigenous people and the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography.  The Special Representative also joined with country mechanisms, in particular the Special Rapporteurs dealing with the situations in the Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iran and the former Yugoslavia.

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Introduction

1. The present report is the second report presented by Ms. Hina Jilani (Pakistan), Special Representative of the Secretary-General on human rights defenders.  The mandate was established by the Commission on Human Rights in its resolution 2000/61 of 27 April 2000.  The present report is submitted pursuant to resolution 2001/64.  Section I of the report contains the mandate and methods of work.  Section II presents an account of the activities undertaken within the framework of her mandate in the past year.  Section III provides a brief discussion on a number of issues which the Special Representative considers to be important.  Section IV contains the conclusions and recommendations of the Special Representative.  Summaries of urgent appeals and communications to and from Governments, along with observations of the Special Representative, are contained in the annex.

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C.  Cooperation with NGOs

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25. Regarding the Middle East region, the Special Representative would like to mention that a regional consultation was organized from 19 to 22 September 2001 in Beirut, Lebanon by the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) for the Middle East region.  The subject was “the defence of human rights in the Euro-Mediterranean region and the issue of funding human rights NGOs”.  Owing to the tragic 11 September attacks, the Special Representative was not able to travel to attend this important consultation.  Her statement was delivered at the meeting by one of the organizers.  The conclusions of this seminar were transmitted to her and she noted with interest that several concrete proposals were made with a view to reinforcing the links between NGOs and donors.  In particular, donors were asked to manifest their solidarity and to engage themselves with the human rights defenders that they have financed and who are repressed for using foreign funds for their human rights activities.

Annex

COUNTRY SITUATIONS

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ISRAEL

Communications sent

352. On 1 May 2001, the Special Representative sent an urgent appeal jointly with the Special Rapporteur on torture and the Chairman of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concerning Adnan al-Hajjar, a human rights lawyer and coordinator of the Legal Aid Unit of the Al Mezan Centre for Human Rights in the Jabalia refugee camp situated in the Gaza Strip.  According to the information received, he was arrested by the Israeli Defense Forces on 23 April 2001 and was detained in Ashkelon prison without charge.  It was reported that he was part of a group that left the Gaza Strip on 5 April 2001 to attend a training course on legislative formulation, organized in Cairo by the Arab Research and Training Centre as part of a programme for strengthening the capacity of the Palestinian Legislative Council.  According to the information received, on 30 April 2001, Adnan al-Hajjar appeared before the Israeli Military Court, where the judge extended his arrest for 30 more days for investigatory purposes.  Following a request for his release, it was reported that a representative of the Israeli military authorities objected, claiming that they had a confidential no-access file of claims against him, but refused to tell either Adnan al-Hajjar or his lawyer about the nature or contents of the file.  It was alleged that his arrest and detention was connected to his work as a human rights activist and defence lawyer for Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons.

353. On 1 June 2001, the Special Representative, together with the Special Rapporteur on torture, sent an urgent appeal regarding Abed al-Rahman al-Ahmar, a well-known Palestinian human rights activist, who works as a field researcher with the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group (PHRMG), a non-governmental organization working on human rights violations against Palestinians, regardless of who is responsible, in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem.  He was reportedly arrested on 24 May 2001 while he was on his way home from Jerusalem to Deheisheh refugee camp, in the West Bank.  In an interview on Israeli television, he is said to have argued for peaceful coexistence between Jews and Palestinians on the basis of full equality.  According to the information received, he was held without charge and without access to his family at the Moscobiyya detention centre in Jerusalem.  On 31 May 2001, he is said to have appeared in court without the presence of his lawyer, who had allegedly not been informed about the hearing.

354. On 14 June 2001, the Special Representative, together with the Special Rapporteur on torture, sent another urgent appeal concerning Abed al-Rahman al-Ahmar.  It was reported that, at a hearing on 11 June 2001, judges at the Israeli High Court of Justice refused to examine marks of shackles on his wrists.  During the break in the hearing, prison doctors apparently agreed the marks were made by shackles, but did not testify.  In addition, the judges rejected a petition filed by two human rights groups, the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel (PCATI) and the PHRMG, calling for a stop to the torture during interrogation, for proper medical care and clothing to be provided to him and for him to be housed in more humane conditions.

355. On 6 July 2001, the Special Representative sent another urgent appeal jointly with the Special Rapporteur on torture and the Chairman of the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention concerning Mr. Abed al-Rahman al-Ahmar.  According to the most recent information, despite the fact that there was allegedly no incriminating evidence against Mr. Al-Ahmar, the administrative detention order was reportedly renewed on 30 May 2001 by 20 days and on 18 June 2001 by 15 days.  Two appeals against these extensions were filed, but were rejected on 5 and 22 June 2001 by the Military Court of Appeals in Beit El, West Bank. According to the source, Mr. Al-Ahmar was the subject of a six-month administrative detention order, which reportedly allows the Israeli authorities to detain him without charge or trial until February 2002. It was reported that he was held in Megiddo prison in Israel.

356. On 17 September 2001, the Special Representative, together with the Special Rapporteur on torture, sent an urgent appeal concerning Mr. Daoud al-Dir’awi, a lawyer and human rights activist working at the Ramallah office of the Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizen Rights.  According to the information received, Mr. al-Dir’awi was arrested on 10 September at the Allendy Bridge crossing point, as he was returning with his wife and baby from a holiday and crossing into the West Bank from Jordan.  Mr. al-Dir’awi’s arrest was allegedly motivated by his activities as a human rights lawyer.  He was reportedly taken to Shikma prison, in Ashkelon and was interrogated by the Israeli General Security Services (GSS).

357. On 26 September 2001, the Special Representative transmitted an allegation regarding the Israeli authorities’ reportedly trying to prevent a certain number of Palestinian human rights defenders and activists from participating in international conferences and forums.  This was the case for Dr. Eyad El-Sarraj, founder and director of the Gaza Community Mental Health Program (GCMHP), Commissioner-General of the Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens’ Rights and winner of the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders in 1998.  On 18 June 2001 the Israeli authorities reportedly denied him a permit to leave the country to go to Italy to participate in an international workshop.  According to the information received, on the same day, allegedly for security reasons, the Israeli authorities are said to have banned Dr. El-Sarraj, from leaving Gaza to take part in a television interview with the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC).  The BBC was reportedly told by the Israeli authorities that the Israel General Security Services “Shabak” had categorized Dr. El-Sarraj as a category 10 high security risk and that his presence in Israel could compromise national security.

Communications received

358. By letter of 10 January 2002, the Government responded to the urgent appeal sent on 1 June 2001 regarding Mr. Abed al-Ahmar.  The Government asserted that Mr. al-Ahmar had been arrested on 24 May 2001 for investigation into his activities with the Popular Front terrorist organization and his involvement in various terror attacks, including shooting incidents against Israeli soldiers and the murder of Baruch Cohen.  The Government added that Mr. al-Ahmar’s petition to the High Court of Justice about his interrogation and the conditions of his detention had been heard and dismissed by a panel of three judges on 12 June 2001.

Observations

359. The Special Representative thanks the Government for the reply regarding Mr. Abed al-Ahmar but is awaiting information with regard to the other cases she brought to the Government’s attention.

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PALESTINE

Communication sent

438. On 3 September 2001 the Special Representative, together with the Special Rapporteur on torture, transmitted an allegation regarding information according to which the Ramallah Police Commander justified the beating of detainees during a discussion on 7 August 2000 with the Director-General of the Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and Environment (LAW), Khader Shkirat.  When the Director of LAW responded by saying that this violated Palestinian law, the Police Commander allegedly threatened him and told him that he would detain him.  He then reportedly asked his guards to take Khader Shkirat out of the police headquarters by force.  Later on in August, the Chief of the Palestinian Police Service reportedly issued an order to heads of police districts and detention centres, prohibiting members of LAW from visiting prisons, detention centres, police command centres, and police locations on grounds of Khader Shkirat’s “continuous attacks on the Authority”.  A High Court petition is said to have been lodged challenging the order.  

Observations

439. No reply has been received so far.

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