EU Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy in the World in 2016 (Excerpts)

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State of Israel

The overall situation in Israel was characterised by adherence to democratic governance and respect for the rule of law. The rights and fundamental freedoms of Israeli citizens were generally protected, although minorities and in particular Arab Israelis faced challenges in enjoying their full range of rights. The period under review witnessed a number of potentially undemocratic legislative developments, including a reduction of the public space for civil society. A difficult human rights situation persisted in the Palestinian territory, where Israel has particular obligations stemming from its role as an occupying power.

The objectives within the framework of EU relations with Israel focus on the situation of minorities and vulnerable groups, the preservation of democratic values and Israel’s responsibilities as an occupying power including as regards children and armed conflict.

The Arab and Bedouin minorities continued to face difficulties in exercising their fundamental economic and social rights. The Supreme Court upheld a decision allowing the demolition of the Bedouin villages of Umm al-Hiran and Atir, which the government planned to replace with Jewish settlements and a national forest. The Knesset adopted the so-called ‘Expulsion Law’ allowing for the dismissal of an elected Member of Knesset by a ³/₄ majority decision of his peers. The main targets of the bill were Arab MKs, with incitement to violence or racism and support for armed conflict against Israel as the possible grounds for expulsion.

Israel continued to carry out a policy of prevention and deterrence vis-a-vis irregular migrants and asylum seekers. Israel continued to encourage the population of approximately 40 000 irregular migrants currently inside the country to relocate to third states, including Rwanda and Uganda. New regulations, yet to be implemented, threaten indefinite detention for those unwilling to leave following unsuccessful asylum applications.

The Transparency Requirements for Parties Supported by Foreign State Entities Law adopted in July requires NGOs that receive more than half of their funding from foreign governments to report that fact each year to the NGO Registrar, which will publish a list of said NGOs. It also demands that NGOs specify that fact in their official publications, along with the names of the countries that contribute. The requirement that NGOs identify foreign donors does not apply in the case of private funding from abroad.

109 Palestinians and 17 Israelis (or foreign civilians) were killed last year in the occupied Palestinian territory (East Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip). The high number of Palestinian casualties raised concerns of excessive use of force by Israeli security forces. In March an IDF soldier shot an already immobilised Palestinian assailant lying on the ground and subsequently went on trial in an Israeli military court. The number of administrative detainees rose from 584 in December 2015 to 644 in August 2016. Several Palestinians in administrative detention went on hunger strike with some high-profile cases ending after apparent deals with the Israeli authorities whereby their detention orders would not be renewed. Exceptions in the Israeli Youth Law applied routinely to East Jerusalem minors accused of security offences meant that their legal treatment was de facto similar to that under Israel’s military laws and practices applied in the West Bank. Israel continued its policy of punitive demolitions of homes of Palestinian assailants in East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Gaza’s humanitarian situation remained dire, and while restrictions on movements to and from Gaza were considerably eased after the 2014 conflict they remained extremely tight. Gaza’s real gross domestic product (GDP) has declined by nearly one third over the past 20 years and unemployment has reached 43%, despite measures such as the granting of permission to export Gaza products to Israel and the West Bank for the first time since 2007.

2016 saw the start of the government’s five-year plan to enhance the economic and social integration of Israel’s Arab citizens (EUR 2.4 billion of new funding and EUR 1.3 billion under existing projects).

The Knesset voted to limit the detention of asylum seekers to a maximum of 12 months. Israel abandoned its policy of withholding the bodies of Palestinian attackers from East Jerusalem (except Hamas affiliates); the last body was released in September 2016.

The EU continued to engage in human rights and democracy discussions with Israel in various settings. The annual meeting of the Subcommittee on Political Dialogue discussed the human rights situation in the West Bank and Gaza. The Informal Working Group on Human Rights addressed the human rights situation inside Israel, including the situation of minorities, conditions of detention including that of minors, freedom of association, and the accountability of security forces and law enforcement officials. The Informal Working Group on International Organisations discussed the upcoming session of the UN General Assembly, UNGA resolutions, the Commission on the Status of Women, the World Health Assembly, UNESCO, UNEA, UN reform, the upcoming selection of a new Secretary-General of the UN, the Sustainable Development Goals, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and peacekeeping operations. The Subcommittee on Migration, Health and Social Affairs addressed irregular migration and Israel’s asylum policies. The EU-Israel seminar on combating racism, xenophobia and antisemitism was an opportunity to exchange views and share policy ideas and practical approaches to tackling these challenges.

The EU maintained a dialogue with civil society organisations through regular consultations and briefings. The EU Delegation hosted a consultation with 18 civil society organisations ahead of the Informal Working Group on Human Rights and the Subcommittee on Political Dialogue. The Delegation undertook regular public diplomacy activities focused on human rights issues, including speeches and participation in events. During Ramadan, the Delegation hosted representatives primarily from the Arab community for an Iftar dinner at the residence. On the occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women in November an outreach event to highlight the EU’s renewed engagement in eliminating violence against women and girls was also held at the residence. Human Rights Day was marked by a special event on the protection of freedom of opinion and expression, organised in cooperation with The Minerva Centre for Human Rights at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. David Kaye, the UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, was the keynote speaker at the event.

Within the framework of the EIDHR programme the EU supported the production of several policy reports which were disseminated through political briefings or submission by the beneficiaries to relevant UN bodies. For instance, a shadow report to the CEDAW was produced by the Rackman Centre of Bar Ilan University. A shadow report was also produced and submitted to the United Nations Committee against Torture (UNCAT) for UNCAT’s fifth review of Israel. Activities under other EU-funded projects also included two briefings by Yesh Din, one on their new position paper which described the ‘silent adoption of the Levy report’ on the retroactive authorisation of illegal settlement construction in the West Bank.

Implementation of the human rights and democracy country strategy continued within the framework of local ‘human rights sub-clusters’ consisting of the EU Delegation and Member State representatives focusing on key priorities. This allowed for better cooperation and burden-sharing between embassies and the Delegation in human rights matters, with a view to reinforcing messages when addressing the Israeli authorities.

The EU continued to provide financial support for projects funded through the European Instrument for Democracy and Human Rights (EIDHR). Twenty-eight EIDHR projects were ongoing in 2016. No call for proposals was published in order to combine the budget allocations for 2016 and 2017 (EUR 2.5 million) into a single call to be launched in early 2017. Ongoing projects focused on reinforcing a favourable environment for civil society organisations and the promotion of human rights; advancing the rights of vulnerable groups or minorities within Israel; and enhancing respect for international humanitarian law and human rights in the occupied Palestinian territory, including the rights of children in armed conflict.

Israel’s fifth Periodic UNCAT (UN Committee against Torture) Review took place on 3-4 May. Israel reiterated its willingness to incorporate the definition of torture in Israeli law. The NGO Public Committee Against Torture (PCATI) welcomed the statement while raising concerns about the prolonged process of drafting the law; so far the definition has not been incorporated nor has the government committed to a deadline to do so.

The last visit by a thematic UN Special Rapporteur (UNSR) was the visit by the UNSR on violence against women (12-22 September 2016). Israel has refused to cooperate with Special Rapporteurs on the situation of human rights in the oPt. In January former Special Rapporteur Wibisono resigned, complaining that Israel had never granted him access to the oPt.

There is further scope for explicitly incorporating the principle of non-discrimination and equality into Israel’s basic laws. The EU will continue to encourage Israel to issue a standing invitation to all United Nations Special Procedure mechanisms.

Palestinian Authority (occupied Palestinian territory – oPt)

Preliminary remark: A distinction needs to be drawn between the responsibilities of the Palestinian Authority (PA) and those of the part of Israel as occupying power. This report refers to the PA’s responsibilities in the West Bank and of the de facto authorities in Gaza (although, formally, the government in Ramallah bears responsibility for Gaza too).

In 2016 the overall human rights situation in the oPt did not undergo any significant changes, nor was there any fundamental deterioration. Some progress can be noted with regard to the rule of law, such as the adoption of the Law on Juvenile Protection. General elections in the oPt are long overdue (the last elections took place in 2006). The mandates of the president and the parliament have expired. Local elections scheduled for 8 October were postponed. Respect for freedom of expression, freedom of assembly and freedom of the media did not improve; they came under increased pressure due to harassment, threats and sometimes arbitrary arrests of journalists. 21 death sentences were handed down in Gaza, but none in the West Bank thanks to a moratorium.

In general, fundamental freedoms and human rights are anchored in the Palestinian Basic Law, but effective implementation is often not guaranteed.

The EU’s priority is continued capacity building of the PA and awareness-raising amongst the population. This includes governance reforms in the security and justice institutions. Another priority is the strengthening of civil society organisations (C50s) and more civic participation in political life. The new European joint strategy on (financial) support, which was developed throughout 2016 in close cooperation with the PA, reflects those objectives for the next four-year period. Advisory assistance has also come from the EU’s Common Security and Defence Policy mission and the EU Co-ordinating Office for Palestinian Police Support (EUPOL COPPS), on security and justice. Their work will continue.

There are various problems especially in the fields of gender, (domestic) violence against women and discrimination against LGBTI persons. Persons with disabilities continue to suffer from social exclusion. Arbitrary detention has remained a matter of concern. There were regular reports of torture and ill-treatment in detention centres. Freedom of expression in Gaza is still under severe pressure with attacks on journalists. Accusations of corruption are frequent. Despite some improvements with regard to the rule of law principle, the risk of lack of independence, accountability and transparency of the justice sector has remained an issue, such as by executive interference in the work of the judiciary. Furthermore, in 2016 there was little to no progress on long-needed reforms of the legislative and institutional framework to ensure effective governance, interinstitutional cooperation and adherence to international human rights obligations. In particular, the amendment of the Judicial Authority Law to clarify the roles, responsibilities and mandates of the justice sector institutions is still pending. This clarification is especially critical for the administration of courts. The Law on Police has still not been adopted because of an ongoing debate on the civilian nature of the police and related jurisdiction. The presidential appointment of the Supreme Constitutional Court took place without consultations of political movements and CSOs. Clearly established and well-publicised legal procedures dealing with the court are missing. The draft security sector strategy for 2017-2022 has not yet been adopted.

There is some progress in the wider public participation on draft laws and other legal initiatives. However, not all initiatives are subject to public participation and the involvement of CSOs.

Some improvements were noted on the rule of law environment, such as the adoption of the Law on Juvenile Protection. In addition, the development and adoption of the national policy agenda (NPA), which has a clear structure of actions and objectives, should serve as an appropriate governance tool to improve the legislative work and its implementation.

The EU continued to engage in human rights and democracy discussions with the PA. Such work did not take place with the de facto authorities of Hamas in Gaza because of the EU’s ‘non-contact policy’. The human rights and democracy issues were discussed at the EU-Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) Joint Committee meeting in June preceded by the meeting of the subcommittee on human rights, good governance and rule of law in March. The most critical points were also raised by the HR/VP at a meeting with President Abbas in June in Brussels. The Office of the EU Representative in Jerusalem (EUREP) carried out a large number of actions at local level, such as local statements, site visits and attendance at court hearings, and formal and informal steps. Issues of concern were raised at regular meetings with the Palestinian counterparts. EUREP engaged with CSOs to obtain information and to explain and promote the EU’s position. The impact of all these measures cannot easily be measured. They have certainly contributed to upholding human rights and democracy issues in the public arena and have thus helped raise awareness among Palestinians. The EU has supported the creation of human rights and gender units in key ministries, such as the Minister of Interior and the Minister of Justice.

Support for HRDs was granted by the EU, in particular at local level, through a long list of measures, in the case of arrests of Palestinians by Israeli forces, be it through full arrest or by way of administrative detention, including of children aged between 12 and 18 years and also with regard to Bedouin communities. Numerous meetings took place both in Brussels and in the West Bank to support human rights CSOs. EUPOL COPPS held many incidental meetings with a variety of human rights CSOs.

In 2016 the EU continued to provide financial support for projects funded through the European Neighbourhood Instrument (ENI), more specifically through support for all the relevant authorities via the PEGASE(French acronym for Mecanisme “Palestino – Europeen de Gestion et d’Aide Socio-Economique”) Direct Financial Support (DFS) mechanism, through the Instrument contributing to Stability and Peace (Ic5P) and CSDP funds (for EUPOL COPPS). EU funds for humanitarian aid projects completed the wide range of interventions.

The PEGASE mechanism has ensured constant funding for the actions carried out by the PA with regard to, inter alia, human rights and democracy including the rule of law principle (Total allocation for PEGASE in 2016: EUR 155 million, only part of which can be attributed directly to human rights and democracy activities). For governance, an amount of EUR 8.1 million was made available, for EUPOL COPPS EUR 9.17 million and for the Ic5P EUR 3 million. One of the positive results, from a cross-cutting point of view, is the development and adoption of the NPA by the government. The funding supported capacity building and grants contributed to the work of CSOs.

In 2014, President Abbas signed instruments of accession to 55 international human rights, humanitarian and diplomatic treaties without reservation. As a member of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (01C), the PLO signed the Cairo Declaration on Human Rights, and as a member of the Arab League it signed the Arab Charter on Human Rights. Several UN agencies cover human rights issues in the oPt.

Despite accession to the UN Convention against Torture (UNCAT) in March 2014 and the president’s decree of May 2013 confirming the Palestinian authorities’ commitment to the prohibition of all forms of torture, there continued to be regular complaints of torture and ill-treatment in detention centres, in both Gaza and the West Bank.

Challenges to further progress may arise if the overall political situation deteriorates and the relative stability of the PA is weakened. This could happen if the stalemate on the realisation of the two-state solution continues, and in particular if Israel’s settlement activities continue to increase as in 2016

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