NGO Action News - 13 April 2017 - Question of Palestine

This newsletter informs about recent and upcoming activities of Civil Society Organizations affiliated with the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. The Committee and the Division for Palestinian Rights of the UN Secretariat provide the information “as is” without warranty of any kind, and do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, or reliability of the information contained in the websites linked in the newsletter.

NGO ACTION NEWS
13 April 2017

Middle East

On 12 April, Addameer reported the arrest of Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) member Ahmad Atoun from his home in Ramallah. In a joint report by Addameer and other Palestinian organizations, the number of Palestinians from the West Bank including East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip arrested by Israeli forces in March is estimated at 509 including 75 children and 13 women.

On 10 April, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights launched its 2016 Annual Report. In a separate article (“Life under Siege: Open Air Prison”), the NGO highlighted the impact of the ten-year old blockade of Gaza on the ability of human rights researchers to effectively carry out their work.

On 29 March, Coalition of Women for Peace launched a campaign (“Women Demand: End the Siege on Gaza”) calling on the United Nations and the European Union to include women and youth in all analyses and policy decisions related to Gaza and to ensure that Gazans can enjoy their human rights while perpetrators of human rights violations are held accountable.

Gisha –Legal Center for Freedom of Movement issued in March a report setting out the specific impact of closure policies on women in Gaza (“The Concrete Ceiling. Women in Gaza on the Impact of the Closure on Women”).

Europe

On 23 April, the gate48 platform for critical Israelis in the Netherlands is hosting in Amsterdam a discussion with human rights lawyer and activist Eitay Mack (“Israel seen through its arms trade: an alternative narrative”).

On 10 April, the European Coordination of Committees and Associations for Palestine (ECCP) welcomed the publication of an article on the website of the European Journal of International Law (EJIL) discussing the implications of Security Council resolution 2334 (“The Consequence of the UN Resolution on Israeli Settlements for the EU: Stop Trade with Settlements”).

Latin America

In a letter to the editor published by Radio Allen on 11 April, Palestinian diaspora in Chile took a public stance after Anuar Majluf, Executive Director of the Palestinian Federation of Chile, was reportedly refused entry by the Israeli authorities at the Jordan River – Sheikh Hussein border crossing, apparently on the basis of anti-BDS legislation. On 12 April, Chile’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a public statement in relation to the incident.

North America

On 5 May, the Jerusalem Fund in Washington, D.C. is hosting a talk with Dr. Nadya Hajj, Assistant Professor of Political Science at Wellesley College, on “Protection amid Chaos: The Creation of Property Rights in Palestinian Refugee Camps”.

On 3 May, Palestinian cartoonist Mohammad Saba’aneh will feature on a panel entitled “Water as a Weapon”, hosted by PEN America World Voices in New York. From 1 to 9 May, further speaking engagements are planned in Washington, D.C., Portland and San Francisco.

On 27 April, Palestinian artist, art historian and peace activist Kamal Boullata will be among the recipients of this year’s Kahlil Gibran Spirit of Humanity Awards presented by the Arab American Institute in Washington, D.C.

As part of a series of research seminars and public events linked to “The Jerusalem Project”, on 18 April, the Center for Palestine Studies at Columbia University is hosting a discussion entitled “Jerusalem Embattled”.

On 12 April, Al- Shabaka the Palestinian Policy Network published a commentary entitled “Talking Palestine: What Frame of Analysis? Which Goals and Messages?”

On 12 April, Churches for Middle East Peace hosted in Washington, D.C. a conversation with Israeli peace activist Sahar Vardi on the Human Rights Defenders Fund.

Visit the UNISPAL Website
Like UNISPAL on Facebook
Follow UNISPAL on Twitter

NGO Action News – 13 April 2017