NGO Action News – 19 May 2017

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
19 May 2017

Global

• To mark the 69^th anniversary of the Nabka on 15 May, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS) issued a Special Statistical Bulletin. The Global Palestinian Refugee and IDP Network released a statement requesting international protection and Al Mezan called on the international community to support the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people. 

• In addition, Medical Aid for Palestinians launched a campaign entitled “50 Days of Action” and the Palestinian Refugee Centre posted an article from the Journal of Palestinian Refugee Studies (“Censoring the Memory of the Nakba”). The S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights announced a multimedia Education Series under the theme “Together We Rise: Palestine as a Model of Resistance” while the Institute for Palestine Studies and Al-Shabaka released collections of articles on personal experiences of the Nabka and Palestinian refugees. From 15 to 18 May, Zochrot is inviting as part of its “Here in no-here” project to open houses, exhibitions and tours in the Qatamon neighbourhood of Jerusalem. 

Middle East

• On 19 May, the Minds of Peace grassroots initiative aimed at bringing in Tel Aviv 200 Israeli and Palestinian women together to find solutions to issues related to the conflict through negotiation (“Israeli-Palestinian Congress of Women”). The event was sponsored by the Leon Charney Resolution Center.

• The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights reported on 18 May that an Israeli settler killed a Palestinian civilian and wounded a photojournalist. On 16 May, PCHR issued a press release stating that a Palestinian fisherman had been killed after an attack by the Israeli navy the previous day, and earlier reported on 13 May that a Palestinian civilian had been killed during a protest at the entrance to the Al-Nabi Saleh West Bank village.

• On 18 May, Defence for Children International (DCI) – Palestine issued a press release claiming that 22 Palestinian teenagers have been held in administrative detention in the past 20 months. 

• On 16 May, Gaza Community Mental Health Programme held a workshop entitled “Professional Supervision is a Necessity, Not a Luxury”. 

• On 15 May, B’Tselem issued a press release highlighting the impact of restrictions of movement on Palestinians living under occupation (“Israel bars thousands of Palestinians from travelling abroad; many others don’t even bother to make the attempt”).

• On 14 May, HaMoked announced that as a result of its petition to the High Court, Palestinians who have property confiscated by the Israeli military will be able to appeal their cases to a special committee. It also announced on 16 May that following a second petition, the Israeli Ministry of the Interior will extend the status of Palestinians in Israel whose family unification procedures are interrupted by a change in marital status, pending the decision of the ministerial humanitarian committee.

• On 11 May, Adalah announced that it had sent a joint letter with the Commission of Detainees and Ex-Detainees Affairs to senior Israeli officials demanding a criminal investigation into the filming and distribution of a video allegedly showing Marwan Barghouti eating in his cell while on hunger strike.

• On 6 and 7 May, the Geneva Initiative brought together 18 Palestinian and Israeli young political activists for two days of lectures, discussions and joint work in the city of Nazareth. The weekend seminar focused on key issues of the conflict and provided participants with detailed knowledge and a toolkit for promoting the two-state solution. 

North America 

• On 24 May, Dr. Peter Larson, Chair of Canada Talks Israel/Palestine will give a talk entitled “Is a Two State Solution Still Possible in the Middle East?” at the Centre for Security, Intelligence and Defence Studies at Carlton University in Ottawa. 

• On 16 May, Al-Shabaka, the Palestinian Policy Network published a report entitled “The Palestinian Authority Security Forces: Whose Security?”

United Nations 

• On 16 May, Michael Lynk, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory occupied since 1967, called on Israel to adhere to international law and international standards for detention in its treatment of Palestinian prisoners. Professor Lynk also stated his concern about the worsening human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories on 19 May, and urged the international community to ensure self-determination for the Palestinians.

• On 29 and 30 June, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People will convene a two-day forum to mark fifty years of occupation at UN Headquarters in New York. Civil society organizations are cordially invited to attend the event.