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26 March 2002



STATEMENT BY PROF. JOHN DUGARD
SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR
ON THE SITUATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS IN THE
PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES OCCUPIED BY ISRAEL
SINCE 1967


AT THE FIFTY-EIGHTH SESSION OF
THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS



Report of the Special Rapporteur of the Commssion on Human Rights,
Mr. John Dugard, on the situation of human rights in the
Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since 1967

E/CN.4.2002/32



Item 8: Question of the violation of human rights in the Occupied Arab Territories, including Palestine



1. I have interpreted my mandate to be to investigate violations of human rights and humanitarian law in the context of Israel's military occupation of the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). This interpretation has been challenged by the Government of Israel in document E/CN.4/2002/129. In fairness to the Government of Israel, I request that the Commission consider this matter at the present session so that the scope of my mandate is not in dispute.

2. The present report is based on two visits to the OPT and Israel since the last meeting of the Commission: the first in August 2001 and the second in February 2002. On these visits I travelled widely in the OPT and had extensive discussions with members of the Palestinian Authority, and Palestinian and Israeli interlocutors, mainly from the NGO community. I was not able to meet with Israeli government officials, as the Government of Israel objects to my mandate and has withheld co-operation. This is unfortunate because there are many factual issues that I would have liked to discuss with Israeli officials. For instance, in my present report I criticize Israel's treatment of juveniles in detention, based on information received from Israeli, Palestinian and international NGO's. I would have preferred to hear from Israeli security officials before commenting on their conduct, but I was denied this opportunity.

3. In my report I catalogue numerous serious violations of humanitarian law and human rights:
the indiscriminate killing and wounding of civilians, by both parties to the conflict;
the failure of both parties to prosecute and punish those responsible for such atrocities;
the expansion of settlements in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention;
the demolition of houses (in the Gaza Strip over 400 houses have been destroyed, leaving over 5,000 persons homeless. On one night in January 60 houses were complete demolished by the IDF in Rafah, rendering 614 persons homeless);
restrictions on freedom of movement, resulting from the closure of access to the Gaza Strip and the establishment of over 100 military checkpoints in the West Bank, which seriously disrupt the normal life of Palestinians and humiliate them;
severe socio-economic hardships in the OPT resulting from restrictions on the free movement of persons and goods (over 50 percent of Palestinians now live below the poverty line);
the disruption of education by the closure and bombing of schools, and by the traumatization of school children;
the interrogation and detention of children, mainly for stone-throwing at the IDF, in violation of international law prohibitions on torture and inhuman and degrading treatment.

4. Sadly, the situation has deteriorated radically since I left the region on 15 February. In March the IDF launched its most expansive military operations since 1982 on Ramallah and the refugee camps of Jabaliya, Balata, Jenin and Aida. In one month over 180 Palestinians, mainly civilians, have been killed, bringing the death toll since the start of the Second Intifada to over 1,200. The Israeli death toll, now over 300, has also risen sharply in the past month. In addition to civilians killed by suicide bombers, over 30 soldiers have been killed, more than were killed during an average year of Israel's military occupation of Southern Lebanon. These IDF military operations have caused extensive damage to Palestinian homes, particularly in the overcrowded refugee camps of Balata and Jabaliya. UNRWA schools in the refugee camps were taken over by the IDF for use as detention centres, and a school for the blind was bombed. Many Palestinians were unable to receive medical treatment as a result of the IDF's interference with ambulances and medical workers. Over 2,000 men, mainly from the refugee camps, were arrested, and held for interrogation after being blindfolded and subjected to humiliating treatment.

5. In my report I state that "the continued expansion of settlement activity is all too clear". This statement, based on aerial photographs taken by a Palestinian NGO, has now been confirmed by survey carried out by the Israeli Peace Now movement which finds that 34 new Israeli settlements, extending existing settlements, have been built in the past year, ranging from single structures to 22 at one site.

6. Statistics and description tell a story of the violation of human rights in the Middle East. But it is necessary to go beyond this and to address the causes and the remedies.

7. There are different perceptions of the cause of the violence in the region. Palestinians see the military occupation of their territory as the principal cause of the present crisis. Every Palestinian is today personally and directly affected by the occupation: freedom of movement is seriously impeded by Israeli military check points; the standard of living has been drastically lowered by the blockade of cities and towns; education has been seriously disrupted and healthcare undermined; homes have been demolished and agricultural land “swept” by bulldozers; militants (and innocent bystanders) are killed by rockets from the skies; tanks parade through the cities and refugee camps; fighter jets and helicopters patrol the skies and terrorize the people with their shelling; and Israeli settlements seem to grow and grow. It is small wonder therefore that Palestinians see the military occupation as the denial of their dignity, as an obstacle in the way of Palestinian statehood and as the source of violence in the region.

The Israeli perception is very different. Israelis see terrorism as the cause of the crisis. Suicide bombers who enter Israeli shopping districts, suburbs and settlements and snipers who shoot at passing traffic, have instilled a sense of fear into all Israelis. There is no guarantee of safety on the streets or roads, in shopping malls and restaurants. Palestinian violence is not seen as a response to Israeli military occupation of the Palestinian Territory but as terror directed at the very existence of the State of Israel.

Since 11 September international support for the belief that terrorism is the main problem to be confronted in the region has inevitably grown. That terrorism is a threat to the present world order cannot, and should not, be denied. That terrorism is a scourge that threatens Israelis and Palestinians alike cannot and should not be denied. Every effort should be made to end violence intended or calculated to create a state of terror in the minds of particular persons or the general public, whether it is perpetrated by instruments of the State, by organized non-State groups or by individuals. At the same time it is important not to ignore the main explanation for the acts of terror committed by Palestinians against Israelis - opposition to the military occupation. Or the main explanation for the acts of terror committed by the Israel Defense Forces against Palestinians - enforcement of the occupation.

8. The military occupation is the main cause of the present conflict. It bears a heavy responsibility for the violation of norms of humanitarian law and human rights by both Israelis and Palestinians. Only negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians leading to the termination of the military occupation and to the realization of the "vision" contained in Security Council resolution 1397 of 12 March of two states, Israel and Palestine, living side by side within secure and recognized borders, can end the violence and restore respect for human rights. To achieve this, to achieve the return to the negotiating table and the maintenance of a state of relative calm while parties talk, it is necessary to go beyond calls for a cease-fire. To me, like many others, it seems that only an effective international presence in the region with the power to monitor and reduce the use of violence can achieve this goal. I am fully aware of Israel's objections to such a proposal: memories of the withdrawal of the UN Emergency Force (UNEF) from the Egyptian border facing Israel in 1967; the fear that a UN force will be able to curb Israeli conventional violence, but not Palestinian suicide bombers and snipers; and, above all, the argument that this will “internationalize” the conflict. UN peace-keeping operations have not met with success on all occasions. This no one can deny. On the other hand, they have served to reduce tensions in many conflicts and, ultimately, to restore peace. The present conflict is already international in the sense that it is one between a State and a nascent State. The danger is that it will draw in other states in the region. If this is to be avoided and the level of violence brought under control it seems that there is no alternative to an international peace-keeping mission, carefully structured and composed to meet the special circumstances of the region.




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