(Footnotes are at end of page)

Five years on from the signing of the Declaration of principles in Washington D.C. on the 13th September 1993, human rights violations remain a constant feature of life for the Palestinian inhabitants of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. This report is a brief account of those violations.

The declaration of principles heralded the beginning of what became known as the Oslo process, the intention of which, was to bring to a conclusion the conflict between the Israeli State and the Palestinian people. The DOP was in essence a framework document setting the agenda and the parameters for the various issues of concern to both parties that were to be subject to negotiation through a number of stages. The process included the setting up of various joint committees, for example on the contentious issue of water, with a particular emphasis on security cooperation.

Since the signing of the DOP there has been a number of interim agreements. (see http://www.bgu.ac.il/chcenter/ for texts of all agreements) These interim agreements are the Protocol on Economic Relations which formed annex IV of the Gaza -Jericho agreement signed in Paris on 29th April 1994 (The Paris Protocol), Agreement on the Gaza strip and the Jericho area signed on 4th May 1994 in Cairo (The Cairo Agreement), Agreement on Preparatory Transfer of Powers and Responsibilities signed at Erez on 29th August 1994 (The Erez Agreement), Interim Agreement on the West Bank and Gaza Strip signed on 28th September 1995 (The Taba Agreement), Agreement on the Temporary International Presence in the city of Hebron signed on 9th May 1996 (TIPH Agreement), Protocol Concerning the Redeployment in Hebron signed on 7th January 1997 (The Hebron Protocol).

All the aforementioned agreements have transferred some powers and territory to the Palestinian National Authority, the governing body set up on account of the Oslo process to administer Palestinian civic and security affairs. It was initially envisioned that the whole process, including a final agreement ending the conflict, would span a period of five years. Furthermore, the so-called substantive issues, that is settlements, refugees and Jerusalem, would be left to the final status talks. This in essence means that the key aspects of the Palestinian right to self- determination enshrined in UN resolution 3236 of 22nd of November 1974 is open to negotiation. The right of self-determination is recognized in the Charter of the United Nations and is the basis of the International Covenants on Human Rights.

At present, on account of the concluded agreements, the West Bank has been divided into various "areas", A B and C. The PNA has full control in area A which consists of the major urban centers totaling in the West Bank just 3% of the territory and around 60% in the Gaza Strip. Area B in the West Bank which is jointly controlled, consists of 27% of the territory and area C again in the West Bank total 70%. Israel maintains sole control of area C. Similarly, east Jerusalem, which is a contiguous part of the West Bank, has been left to the final status negotiations, and like much of the West Bank, remains under Israeli occupation. In the Gaza Strip, Israel ostensibly controls 40%.

Since the defeat of the Labour administration under Shimon Peres in the Israeli elections held in May of 1996, and the coming to power of Benyamin Netanyahu and his Likud administration, there has been little progress in the Oslo peace process to date, except for the delayed redeployment from 80% of Hebron. The remaining 20% of the city remains under Israeli control, and is home to some 400 extreme settlers living in midst of a Palestinian population running into thousands.

HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS DURING THE PAST FIVE YEARS OF THE OSLO PROCESS: Settlements:

Israel, in violation of the Hague Regulations and the Fourth Geneva Convention, both of which prohibit the settlement of citizens of an occupying power in occupied territory, continues to expand existing settlements as well as constructing new ones. Though at times various Israeli administrations have stated a security rationale for settlement activity in the West Bank and Gaza, the main purpose has been ideological, and this has been true of both Likud and Labour led administrations. Despite the stipulation in the Oslo accords prohibiting the parties from carrying out activity that would change the status of the occupied territories, under the Labour administration of Rabin and Peres, not only did the settler population increase by 50%, 1 but existing settlements were expanded. Both Labour administrations invested 1.4 billion shekels in the settlements which was more than the previous hard line Likud administration of Yitzhak Shamir. 2

For some on the right of the Israeli political spectrum, settlement activity, as well as serving specific Zionist ideological aims, was also intended to defeat any peace initiative that was aimed at trading land for peace, which in essence meant all the initiatives pursued by both Arab and third party negotiators since 1967. Settlements were also intended to fragment Arab population centers and facilitate greater control over those areas. The settlements are also intended to create demographic change in the Palestinian population structure conducive to the interests of Israel.

Settlement planning and construction brings with it a whole plethora of violations in regards to Palestinian human rights, such as land confiscation, and house demolition. On average, despite the Oslo accords, 8630 dunams 3 of land is confiscated every month for the purposes of settlements. Under the two previous Labour administrations over 294,964 dunams of land was confiscated.4 That is the equivalent of 5% of the West Bank. Much of this land is private, confiscated under rather dubious legal procedures and in breach of international law. Article 46 of The Hague Regulations explicitly prohibits the confiscation of private property.

It is estimated that there are around 347,166 settlers in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. The West Bank is estimated to contain 161,000 settlers with 180,000 concentrated in the East Jerusalem area, and a further 6,166 in the Gaza Strip. 5 It is estimated that there are 195 settlements in total in the occupied territories. This number is planned to increase under the more overtly aggressive settlement policy of the Netanyahu administration. It is estimated that half a billion dollars is earmarked for investment in settlement activity with a key focus being on the East Jerusalem area and the Old City. The settlement projects at Jabal Abu Ghniem and Silwan have focused international attention on Jerusalem. It is projected that the settlement at Jabal Abu Ghneim, called Har Homa, is intended to house 35-50,000 inhabitants.6 There are also plans to expand the massive settlement of Ma'ale Adumim on the outskirts of Jerusalem. There has also been settlement activity in Yakir and Barkan, all in the Nablus area, as well as in other places. It has been estimated that in the period January to May 1995 alone, 30,000 dunums of land was confiscated for settlements. 7

Settlements bring with them attendant infrastructure, like industrial zones and by pass roads that further aggravate Palestinian losses, in terms of land for example. During the Oslo process, during the Rabin period, there was a heavy focus on by pass roads. It is estimated that there are 400km of by pass roads involving in the last few years the confiscation of up to 16,000 dunams of land.8 A large proportion of this land was fertile. This has had an impact on Palestinian agriculture, viewed by many observers as one of the few economic sectors in the territories with real growth potential. The roads are a feature of permanence, and are ostensibly for Jewish use only. They are also a means of maintaining ultimate military control as they dissect and isolate Palestinian population centers. The settlement policy violates the Oslo accords by preempting the final status talks, but the agreement, by leaving the settlements to the last, also gives them a special status, and allows the Israeli State to create "facts on the ground" presenting the Palestinians with a fait accompli.

In sum, settlements continue despite the Oslo process. They violate the human rights of Palestinians on a number of grounds. They breach international law, as they create, and are intended to create, permanent change, which is prohibited. By settling its own citizens on occupied land, the Israeli State breaches both the Hague Regulations of 1907 and the Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949. The confiscation of private property which facilitates settlements breaches article 46 of the Hague Regulations. By isolating and dissecting Palestinian population centers, and applying military orders to them, and Israeli civil law to the settlers, as well as dividing water resources unequally between the Jewish population in the territories and the non Jewish, Israel breaches article 3 of the declaration on granting independence to colonial countries and peoples which condemns such policies as racial segregation and apartheid.

Since the beginning of the Oslo accords, there has been an accelerated increase in the demolition of Palestinian homes. For example in 1996 there were around 140 house demolitions, and in 1997 around 233.Under Shimon Peres, 60 house demolition orders were issued in the Hebron area alone, and 93 homes were demolished during the period of his administration. In total, over the five-year period of Oslo, over 500 Palestinian homes have been demolished by the Israeli authorities. 9 The pretext for many of these demolitions have centered around the issue of illegality, with the Israeli authorities often charging Palestinian families with building without permission. The fact of the matter is that building permits are rarely issued by the Israeli authorities to Palestinians, particularly in the Jerusalem area. There is an application fee of over 2000 US dollars, and waiting periods can last up to a year. These restrictions are applied only to Palestinians, and out of necessity, force many families to build without permission from the authorities. House demolitions also occur as a part of settlement expansion and is a policy often used by Israel as a form of collective punishment. Collective punishment is prohibited by international law, specifically article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Over the last five years of the Oslo process, the Israeli authorities have routinely used lethal force, mostly against unarmed civilians. Palestinian civilians have been routinely shot and killed during public protest. For example, in the disturbances in the wake of the death of 29 Palestinians at the hands of an extremist settler in Hebron in February 1994, where 30 people lost their lives, and more recently, in the Nakba demonstrations, where a further eight lives were lost. Palestinians are often killed at road blocs, particularly during periods of closure. In some instances, those shot and killed by the Israeli security forces have been children, some under the age of thirteen. The killing of seven year old Ali Jawarish in 1997 is a case in point. Ali Jawarish was shot in the head at close range by an Israeli soldier during disturbances near Rachel's tomb in Bethlehem in November 1997.

In 1997, twenty Palestinians were killed by the Israeli security forces. During the five-year period following the accords, it is estimated that 259 Palestinians were killed by Israeli security forces and a further 56 were killed by Israeli civilians.11 The penalty for an Israeli civilian that kills a Palestinian can at times be trivial to say the least. In one incident in 1996, a settler that had killed a Palestinian, was fined one agorat, which is the equivalent of 0.28 of a single US dollar. The callous disregard for the basic right to life has been a salient feature of the last five years.

The Israeli authorities also make routine use of torture sanctioned by the upper echelons of the Israeli establishment and tolerated by the bulk of the Israeli population. Despite being a signatory to the UN Convention Against Torture, the Landau Commission which looked into the issue on behalf of the Israeli authorities, gave the go ahead to the Israeli security services to administer such treatment to its detainees by stating that the use of "moderate physical force" could be applied during the interrogation of those suspected of posing a security risk to the state. Torture is expressly forbidden under international humanitarian law, and Israel was again found conducting torture in 1998. Methods of torture by the Israeli authorities include sleep deprivation while shackled in painful positions, imprisonment in a closet, and violent shaking. Violent shaking, which can do damage to the brain, has been a particularly common form of torture used by the Israeli security services. In effect, fifty years after the promulgation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Israel stands as the only country to formally legalise torture.

In the last five years, over 800 Palestinians have been administratively detained for periods ranging from two months to up to four years.12 Administrative detention has been particularly applied against those that are in opposition to the Oslo process. Moreover, on a number of occasions, some administrative detainees have been subject to ill treatment through long periods of solitary confinement, as well as having food withdrawn and or medical assistance withheld. Other infringements include the denial of their visitation rights, as enshrined in the Fourth Geneva Convention.

Since the accords, the West Bank and Gaza have been continuously subjected to closures. The Israeli policy of closure results in severe restrictions on movement, and due to the nature of the current stage of the agreement, whereby Palestinian controlled areas do not form a contiguous entity, the Palestinian towns and villages are easily isolated, aided by the presence of bypass roads discussed earlier. The type of closure can vary. The Israeli authorities have been known to impose what could be called blockades, where movement of the Palestinian population is virtually impossible, and humanitarian relief is often impeded. The blockades are usually imposed on Jewish holidays and feasts, after bombings, after clashes with Palestinians or prior to anticipated protest.

Closures cause considerable economic hardship, by denying the possibility of Palestinian workers who earn their living in Israel from getting to their places of employment. Closures often results in the waste of Palestinian agricultural produce as vegetables and the like rot, and in the case of Gaza, the ban on fishermen going to sea, denies them the possibility of an income, as they are unable to carry out their livelihood. It has been estimated that closures cost over six million US dollars a day, and in 1997 the total estimated cost of closures for that period was around 230 million US dollars. This has a devastating effect on local industry. Closures also routinely impede the work of the medical emergency services denying individuals urgent care.

The closure inflicted on the Palestinian population of the occupied territories is a form of collective punishment which violates article 33 of the Fourth Geneva Convention, and also the right to the freedom of movement enshrined in article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

As an occupying power, Israel continues to violate international law in the measures that are employed against the Palestinian population of the city. These violations have increased steadily since the coming to power of Benyamin Netanyahu. Completely contrary to international law and UN resolutions 242 and 338, Israel has declared Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the state. Measures to consolidate the Israeli State's grip on the city have continued all the way through the five years of the Oslo process. An integral part of the Israeli State's policy vis-ýýàþ-vis Jerusalem has been to reduce the number of Palestinians living in the city. Such policies include the confiscation of IDs and the removal of residency rights. The whole process of renewing one'þs ID is a very beauracratic affair and in essence, the procedural process is made deliberately complicated. In 1997 alone, 358 IDs were confiscated from Palestinian residents.13

Palestinians in the city are also subject to an unfair tax system, such as the Arnona tax. Palestinian shopkeepers are often expected to pay the same rates of tax as the downtown area of the city where income levels are far higher. This places a disproportionate strain on Palestinian shopkeepers who often have problems paying the exorbitantly high taxes demanded of them by the municipal authorities.

Palestinians living in the city are also discriminated against when it comes to the provision of municipal services. It is estimated that the Palestinian population makes up around 30% 14 of the city's total population, but only receive about 10% of the municipality's budget.15 Deprivation is thus higher in Palestinian areas than in Jewish ones.

Building permits are also an issue of contention in the city. Palestinians are routinely denied building permits, often forcing families to build illegally, which provides the municipal authority with an excuse to demolish homes. In 1997 alone, 16 homes were demolished. 16

Land confiscation during the past five years continues to deprive individuals and villages of land needed for their own natural expansion. In 1997 alone, it was estimated that around 20,000 dunams of land was confiscated from outlying areas of the city for settlement expansion.17 Settlement construction has started at Jabal Abu Ghneim, and plans are a foot for a number of housing units for Jewish families at Silwan, named by the Israelis, " the City of David." Furthermore, the Old City has come under the increasing attention of both extreme Jewish fanatics, and their allies in the current government. The organisation, Ateret Cohanim has been to all extent and purposes given licence by the current government to operate in the old city. Ateret's aim is to take over as much of the Old City as possible for the Jewish occupation. The first "illegal" house was demolished in the Old City on the 27thAugust 1997. The Bab al-Huta neighborhood in the Old City has become one of the latest targets for settlers, and there have been plans reported in the Israeli press to increase the Jewish population in the Old City generally.

Institutional control within East Jerusalem has also been a policy of the city's municipal authorities since Oslo. In October 1997 a committee was set up under Avi Blustein to expand Israeli institutional presence in East Jerusalem. For example, in November of that year, the Israeli public security Minister, Avigdor Kahalani made public the idea to move the police headquarters to the eastern part of the city.

In regards to Palestinian institutions in the city, they are viewed with great concern by the Israeli government, which is eager to ensure that the Palestinians do not lay any infrastructure to bolster their rightful claim to the Eastern part of the city. The Israeli administration claims that there are 20 PNA institutions operating in the city. 18 The administration claims that these institutions violate the Oslo accords which prohibit the PNA from operating in Jerusalem. The activities of Orient House have come under particular scrutiny.

The issue of Jerusalem is one of the most contentious, and brings into play, regional dynamics, due to its religious significance. The entire Muslim world is concerned about the fate of the city. The human rights implications of the ongoing Israeli policy is obvious, and any increase in its pace, has as its knock on effect on the violation of Palestinian human rights in the city.

The Palestinian National Authority, since taking control over area A and partial control of area B since 1994, have been responsible for violating the rights of Palestinian civilians. The PNA, on the 30th August 1998, carried out its first executions, with the Abu Sultan brothers being the first victims of Palestinian state sanctioned murder. It is stated by some commentators that the executions were more to do with Chairman Arafat's attempt to appease some sections of the Palestinian political establishment than with any concern for law and order. The PNA has also arrested and detained hundreds of civilians, many of them because of their political affiliations; members of the Islamist groups, Hamas and Islamic Jihad have been particularly targeted. For example, on one day, 25th February 1996, 800 people were arrested and held without charge, the highest number of arrests for a single day. Many of those detained by the PNA security forces have not been charged or brought before a judge. The right to appeal, and to be represented by a lawyer has often been denied.

The PNA has also created, the state security court, which in effect undermines judicial procedure by sidelining the civil courts. The PNA also violates the principle of judicial independence and routinely disregards court orders regarding the release of prisoners.

Palestinian security personnel also routinely torture detainees under going interrogation, and it is believed 19 individuals have died in custody. The Palestinian security forces have been responsible for using lethal force against unarmed civilians during public protest. The killing of 13 Palestinians outside the Palestine mosque in 1994 is a case in point. Human rights activists and individuals that have criticised mismanagement and corruption of PNA institutions and personnel, have also been detained. The case of Fathi Subah is particularly revealing. Mr Subah, a teacher, was detained for an exam question he wrote for his students concerning corruption in the PNA.

The PNA also operates restrictions on free expression, with a number of newspapers and TV stations being forced to close. The closure of Al Rasalah newspaper in Gaza, and Afaq TV in Nablus, is a case in point. Afaq TV was closed on the 23rd of September 1997. The station owner, Issa Abul Iz was arrested and detained in Jericho without warrant. Furthermore, the licensed station was sealed without notification or explanation. Al Resalah newspaper was closed without prior warning, and without a court order, contravening article 42 of the press publication law. All in all, the PNA has pursued policies aimed at silencing critics not only of the accords, but also of its mismanagement. As illustrated above, those detained have ranged from Islamists to PFLP members to journalists, academics and human rights workers.

It is however clear, that a great deal of the abuses mentioned above, stem from strong pressure by Israel and the United States to clamp down on opponents of the process. The rationale for this pressure, is generally phrased in terms of helping to protect Israel's security. It seems no matter how brutally the PNA clamps down on opponents of the process on account of Israel's security demands, the Israeli authorities demand more. Israeli pressure however, though greatly implicated in the abuses by the PNA of the rights of Palestinian civilians, does not exonerate the PNA for the violation of those rights.

LAW contends that the PNA has a responsibility to its citizens to respect the law and human rights.

Over the last five years, torture and death in custody, arbitrary arrests and detention without trial, executions and extrajudicial killings, continued land confiscation and settlement expansion, have all continued since September 1993. These continued violations are a damning indictment of the peace process, and illustrate that human rights considerations are marginal to the parties concerned.

The accords are not grounded in international law, but have been guided more by the balance of power of the respective parties, with Israel being the stronger of the two, and thus able to dictate the pace and ostensibly the final outcome. The accords, have not only in effect led to a firmer Israeli grip on the occupied territories, but have also put the right of the Palestinian people to self- determination on the negotiating table. Despite the pronouncements of President Arafat and those close to him, the accords are not conducive either to self-determination, nor to the evacuation of Israeli troops and civilians from the occupied territories. An example was the successful link made by the previous Labour Administration, and agreed to by the PNA, of linking progress in the process with the completion of the by pass road network.19 The PNA in effect colluded with land confiscation and house demolitions carried out in order to facilitate the construction of the roads, which in themselves, not only consolidate the settlements, but also enhance the ability of the Israelis to control the territories. The right of return of the Palestinian refugees of 1948 and their descendants, enshrined in article 12 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political rights has also been put up for negotiation as a final status issue.

All in all, in the last five years, very little has been done to permanently improve the human rights situation of the Palestinian people, and in some cases, the situation has been aggravated. It is surely the case, that any peace process which does not take into account the right of the Palestinian people to equality and human dignity will not lead to a sustainable peace. It is clearly the case, that for those aims to be achieved, there needs to be a review of the Oslo process, and a clear desire from the bulk of the Israeli population and establishment, as well as the Palestinian leadership, to respect the human rights of the Palestinian people, and adhere to all the conventions and stipulations of international law without exception.

ý þþ
þ1 Israeli settlement and the Peace Process ( The Jerusalem media and Communication Centre, January 1997) p 1
2 Palestinians in wonderland, a Report on the Human Rights violations of the Labour and Likud Governments during the Oslo process and the Tragic Violence that Ensued (LAW Publication October 1996) p 2
ý3 þþABC of the Oslo Accords (LAW Publication 1997) p48
ý4 þþopcit Palestinians in Wonderland p2
ý5 þþReport on Israeli settlement in the Occupied Territories (Foundation for the Middle East) Vol 8 No 3 p5
ý6 þþPalestine Report April 1998 p4
ý7 þþopcit ABC of Oslo p 48
ý8 þþIsraeli settlement in the Occupied Territories as a violation of Human Rights: Legal and conceptual aspects (Btselem March 1997) p 39
ý9 þþopcit Palestinians in Wonderland p 3 see also ABC of Oslo p18
ý10 þPlease note that for a detailed report on life and liberty issues since Oslo see Amnesty international's report "five years after Oslo, a durable peace must be based on justice"þ
ý11 þþBtselem casualty statistics from Btselem web page September 1998
ý12 þþPrisoners of peace, administrative detention during the Oslo process (Btselem July 1997) p7
ý13 þSummary of LAW'þs 1997 report p2
ý14 þþibid
ý15 þþibid
ý16 þþibid
16 Jerusalem Quarterly File Spring 98 issue 1 "Resume 1997: The year that was" Martina Rieker p10
ý18 þPublication of the violations of the PNA by the Prime Minister of Israel'þs office. Taken from the web, September 1998
ý19 þþBy pass Road Construction in West Bank, The End of The Dream Of Palestinian Sovereignty ( February 1996) p 6 see also opcit Israeli settlement and the peace process p46

LAW - The Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment is a non-governmental organization to the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) and the Fédération Internationale des Ligues de Droits de l'Homme (FIDH).

LAW - the Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment
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