The Status of Palestinian Citizens Rights

The

Tenth Annual Report

1 January 2004 31 December 2004

The Status of Palestinian Citizens Rights

The

Tenth Annual Report

1 January 2004 31 December 2004

THE PALESTINIAN INDEPENDENT COMMISSION FOR CITIZENS' RIGHTS

The Status of Palestinian Citizens' Rights

The

Tenth Annual Report

1 January 2004 31 December 2004

Board of Commissioners

Mamdouh Aker Commissioner General

Nasier Aruri Haider Abdul Shafi Hanan Bakri Mahmoud Darwish Muhammad Hallaj Taghreed Jahshan Muhammad Mei'ari Fuad Moghrabi Eugene Qutran Iyad Sarraj Rawia Shawwa A'zmi Shu'aibi Hanan Ashrawi

Lamis Alami Director General

Preface As this 10th annual report of the Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens Rights (PICCR) goes to print, we are on the threshold of significant developments regarding the already troubled internal situation in Palestine and in the PICCR itself as an organization. On the domestic level, the most important event in 2004 was the parting of our late President Yasser Arafat, and the accelerating changes that followed, pushing the Palestinian political system onto the brink of a new era that will have a serious impact and implications on the homeland and the lives and rights of citizens. While the 9th annual report focused mainly on issues related to security chaos, taking the law into ones own hands, the misuse of firearms, the judicial system, and the elections as the most important mechanism for revitalizing Palestinian society and its government, this 10th annual report focuses, among other things, on important updates in relation to some of these issues. The year 2004 witnessed some positive steps towards reforming the Palestinian judicial system. Government Authority was transferred in a constitutional and smooth manner, and the date for the presidential elections was also set in accordance with Palestinian Basic Law. Part of the local elections was also carried out in a free and fair manner, keeping to a defined and continuous schedule. The date for the legislative elections was also set for July 2005, but security chaos continues to escalate and is causing more and more victims, which consequently makes citizens feel unsafe and insecure despite the serious measures that are being taken to mitigate this. PICCR hopes that the year 2005 will witness the end of this dangerous phenomenon which has no solution other than the application of the rule of law. Although the date for the legislative elections has been set, the general elections law had still not been endorsed by the Legislative Council by the end of 2004. Heated debate on the electoral system and the amendments suggested for it is still going on at the Legislative Council, in political circles and civil society organizations. As an organization, PICCR has witnessed significant developments in its structure, raising the competence of its performance, strengthening its status and distinguished role as an ombudsman for Palestinian citizens, and being at the same time "the national human rights commission". All this will be culminated by the endorsement of the PICCR special law which will define PICCR's role, powers, and its field and mechanisms of work. PICCR draft law has already been prepared and will be submitted to the Legislative Council (PLC) at the beginning of 2005 for discussion and endorsement. All these developments and changes are taking place parallel to the ongoing Israeli occupation that continues its encroachment upon the homeland and its citizens, practicing all sorts of oppression, disfiguring the Palestinian territories with barriers, accelerating and consolidating the establishment of more Jewish settlements, erecting the separation wall, segregating and judaizing Jerusalem, choking the economic and social arteries of the Palestinian territories and destroying its infrastructure in a systematic and continuous way in order to gain time and impose the Israeli reality on the ground. The occupation in all its manifestations is indeed the main violator of Palestinian citizens rights on all levels. In this regard however, this 10th annual report takes a new approach in dealing with monitored Israeli violations, by analyzing their impact on the performance of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) including its executive (civil and security agencies), judicial, and legislative branches, as well as on citizens' lives and rights. PICCR puts this 10th annual report before the president, the Legislative Council, the Prime Minister, and all PNA agencies, as well as before the active political groups in the Palestinian society, civil society

organizations, and all citizens. PICCR hopes this report will be studied carefully, and its recommendations in various fields and levels will be followed up. Finally, on behalf of the Board of Commissioners, I would like to extend our thanks and appreciation to the PICCR's team for its persistent work and great efforts for completing this report on time. I thank the director general, the lawyers, the field researchers and the administrative staff. The annual report is the peak of the PICCR teams achievements, attained through daily laborious work. We are proud to see that PICCR's reports have become an indispensable reference for all those concerned about Palestinian citizens rights inside and outside the Palestinian territories. Dr. Mamdouh Aker Commissioner General

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Introduction The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens' Rights (PICCR) issues this tenth annual report on the state of citizens' rights in the territories of the Palestinian National Authority covering the period between January 1 and December 31, 2004. It is worth mentioning that this is the fifth report to be issued by PICCR during the Al-Aqsa Intifada (uprising) which broke out on September 29, 2000 and which was still ongoing at the end of 2004. As was the case in the past four years, 2004 marked another year of extremely difficult security and political conditions under which PICCR had to work. During 2004 and especially at the beginning of the year, the Israeli occupation authorities continued their grave violations against the Palestinian people on various levels. These violations included continuing the siege imposed on the late president Yasser Arafat at his premises in the Muqata'ah of Ramallah, until he was moved to France to receive treatment and where he subsequently died, continuing military incursions into Palestinian towns, villages and refugee camps, especially in the Gaza Strip and destroying their infrastructure, continuing the assassination of Palestinian activists and militants, in addition to the demolishing of houses and other buildings, bulldozing land and farms, and continuing the construction of the separation wall in the Palestinian territories. Various ongoing Israeli violations led to the paralysis of the Palestinian National Authority agencies, as armed groups became active and the state of disorder and security chaos spread in large Palestinian regions killing and injuring large numbers of citizens. The Palestinian security agencies in general reached an unprecedented state of weakness. Therefore any report on the state of citizens' rights in Palestine should not be published nor read without taking into consideration the extenuating and unnatural circumstances which the Palestinian people, its Authority and all its institutions are passing through. Despite all the above, the Palestinian Authority, institutions and citizens continued running their lives and carrying out their daily affairs with determination, convinced that the main problem is with the Israeli occupation, which is considered the main party that is violating Palestinian citizens' rights. This has not only been the case during the Intifada, but right from the very beginning of the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories in 1967. Neither the negotiations nor the peace process were able to remove this occupation by the end of 2004, just as international resolutions have not been able to do so in the past. In accordance with its mandate decree issued in 1993, PICCR continued to carry out its duties of receiving and following up Palestinian citizens' complaints against public authorities, and checking the compatibility of legislations, draft laws, and formal policies with the international standards of human rights, the Basic Law, and other national laws. PICCR continued its work during 2004 despite two types of difficulties. One type was external resulting from the measures taken by the Israeli occupation against the PNA agencies, a factor which deprived PICCR of a main partner in order to guarantee the success of its programs. Israeli measures (including the siege, closure, curfew, and military barriers) also restricted the free mobility of PICCR's teams. On the one hand, this prevented PICCR's staff from having access to and being able to communicate with all citizens, and on the other hand, it prevented the PICCR's teams from meeting regularly to organize their work. In order to overcome this type of difficulty, PICCR carried on its tasks from its branch offices in the West Bank, and by expanding its office in the Gaza Strip. The second type of difficulty was internal and regards PICCRs relations with various Palestinian agencies. Despite overall positive developments with regard to the relations between PICCR and the PNA agencies, and despite the widespread recognition of PICCRs role, and the recent increased cooperation of many institutions with PICCR in dealing with citizens' complaints, PICCR is still facing the problem

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of lack of cooperation on behalf of some parties. The fact that this cooperation does not always lead to solutions that are convincing to both the PICCR and the victims of rights violations does not help either. Enacting a special law that would allow PICCR to define its powers and its work mechanisms would indeed contribute to solving this problem. This tenth annual report is issued in light of significant developments in 2004. Palestinian President Yasser Arafat passed away after being besieged in his headquarters in Ramallah for three years. Governmental Authority was transferred in a smooth, democratic and constitutional manner. In 2004 as well, the first phase of local elections was conducted. These elections were fair and transparent, as was the initial process of conducting elections on various levels. Reform efforts also continued in 2004 in the security, judicial and financial domains. The temporary Chairman at the time also endorsed most of the suspended draft laws, and presidential elections were set for January 9, 2005, and legislative elections for July 17, 2005. PICCR can report on significant successes during the year under review. These successes were the outcome of positive cooperation by some official parties regarding PICCR's letters, inquiries and reports. On the top of the list of those who cooperated are Prime Minister Ahmad Qurai' (Abu Ala') and his office director Dr. Hasan Abu Libdeh who continued to provide PICCR with information and documents, and cooperated positively with regard to PICCR's letters regarding citizens' complaints and policies. We at PICCR hope that this cooperation will be long-lasting. Regarding some other issues, however, PICCR did not achieve positive and tangible results. Among those issues were claims submitted by several citizens that they were subjected to bad treatment in the detention centers, and their right to a fair trial was not upheld. Failure to achieve positive results on these issues is due to the lack of cooperation on the part of the accused parties and the lack of mechanisms to enable PICCR to follow-up each case, to pinpoint the people responsible and to hold them accountable. The PICCR's tenth annual report on the status of Palestinian citizens' rights includes the monitoring and follow-up of the total number of violations Palestinian citizens were subjected to in 2004, as well as comprehensive documentation of all developments, both positive and negative, that took place in the Legislative, Executive and Judiciary branches of the Palestinian National Authority. A special chapter of the report deals with Israeli violations of the rights of Palestinian citizens, and the direct impact of these violations on the capacity of PNA agencies to carry out their duties, considering the Israeli occupation the most prominent violator of the collective and individual rights of the Palestinian people. The report includes specific conclusions and recommendations at the end of each chapter, which PICCR submits to all Palestinian parties concerned, in the hope that they will receive the attention and application they deserve. The content of the tenth annual report is the fruit of continuous efforts and follow-up work by all PICCR's staff members in the main office as well as the Gaza office and other branch offices. PICCR is proud to be able to issue the report periodically, and that it draws attention from official bodies. We hope it will be carefully read, and its conclusions and recommendations be considered. PICCR hopes that this report will be as appreciated as previous reports, and that its conclusions and recommendations be given the attention they deserve, especially in light of the fact that they are drawn up from the results of our staffs monitoring and follow-up in the field all through the year. Director General Lamis Al-Alami

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Executive Summary

The Tenth annual report consists of four parts and three appendices, which contain PICCRs observations and assessment of the status of citizens rights in Palestine during 2004. It also presents the conclusions and recommendations that PICCR has reached through monitoring the many aspects of this status. Part one introduces PICCR and its various activities in 2004 in two chapters. Chapter one explains its legal and historical framework and its main tasks. It also presents new work approaches with an analysis of the PICCRs strengths and weaknesses, its opportunities and the threats that stand in its way of achieving its strategic goals and specific objectives, with the aim of acquainting citizens, officials and civil society organizations with PICCR regarding these various aspects. Chapter two discusses PICCR's activities in 2004. Its activities comprise a number of main endeavors: the legal report series; the special report series; review and reform of laws, regulations, and policies; public-awareness raising; the Palestinian Human Rights Quarterly; networking and public relations; and the library. Part two consists of three chapters and focuses on the three branches of government- the legislative, judiciary and executive. The First chapter covers the most important positive and negative developments in the Legislative Authority in 2004, with special attention to: the basic components of the Palestinian Legislative Council (hereinafter referred to as PLC) including its members, committees and Office of the Speaker, along with its support staff. The chapter also includes a total review of PLC activities in 2004 both on a legislative and monitoring level. Following the death of Palestinian President Yasser Arafat, the PLC Speaker assumed the chairmanship of the PNA according to Palestinian Basic Law. During his period in office (60 days) the temporary Chairman ratified most of the PLC enacted laws which the PLC had submitted to the late president for ratification and issuance. Before that however, the PLC had suspended its meetings in the period between September 7 and October 7 to protest the non-acceptance by the Executive Authority of the demands of the special committee formed by the PLC to follow up the reform process in the National Authority. Attacks by unidentified perpetrators continued against PLC deputies and their offices in 2004. Among the most prominent of these attacks was the attempt on the life of Deputy Nabil Amr, which resulted in part of his leg being amputated, and shooting at Deputy Abdel Jawad Saleh's home, in addition to repeated attacks against the PLC premises in the city of Gaza. Apart from the obstacles caused by the Israeli violations during the year under review, which the PLC started to adapt to, the PLC was not able to overcome some of its own inherent shortcomings which have accompanied the Council since its establishment. By the end of 2004, the PLC still had no organized work plan, which meant that the public were denied prior knowledge of the Council's activities. Furthermore, relations between the PLC and its committees on the one hand and the PLC and civil society organizations on the other were weak. In addition to that, the PLC committed a number of violations while performing its duties that were not regulated by any legal or regulatory text.

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The PLC did not do enough to push for new legislative elections to be staged although its term in office had expired. As this report was going to print, the draft elections law, which should provide the basis for the coming legislative elections, was as yet unendorsed, still left on some obscure PLC shelf. After setting July 2005 as the date for the general elections, it would have been better if the PLC had accelerated the endorsement of the elections law, in order to avoid any hitches in the preparation thereof. Failure by the Executive Authority to implement PLC decisions and failure by the PLC and the Executive Authority to stop repeated attacks on PLC members, and obstruction to the monitoring and accountability role of the PLC affected the credibility of the PLC in the eyes of the citizens, making it impossible for it to challenge the hegemony of the Executive Authority in an effective and independent manner. This situation was exacerbated by the fact that there is no effective opposition in the current PLC, as members who are loyal to the government form a clear majority, large enough to quash any proposal that is not in harmony with the government attitudes or those of the Chairman of the Executive Authority. The PLC issued 143 resolutions in 2004 compared with 73 resolutions in 2003 and 34 in 2002. The resolutions were related to several issues including condemnation of various Israeli violations of Palestinians rights, such as the settlements and the construction of the separation wall. Other resolutions dealt with some aspects of how the Executive Authority works, especially with regard to administrative and financial reform, while yet others dealt with some public affairs which are of importance for citizens. The absolute lack of an official employment policy created a number of problems for the PLC including the following: overstaffing, as the number of PLC employees in the main offices in Ramallah, the regional offices in the Gaza Strip, and the branch offices in several regions reached a total of 520. This overstaffing rendered PLC administrative personnel incapable of monitoring and managing a large number of these employees or made monitoring them ineffective, especially those employees who were appointed in these branch offices. Other major problems were created by the large number of employees and the lack of work plans for the departments and units in which they work, as well as due also to the weak monitoring role of the administrative apparatus. A third problem was favoritism and ineffectiveness in appointing employees, as in many cases no announcements of job vacancies were made in the PLC administrative apparatus. No competitions were made among the applicants for any job, and in some cases jobs were granted through favoritism, which was committed on a number of occasions by the members of the PLC itself. This phenomenon led in some cases to a shortage of technicians and specialists in the PLC, which consequently led to the ineffectiveness of a number of employees.

The main recommendations of this chapter:

There is a need to accelerate the endorsement of the elections draft law, so that the legal

framework within which the coming elections will take place will be clear. There is also the need to modify the electoral system to allow for the creation of parliamentary blocks.

Immediately following the elections, PLC needs to conduct a thorough review of its standing orders and its administrative structure. It also needs to prepare a manual for parliamentary precedents. PLC can benefit in this regard from its previous experience and from the experiences of parliaments in other democratic countries.

Legislative procedures need to be activated and developed to prevent draft laws from being left on the shelf of various committees for long periods. The timeframes set for these measures in the PLC standing orders and within the annual legislation plan should be respected. A timetable should be prepared for the committees meetings and the goals to be achieved during each legislative period. This is linked to preparing a legislative agenda for the PLC set in accordance with the priorities agreed upon for each legislative period.

There is a need to create a mechanism for removing any contradictions and discrepancies between the ordinary laws and the Basic Law, and among the ordinary laws themselves.

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There is a need to apply the decisions taken by the PLC Reform Committee, which aim to upgrade the PLC administrative apparatus and staff by restructuring this whole chapter so that they will be more equipped to carry out the important legislative work.

The Executive Authority should respect the procedures for endorsing laws, publishing them and guaranteeing their application, including the General Budget Law. The general budget, end of year accounts, and quarterly reports should be submitted by their set dates according to the law regulating the general budget of 1998.

Chapter two of part two deals with the most important positive and negative developments in the Judicial Authority in 2004, with special focus on the need to review judicial laws, the establishment and jurisdiction of civil courts, public prosecution, administration of judicial affairs, religious courts, regulation of lawyers, private courts and the difficulties and challenges still facing or impeding the Judiciary. The Judiciary witnessed some positive developments in 2004, such as the appointment of presidents for the Courts of First Instance, establishing new magistrate courts and courts of first instance in Tubas, Deir Al-Balah and Qalqiylia and naming judges for settlement, juvenile, labor, municipalities and summary proceedings. The Judiciary continued to acquire better resources during the year, as well as endeavoring to improve the professional standard of judges, public prosecution staff and the support teams through specialized training activities. In 2004, the cases of some suspects charged with collaborating with the occupation authorities were investigated in the courts of first instance. These cases were handled by the state security courts in the past. The courts of first instance issued sentences ranging between execution and life imprisonment and allowed defendants to have fair trial procedures, with legal representation and guaranteeing the right of appeal. This thereby proved the capability of civil courts to deal with cases no matter what the crime may be, without resorting to security courts, which often come short of fair trial procedures. In general, the Public Prosecution Office is still ineffective and has no influence over whether rights and public freedoms are safeguarded or not. In 2004, the Public Prosecution Office did not investigate the killing of scores of citizens for allegedly collaborating with the occupation authorities; it did not carry out the necessary investigations on the perpetrators of these crimes and did not bring them to trial. The Public Prosecution Office did not conduct regular visits to prisons and detention centers to inspect the legal and living conditions of prisoners in them, and releasing those detainees who were being held illegally. The personal security of public prosecution staff was jeopardized due to the security chaos prevailing in the Palestinian territories, which escalated following the incursion of occupation forces into Palestinian cities in April of 2002 and also due to the increased power wielded by armed organizations. This rendered public prosecution officers unable to conduct investigation or level accusation in many of the serious and urgent cases. Many problems erupted in 2004 with regard to relations between the Public Prosecution Office and the Minister of Justice, especially regarding the latters jurisdiction in appointing Public Prosecution staff and dictating their duties and disciplining them. The Judiciary Law granted limited powers to the Minister of Justice including the following: administrative supervision of the courts, which includes being in charge of appointing court employees, dealing with their promotion, leaves, pension and remunerations, as well as the dealing with supplies, rentals and calling the High Judiciary Council to convene. The High Judiciary Council must also refer its draft budget to the Minister of Justice so that the necessary legal steps may be taken. The above mentioned law also stated that the Minister of Justice has the power to decide the suitability of the appointed public prosecutors and define their place of work, from which they cannot be moved without the Ministers authorization. The Minister also attends the oath-taking ceremony of the attorney general. The High Judiciary Council however prevented the Minister of Justice from exercising many of these powers.

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In October 2004, a number of PLC members took the initiative to present a draft law modifying the Judiciary Law. It assessed the financial part annexed to the Judiciary Law as being illegal, based on the fact that it was published in the Official Gazette (Al-Waqa'I Al-Falasteeniyah) without being submitted first to the PLC for endorsement or being ratified by the Chairman of the PNA. On November 25, 2005, the PLC decided to send the draft law back to the Budget Committee for reformulation, in order to make it clearer in terms of comprehension. Regardless of the legal debate on the permissibility of reviewing the financial part of the Judiciary Law, an important issue still remains, namely ensuring that Judiciary members (judges and public prosecutors) get the salaries and privileges that correspond to them, so they can earn a dignified living, as is the case in most parts of the world with these professions. The High Judiciary Council can report on several important achievements over the past period. However, they are still perpetrating many violations against the law, among which are the following:

Scores of Judiciary members were promoted automatically over the last two years without having to abide by any objective rules. There was no clear promotion policy that could be used as criteria for the assessment of these promotions.

Over the last two years in the Judiciary, a large number of members were appointed from among the relatives of High Judiciary Council members, judges at the Higher Court, or senior employees at the PNA.

The High Judiciary Council does not hold regular meetings and many of its decisions are taken individually.

There is a lack of possible creative solutions for the problems the Judiciary are facing, at the top of which is the slow adjudication of cases.

For the second year in a row, no cases were referred to the State Security Courts in 2004, which underlines the belief that these courts have been revoked from the Palestinian legal system. Verbal statements to this effect were made by ex-Minister of the Interior Hani Al-Hasan on April 14, 2003, stating that State Security Courts contradict the Palestinian Basic Law. A written resolution issued by the ex- Minister of Justice on July 27, 2003 also revoked these courts.

The main recommendations of this chapter:

In order to put an end to the problem of slow adjudication of cases, PICCR recommends the establishment of more magistrate and first instance courts, especially in the cities which lack such courts, or in densely populated areas. This will reduce the burden on courts and will improve the accessibility to them. More judges should be appointed to all courts. Appointments should be made in accordance with the law and the applicable regulations, taking the number of cases filed at each court into consideration. Necessary administrative measures should be undertaken to guarantee the attendance of judges and that they will dedicate sufficient time and effort to look into the cases. Clear instructions should be issued to the judges to stay at their residences according to the law. There is a need to mitigate the difficulties imposed by Israeli obstacles, such as military barriers and others, by providing temporary residences for the judges.

The Palestinian civil courts should investigate the files of all citizens detained on suspicion of collaboration with the occupation authorities and should issue a swift appropriate sentence. These detainees should not be kept in detention for any longer period than that stipulated by law. They may also not be released without trial. This is essential in order to avoid any calls for resorting to security or exceptional courts to investigate civil cases which are at the core of civil courts jurisdiction.

The Public Prosecution Office should investigate all murder cases and make the results public.

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The dispute between the High Judiciary Council and the Ministry of Justice must come to an end. This entails that first each party stick to its own jurisdiction as stipulated by law and, second, the Judiciary Law should be modified in a manner as to clarify the duties and exact jurisdiction of the Judiciary parties, namely the High Judiciary Council and the Ministry of Justice.

The establishment of special execution (implementation) departments should be accelerated to follow up the application of resolutions issued by the religious courts.

Chapter three of part two focuses on the performance of the Executive Authority in that it monitors and evaluates the performance of ministries and civil and security public agencies, as well as public institutions. This also deals with new developments related to the general budget, the conditions at the reform and rehabilitation centers (prisons), the public employment sector, and the legislative role of the Palestinian Executive Authority. The most prominent event in 2004 was the passing away of the Chairman of the Palestinian Authority and the PLO, Yasser Arafat "Abu Ammar", on November 11, 2004. The head of the Legislative Council Mr. Rawhi Fattouh assumed the tasks of the PNA Chairman temporarily, for a period of no more than two months according to the Basic Law. At the same time, January 9, 2005 was set as a date for conducting the second presidential elections and July 9, 2005 (later fixed at July 17) was set for conducting the legislative elections. A further important event during the year was the local authorities elections that were held in 26 local commissions in the West Bank. The year 2004 witnessed an increase in the cases of security chaos in its various manifestations, which scared citizens and endangered their rights and basic freedoms. At the same time, the PNA was not able to achieve the aspired tranquility and security for its citizens. A high rate of various violations and shortcomings referred to in the PICCR's 9th Annual Report are still continuing; the needed improvement has not yet materialized. The Executive Authority did not take serious measures to settle the conditions of the PNA public agencies. It did not design structures nor did it define the powers of various PNA agencies. It did not reduce the number of staff members in the civil and military administrations. Although the government submitted scores of draft laws on various issues to the PLC, it did not present any draft laws to regulate the various outstanding affairs of the PNA agencies. Despite the efforts exerted by the PNA in developing the education sector, and despite the large size of this sector and its employees compared with other service sectors, the PNA was still unable to provide the sufficient support needed. The number of schools following a double system (one set of students come in the mornings and another set in the afternoons) was 232. Although more than 45 million NIS of the general budget was allocated for the building of new schools and introducing an IT system in the existing ones, basic education in government schools still suffers a number of problems, most important of which is the need for more classrooms, laboratories and libraries, sport facilities, computers and heating. As for higher education, universities are still in need of more governmental financial support in order to be able to reduce fees, develop their curricula and staff, activate scientific research and implement an incentive system that encourages the lecturing staff to be creative and conduct research. With regard to the health sector, governmental and semi-governmental health teams exerted very palpable efforts in providing vital medical services to citizens. In its report on the issue of health however, PICCR concluded that the Ministry clearly did not do enough to monitor medicine registration, especially in reference to medicines that are imported from outside the PNA territories. PICCR also concluded that there are many violations taking place with regard to referrals for medical treatment to places other than the governmental hospitals. There was a high rate of irregular referrals made for medical treatment and the selection of the beneficiaries of these irregular referrals was arbitrary. Among the factors that contributed to the creation of this problem was that the special medical treatment departments at the Ministry were

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overloaded with (presidential and ministerial) orders to cover the treatment of certain patients on an unclear basis. On the other hand, PICCR recorded a number of attacks against medical teams and health institutions, without those responsible for the attacks being held accountable. No serious endeavor was made on behalf of the government to control the prices of basic commodities or to monitor their quality. The government did not set nor implement a uniform rate for water and electricity. The Ministry of Public Works and Housing did not succeed in reconstructing the houses that were demolished by the Israeli occupation forces over the last years. The Ministry of Labor did not succeed in alleviating the suffering of unemployed workers in a convincing manner. The Ministry of Agriculture did not provide sufficient support for farmers despite the major losses they incurred as a result of Israeli practices. As for the Palestinian security agencies, the PNA Chairman decided during the year to integrate all the security agencies into three agencies, namely the National Security Agency, the Internal Security Agency (the Police, the Preventive Security Corps and the Civil Defense Corps) and the General Intelligence Agency. However, the financial and administrative relationship between these agencies remained unclear. The structure of these three agencies was not clear either, and there is no tangible proof that they have been really integrated into three agencies in the true sense of the word. These agencies also remained under the control of the PNA Chairman and not under any other executive party that can be held responsible before the PLC. The relationship between these agencies and the National Security Council was also unclear, with regards to their structure or the nature of the role of each of them. On the legal level, no laws were enacted to regulate the function of the security agencies. The laws related to the pensions of Palestinian security personnel, their salaries and various financial rights were still not enacted by the end of the year. Despite the fact that, on several occasions in January, August and September of the year under review, the PNA announced that plans were being developed to promote the functioning of these security agencies, to enhance their effectiveness, and to take strict measures to impose order and public security, it was still noticed that these agencies failed to accomplish their role in maintaining security and public order, as the Palestinian territories witnessed several phenomena of security collapse and lawlessness that affected citizens' lives, left people injured and properties damaged. No less than 93 citizens were the victims of revenge or punishment killings, the latter victims being alleged collaborators with the occupation authorities. Scores of citizens were also kidnapped, some of whom were officials in the security agencies. There were thousands of unlicensed private and public vehicles on the roads, thus also threatening citizens' safety and security. Repeated Israeli closures and incursions into the PNA territories led to the weakened position of the Palestinian security agencies with regard to their effectiveness. Security agencies staff were no longer able to perform their duties, i.e. to uphold citizens' safety and security. Furthermore, the inability on behalf of the PNA to set up new prisons to replace the ones demolished by the Israeli occupation forces in the past years had a major impact on the performance of the security agencies and their capability to maintain citizen's safety and security. This especially applies to the Police Agency, which remained unable to be efficient in its major role in following up crime and arresting criminals, detaining them, and implementing court decisions in their regard, as well as referring them to the courts. On the financial level, the government presented the draft budget law for the year 2004 over one month later than the deadline set forth by law. It was only submitted on December 3, 2003. Among the most important shortcomings of the draft budget law of 2004 is that no ministries or public agency structures were drawn up by the government, the draft law did not include certain financial tables stated by the law, such as the suggested plans for collecting or repaying short and long-term debts and a table clarifying the PNA contribution to local and foreign institutions and companies. Moreover, the draft law did not outline the criteria for selecting developmental projects. It also did not include the bases and norms which were

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adopted with regard to definition of project priorities. The year 2004 ended without the government having submitted the Budget Draft Law for 2005 to the PLC. The civil service sector is still in need of improvement and measures to ensure this. Many of the Civil Service Law provisions in the financial and administrative fields were not implemented and appointments in the public sector were not regulated. By the end of 2004 the government had still not managed to set up and implement a civil and military retirement system and it did not take any serious steps to deal with the phenomenon of overstaffing in the various governmental administrations. The policies for appointing public employees, especially those in senior positions still lack transparency.

The main recommendations of this chapter:

The Executive Authority should take all the necessary steps to speed up the process of conducting the parliamentary elections and complete the local elections, as a necessary introduction for any reform process and reconstruction on a democratic basis.

It is necessary to complete the steps of annexing the agencies and public institutions under the jurisdiction of the Presidency to the ministries which are closer to their specialization or to the Council of Ministers, and to enact the laws which govern their function, so that the PLC can monitor them and hold them accountable. It is also necessary that the PLC endorse the appointment of agency and public institution chairpersons and directors wherever the Basic Law stipulates this, such as the governor of the Monetary Authority and the Chairperson of the Financial and Administrative Control Institution.

The government should exert effective efforts to improve the conditions of the local authorities, design the necessary regulations to implement the laws pertaining to them, release their funds seized by the Ministry of Finance and design and implement fair standards regarding the distribution of foreign aid and local subsidies, as well as activating the capacity of these commission to collect their revenues.

The necessary legislations should be enacted to regulate the functioning of various security agencies, their powers and authorities, and their reference bodies. It is also necessary in this regard that the competent parties disseminate an information booklet for the public and hold training sessions for the staff of the security agencies in general, and the Police in particular to train them in the powers they have in upholding security and public order, as well as in the pursuit of criminals.

There is a need for serious and immediate action to be undertaken with regard to the prevailing security chaos, the misuse of firearms and people taking the law into their own hands, which led to the death and injury of hundreds of people in 2004. Serious investigations of these cases should be carried out and the people responsible for them should be held accountable.

The government should rebuild prisons and detention centers that have been destroyed or become unusable. In the meantime, temporary and suitable alternatives for those prisons should be found without delay.

Part three focuses on the status of Palestinian citizens rights in 2004. The first chapter in this part deals with the types of violations of Palestinian citizens rights in the PNA territories during the year, classified according to the particular right that was violated and the party that committed the violation. Violations of citizens rights varied in 2004 and included the right to life, the right to protection from coercive disappearance, the right to a fair trial, the right to personal safety, the right to medical treatment, the right to work and to occupy public positions, the right to establish societies and trade unions and join them and the right to freedom of expression and freedom of the press.

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The right to life was subjected to several forms of violation in 2004, some of these violations took a legal organized form, such as execution, as applicable legislation in the West Bank and Gaza Strip often imposes this overly harsh sentence on unserious crimes like political crimes for instance. In 2004, a total of eight death sentences were issued, all in the Gaza Strip, and none of them were endorsed by the PNA Chairman. The other violation of the right to life took the form of scores of killings resulting from the security chaos in light of the fragile rule of law. PICCR registered 93 cases of killings as a result of taking the law into ones own hands and the misuse of firearms without a clear system of accountability for the people responsible for those cases, and without taking serious measures to restrict such violations, which pose a threat to citizens security and the cohesion of society. Deaths resulting from medical malpractice or neglect were also another aspect of undermining the right to life, especially as the procedures for medical investigation in those cases is not clear and the Ministry of Health did not announce the results of those investigations, nor were there any clear plans or programs drawn up in order to tackle this phenomenon of medical errors in governmental hospitals. In 2004 PICCR received seven (7) complaints from citizens, each of whom reported the absence of one of his/her relatives after the person in question had been detained or kidnapped by Palestinian security agencies. PICCR was able to follow up these cases with the Palestinian agencies in question. Although PICCR received written replies to some of its correspondence, it did not obtain a satisfactory result regarding the fate of most of those missing people. Through its follow-up, PICCR felt that the official agencies were not concerned about the complaints made by the relatives of the missing people, and did not cooperate with the PICCR in disclosing the whereabouts or situation of those who were missing. The right to fair legal proceedings was one of the most violated rights in the PNA territories in 2004. These violations are often committed through arbitrary arrests and procrastination or failure to bring detainees to trial. PICCR received and followed up 216 complaints during the year, relating to the violation of the right to a fair trial. PICCR also followed up 116 citizens' complaints who reported that they were mistreated when they were apprehended by Palestinian security forces. PICCR followed up these complaints with the relevant Palestinian security agencies and although it received written replies, it was not able to obtain a satisfactory result regarding the case of any mistreated detainees after being detained by the Palestinian security agencies. In 2004, PICCR followed up scores of complaints related to the violation of citizens' rights to occupy public posts, in ministries and in public institutions. Among the topics the complaints dealt with were: denying citizens to compete fairly for employment without discrimination; denying public officers their right to promotion or retirement; denying them the financial rights they are entitled to by virtue of holding a degree or academic qualification; subjecting public officers to arbitrary dismissal or arbitrary transfer; in addition to the fact that favoritism and having connections were still widely used practices in employing people for governmental posts. This was especially the case as vacancies were not announced, which denied interested parties from competing fairly. Such practices were overall prominent in the Judiciary.

The main recommendations of this chapter:

All PNA institutions should endeavor to put an immediate end to the security chaos in the

Palestinian territories, and to work as efficiently as possible to stop the phenomenon of firearm misuse and citizens carrying guns. Deterrent penalties should be imposed on the violators.

Competent authorities should take all the necessary measures to deal with deaths due to medical mal-practice or neglect, and the Public Prosecution Office should see to it that such suspicious cases are investigated, especially those that occur in governmental hospitals.

We demand that an independent and neutral committee be set up to investigate the cases of forcible disappearance documented in the PICCR's special report, so that first, the fate of the missing can be known, and second those responsible for the crime can be identified and held accountable.

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There is a need to form independent and fair investigation committees to follow up the cases of maltreatment presented by PICCR to the commanders of the security agencies for investigation. The concerned parties should be committed to taking quick and effective measures to restrict maltreatment of detainees at the security agencies detention centers during arrest, detention and investigation, and to carry out the pertinent administrative and judicial procedures against all those who do not abide by these measures.

There is a need to respect the existing legal standards related to job appointments in the public sector, based on the principle of equal opportunities by announcing the job vacancies and allowing for a fair competition for them, as well as selecting employees on the basis of professional qualifications and competencies required for the vacancy. Officials in various civil and security institutions of the PA should abide by the applicable laws in relation to dealing with employees and not infringe on their rights.

Chapter two of part three focuses on the follow-up work carried out by the PICCR on the complaints it received. The complaints which the PICCR follows up serve as an invaluable indicator of the status of citizens rights in the PNA territories. The PICCR's Annual Report includes the rights which were violated during the year, the parties responsible for the violation, and the degree of cooperation demonstrated by these parties to stop the violation and to punish its perpetrator. Fifty-nine percent of the total number of complaints received by PICCR corresponded to complaints directed at civil and government agencies including ministries, the Public Prosecution Office and public commissions and institutions. The percentage of complaints addressed to the security agencies which include the Preventive Security Corps, General Intelligence, Military Intelligence, the National Security Corps, Political Guidance, the Police, the Military Judiciary and the Presidential Guard (Force 17) constituted nearly 41 % of the total number of complaints. In 2004, PICCR received 597 new complaints. 80 of these complaints were not followed up for several reasons, the most frequent of which were; lack of jurisdiction, complainants' request not to follow up their complaints, failure to recognize the violating party, the case in question was being investigated by a specialized judicial body, or that the complainants did not exhaust all other available internal channels. This shows that PICCR followed up only 517 complaints from among 597 it received in 2004. PICCR also continued to follow up 186 complaints it had started following up in the previous years. In 2004 a total of 352 complaint files were closed out of the total 517 complaints. The remaining 165 open complaints are still being followed up. Thus PICCR closed 68 % of the total number of followed up complaints. In its follow up of the complaints received, PICCR sent 694 letters in 2004 to the parties, object of the complaints, and other relevant parties, and received 297 written letters from these parties in response. In 2004, PICCR also conducted 156 visits to the reform and rehabilitation centers, and detention centers of the security agencies, to make sure local laws and international covenants were being upheld by the administrations of these centers. The main recommendations of this chapter:

The Public Prosecution Office should carry out all its responsibilities and powers effectively and

independently, especially the power of interrogation, and to issue arrest warrants and inspect prisons and detention centers.

Security agencies and detention centers under their control should be subjected to legislation that regulates their function, and should especially address the many violations regarding harsh degrading treatment and arbitrary detention.

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There is a pressing need for a legislative framework to clarify PICCRs relation with the official institutions, which would allow it to assert its jurisdiction in investigating into citizens' complaints, and bind official parties to respond seriously to all inquiries and remarks raised by it.

The fourth part deals with Israeli violations of Palestinian citizens' rights in two s. The first covers the most prominent Israeli violations against Palestinian citizens' rights in 2004 in general, while the second chapter covers the impact of these violations on the capacity of the PNA to carry out its duties and protect citizens' rights. The Palestinian territories have been under continuous Israeli military occupation since 1967. Therefore the provisions of International Humanitarian law, especially the Fourth Geneva Convention Relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Times of War of 1949 is applicable to the Palestinian territories. This was asserted by resolutions issued by UN organizations, the last of which was the resolution of the International Court of Justice at the Hague, issued on July 9, 2004. The Israeli occupation forces killed 806 Palestinian citizens in 2004. Among those killed were 141 children and 28 women. 95 citizens among the total number of killed citizens were "assassinated" in an extrajudicial manner, most of whom were killed by military helicopters and reconnaissance planes. Additionally, about 5964 Palestinian citizens were injured during these assassination operations. More than 600 houses were totally demolished in 2004 and more than 800 houses were partially demolished. Most demolitions and attacks on properties were carried out in the Gaza Strip. In its incursions into the Rafah refugee camp and city, the occupation forces demolished 532 houses, 261 of which were totally demolished. The demolitions left hundreds of citizens homeless. Most of these house demolitions were perpetrated without their owners being previously warned thereof, which meant that they were not allowed to take their belongings out of their house first. Israeli occupation forces continued demolishing a large number of civilian properties during 2004, as well as the premises of some PNA institutions and ministries, including industrial establishments, public facilities and archeological buildings. Israeli authorities closed a large number of Palestinian public and non-governmental institutions which provide services to the Palestinian citizens in Jerusalem and its surrounding villages. The Israeli government also followed an unjust policy which clearly aims at reducing the number of Palestinians living in East Jerusalem by withdrawing their identity cards, and consequently abrogating their right to a permanent residence in the city. In 2004, the occupation authorities continued implementing their policy of bulldozing Palestinian land on various pretexts such as: in order to stop the resistance, stop shooting and the firing of rockets at Israeli soldiers and settlers, as well as in the name of building the "separation wall", and expanding settlements and settlement nuclei. The occupation forces bulldozed about 9170 dunams of land in the Gaza Strip in 2004. Israeli settlers continued to attack Palestinian civilians and their properties in 2004, especially in the areas close to the settlements. In most cases the Israeli army did not intervene enough to protect the Palestinians from the violent attacks of the settlers. The attacks increased in October of 2004 during the olive-picking season. In most cases no investigation was carried out with regards to the attacks of the Israeli settlers against Palestinians and their properties. None of the criminals were brought to justice. The occupation forces continued all through 2004 to impose a total siege on all the occupied territories, a factor that negatively affected the economic, social and cultural rights of Palestinian citizens. Segregating

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East Jerusalem from its Palestinian context in the West Bank continued, and the total separation of the West Bank from the Gaza Strip also continued. Israel also isolated West Bank cities, villages and refugee camps from each other with fixed and mobile military barriers and electronic gates which made citizens' mobility, whether on foot or by vehicle, sometimes impossible. By the end of 2004, there were still 7,500 Palestinian prisoners behind bars in Israeli prisons and detention camps. There were 324 detainees among them from the city of Jerusalem, 90 detainees originally came from pre-1948 Palestinian towns and other areas, 985 administrative detainees, 391 children, 129 women and 2862 were being detained awaiting trial. All these citizens were detained in extremely bad detention conditions and denied the most simple of basic rights, including the right to meet a lawyer and the right to receive a family visit, as well as having medical care and suitable food. It should be mentioned that the month of August 2004 witnessed an open hunger strike that continued for 18 days, in which 3500 detainees participated. The strike was a protest in the face of deteriorating detention conditions, systematic torture and degrading treatment. Examples included forcing Palestinian female detainees to undress during the search period, continuing to prevent their families from visiting them, continuing solitary confinement and denying the detainees appropriate, healthy food, in addition to many other violations. The Israeli violations affected the Palestinian government in two ways. First they prevented a number of ministers from attending the cabinet sessions and this created a problem regarding the legal quorum needed to hold such sessions. Secondly, they prevented some ministers from attending various government deliberations. In addition to that, restricting the ministers' mobility between the cities of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip negatively affected the functioning of various ministries as well as the coordination between them. Direct monitoring by the ministers of their ministries was reduced and the ministers monitoring work was limited to short check-up visits of their ministry branches. Israeli violations had a clear impact on the Palestinian reform and rehabilitation centers, i.e. "the prisons" that are run and supervised by the Palestinian police, in the sense that the violations translated into poor detention conditions that do not comply with law requirements in the overcrowded alternative centers. Because of the difficulty of transferring detainees to those prisons, some of them remained locked up for lengthy periods in police jails. Israeli violations also included the obstacles imposed when inmates suffering from various illnesses were supposed to be transferred for treatment. Many educational institutions were subjected to closure and premeditated demolishing. In 2004 a total of 1125 schools were closed, 282 schools were demolished and 11 universities and colleges were shelled and raided. Teachers and students were added to the list of victims of the occupation. 151 students and 7 teachers were killed, and the total number of students injured came to 480. Furthermore, 357 students and 27 teachers were arrested. On the other hand, closure, sieges and curfews inflicted heavy damages on the educational system. All through 2003/2004, students from the Gaza Strip were not able to enroll in universities and institutes in the West Bank, due to the Israeli policy of segregating Palestinian cities from each other and besieging them. In many other cases, students and teachers were not able to reach their schools even on foot. The percentage of school days in which students were denied normal education as a result of the segregation and barriers is estimated at 25 % of the total number of school days. This of course reflected on the level of academic performance achieved by these students. With regards to health, the Israeli occupation forces killed ten health-workers in 2004. Israeli practices also rendered the Ministry of Health unable to provide its basic services to citizens in terms of normal medical treatment and preventive medicine. The rate of vaccination dropped from 95 % to 65 %, especially in remote villages.

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Israeli violations also affected the agricultural sector which employs 15.7 % of the Palestinian labor force. Attacks by the Israeli army and settlers on Palestinian farmers and agricultural land escalated in 2004. The occupation forces continued to uproot forests and fruit-bearing trees, in addition to damaging cisterns, irrigation networks, green houses and livestock barns. The Israeli violations also affected the Ministry of Labors efforts to alleviate the conditions suffered by workers in Palestine. In the four years since the Intifada started, the local labor sector has lost more than $ 3.5 billion, while Palestinians who once worked within the green line have lost $ 25.5 billion due to tightened Israeli measures denying them access to the Israeli labor market. The unemployment rate continued to climb in 2004, as the number of unemployed workers reached 250,000. The courts' activities were deterred or prevented in most of the occupied Palestinian territories due to the siege, closure, incursions, and repeated curfews imposed by the occupation. It has been impossible for the members of the High Judiciary Council, which manages the Judiciary, to meet since the beginning of the Intifada and until the end of 2004, because the Israeli authorities refused to issue the necessary permits to the Council members. The occupation authorities prevented PLC members from moving between the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and imposed restrictions on the movement of PLC members from Palestinian villages and cities in the West Bank to prevent them from reaching the city of Ramallah.

Table of Contents

Commissioner-Generals Preface i

Director-Generals Introduction iii

Executive Summary V

Part 1: Introducing The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens' Rights (PICCR) and Its Activities During 2004 1

Chapter 1: Introducing The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens' Rights 3

1. Introduction

2. Legal Framework 3

3. Historical Context 4

4. Modes of Operation 5

5. SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) 5

6. New Directions 7

7. Strategic Goals and Specific Objectives (Programme Document 2005 - 2007 8

Chapter 2: PICCR Activities During 2004 9

1. Legal Reports 9

2. Special Reports 13

3. Review and Development of Laws 20

4. Public Awareness Raising 25

5. The Palestinian Human Rights Quarterly 29

6. Capacity Building 29

7. Networking and Public Relations Activities 31

8. The PICCR Library 34

Part 2: The Status of Citizens' Rights in the Palestinian National Authority Territories 35

Chapter 3: The Legislative Branch 37

1. Introduction

2. General Background

3. Members, Committees, and Administrative staff 39

3. 1 Council Members 39

3. 2 Council Committees 40

3. 3 The Office of the PLC speaker 42

3. 4 Parliamentary Blocs 43

3. 5 Administrative Structure 44

4. PLC Activities During 2004 46

4. 1 PLC Sessions 46

4. 2 Resolutions 46

4. 2 PLC Oversight Activities 54

4. 4Conclusions and Recommendations 59

Chapter 4: The Judiciary 61

1. Reviewing and Amending Judicial Laws 62

2. Regular Courts 64

3. Public Prosecution Office 73

4. Administration of the Judiciary Affairs: The High Judiciary Council 75

5. Religious Courts 78

6. Regulating the Legal Profession 80

7. Security Courts 83

8. Difficulties Facing the Judiciary 84

9. Conclusion and Recommendations 88

Chapter 5: The Executive Branch 91

1. The Presidency 91

2. The Cabinet (The Government) 93

3. The Ministries 95

4. Public Institutions and Authorities 98

5. Local Administration 99

6. The Security Agencies 101

7. Prisons and Detention Centers 103

8. The General Budget 105

9. Civil Service and State Employees 106

10. The Legislative Role of the Executive Branch 108

11. Conclusions and Recommendations 110

Part 3: The Status of Palestinian Citizens' Rights 113

Chapter 6: Violations of Palestinian Citizens' Rights In the Palestinian National Authority Territories 115

1. Violation of the Right to life 115

2. The Right to Protection Against Coercive Disappearance 119

3. Violation of the Right to Fair Legal Procedures 121

4. The Right to Medical Care 130

5. The Right to Work and Public Employment 133

6. The Right to Form and Join Associations and Trade Unions 137

7. Freedom of Opinion, Expression and the Media 139

8. Conclusions and Recommendations 141

Chapter 7: Handling of Complaints 143

1. Types of Complaints Followed up by PICCR 144

2. Complaints Outside of PICCR's Jurisdiction 145

3. Receipt and Follow up of Complaints 145

4. Acceptance of Complaints 145

5. Stages of Following up Complaints 146

6. Recording Complaints and Responses 147

7. Complaints Followed up in 2004 148

8. Distribution of Complaints According to the Concerned Agencies During 2004 150

8. 1 Civil Agencies

8. 2 Security Agencies

9. Classification of Violations 162

10. Conclusions and Recommendations 165

Part 4: Israeli Violations of Palestinian Citizens Rights and their Impact on the Performance of the Palestinian National Authority Agencies

167

Chapter 8: 1. Israeli Violations of Palestinian Citizens' Rights 169

1.1 The Legal Status of the Occupied Palestinian Territories 171

1.2 Violations of the Right to Life 172

1.3 The Right to Personal Security, Physical Safety, and Protection from Torture 174

1. 4 Israeli Attacks on Private and Public Palestinian Property 177

1. 5 Infringement on Freedoms and Liberties 183

2. The Impact of Israeli Violations on the Palestinian National Authority 187

2. 1 The Executive Branch 187

2. 2 The Impact of Israeli Violations on the Performance of the Judicial Branch 192

2. 3 The Impact of Israeli Violations on the Performance of the Legislative Branch 193

2. 4 Conclusion

Appendices 195

Appendix 1: Letters 197

Appendix 2: Statements 247

Appendix 3: The Palestinian citizens that were killed as a result of taking the law into ones own hands and misuse of firearms 2004

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The Tenth Annual Report The Status of Palestinian Citizens' Rights 1 January 2004 31 December 2004 The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens Rights

PICCR OFFICES Ramallah

Al Ithaa St.

Mukhmas Trading Centre 6th floor Tel: 972 2 2987536/ 6958

296 0242 0241 Fax: 972 2 2987211

P.O. Box 2264

Gaza

Al-Ramal; Across from the PLC, next to the Palestinian International Bank

Tel: 972 8 2836632 2824438

Fax: 972 8 2845019

Nablus

Sufian St., Al Anwar Trading Center, 2nd floor Telefax: 972 9 2335668

Bethlehem

Al Mahd St., Nazzal Bldg., 2nd floor Telefax: 972 2 2750549

Hebron

Rass Aljorah Ihrezat Trading Center, 2nd floor Telefax: 972 2 - 2295443

Email: piccr@palnet.com

piccr-g@palnet.com piccr@piccr.org

website: http://www.piccr.org

mailto:piccr@palnet.commailto:piccr-g@palnet.commailto:piccr@piccr.orghttp://www.piccr.org

Part One

Introducing The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens Rights (PICCR) and Its Activities During

2004

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Chapter 1: Introducing The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens Rights 1. Introduction Ten years have lapsed since the establishment of The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens Rights during which time it has undertaken various activities in the West Bank and Gaza including the publication of nine Annual Reports on the status of Palestinian citizens rights; the issuance of a large number of legal and special reports and a wide distribution of its brochures and posters. Despite the wide scope of its activities, a large number of the Palestinian population, citizens and officials, as well as institutions are unaware of the Commissions existence, its legal status and mandate, and modes of operation. Many people do not distinguish it from other non-governmental human rights organizations. This chapter therefore concerns itself with a description of the legal framework and historical background of PICCR, its mandate, strategic goals and directions together with an analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats facing its operation with a view to enlightening citizens, officials and civil society of PICCR activities . 2. Legal Framework The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizen's Rights (PICCR) was established in 1993 upon a Presidential Decree issued by President Yasser Arafat, in his capacity as President of the State of Palestine and chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization. The Decree was subsequently published in the Official Gazette in 1995. In accordance with the Decree, the duties and responsibilities of PICCR were set out as follows: to follow-up and ensure that different Palestinian laws, by-laws and regulations, and the work of various departments, agencies and institutions of the State of Palestine and the Palestine Liberation Organization meet the requirements for safeguarding human rights . The Decree entrusted PICCR with the drafting of its statutes in a manner that would ensure its independence and effectiveness. Furthermore Article 31 of the Basic Law voted by the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) in 1997 and ratified in 2002 and modified in 2003 provides that

An independent Commission for Human Rights shall be established by law, which shall specify its formation, duties and jurisdiction. The Commission shall submit its reports to the President of the National Authority and the Palestinian Legislative Council .

Such a law has not yet been discussed or passed by the PLC, but PICCR, through its internal bylaws, mission statement and its activities, has been clearly working on the basis of a firm commitment to the values of democracy and good governance, and respect for human rights when striving to achieve its mandate. During the latter half of 2004, PICCR commenced work on a draft law which will be submitted to the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) for discussion and approval. This draft law confirms PICCR as the National Human Rights Commission for Palestine with an Ombudsman function at its core. The law will provide PICCR with a broad mandate in accordance with national and international norms. It gives PICCR the authority to deal with cases of human rights violations; complaints submitted by citizens related to maladministration, abuse of power and squandering of public funds; education and promotion; monitoring; and generally integrating human rights into Palestinian legislation and practices. The law focuses on the role of PICCR in protecting basic liberties and freedoms as prescribed in the Basic Law.

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3. Historical Context Throughout its ten years of operation, PICCR has gone through several phases: establishment (1994-1996), consolidation and expansion (1997-2000), radical change after the start of the Intifada (2001), and adaptation and strengthening (2002-2004). During the establishment period, the concept of the Ombudsman was introduced to officials and other concerned parties. Furthermore, PICCR succeeded in forming a Board of Commissioners, drafting its Statutes, opening its office in Jerusalem, mobilizing a core group of staff and funding sources, and publishing its first Annual Report in 1995. Between 1997 and 2000, PICCR started to develop and grow. It benefited from moving its office from Jerusalem to Ramallah, which had become the centre of Palestinian political activity with the inception of the PNA and the establishment of its institutions. During this period, PICCR undertook a number of initiatives that substantially consolidated and expanded its activities: the Annual Report was issued on a regular basis, according to a set schedule, the Gaza Office was expanded, field workers were appointed, and a specialized legal library was established. With the start of Al-Aqsa Intifada at the end of September 2000, Palestinian institutions and the conditions for promoting the rule of law and respect for human rights were seriously weakened. This in turn negatively affected PICCR's mandate and objectives. With the Israeli reoccupation of Palestinian territories in 2002 and the subsequent destruction of PNA infrastructure, curfew and travel restrictions, these conditions intensified. The Israeli occupation and destruction of Palestinian Authority infrastructure limited its ability to effectively deliver services, maintain the rule of law and protect human rights. This diminished capacity has affected PICCRs work, as many core activities depend upon an effective and responsive Government partner. Israeli measures also directly hindered PICCRs operations and infrastructure, with the Ramallah office ransacked and its equipment destroyed, and PICCR's activities were cancelled and delayed due to curfew and travel restrictions. In spite of the extremely difficult conditions during this period, PICCR continued its operations, and developed its activities and standing within Palestine. This has been facilitated by a three year Programme Document, which focused and structured PICCRs operations, and by a Memorandum of Understanding with like minded donors, which assured funding. In addition to the Programme Document and the MOU, a number of issues should be highlighted as contributing to PICCR's progress during this difficult period. The opening of two branch offices in Nablus (for the Northern West Bank) and Bethlehem (for the Southern West Bank) significantly improved PICCRs outreach. PICCR strengthened its relations with the PNA, with recommendations being discussed and adopted by the Cabinet and advice being sought from PICCR. This period also saw a focus on PICCR's external relations that resulted in acceptance into international fora of NHRIs and Ombudsman, and PICCR's advice being sought by burgeoning National Human Rights Institutions (NHRIs) and Ombudsmen in the Arab World. Finally, PICCR has undergone three external evaluations: of the complaints section, of the institutional capacity and of the organisation as a whole.

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4. Modes of Operation PICCR pursues its objectives in the following manner:

Collecting and following-up complaints by citizens, individual or collective, related to maladministration, abuse of power and squandering of public funds by public and semi-public authorities that result in the violations of human rights.

Reviewing Palestinian laws and draft laws to ensure that they conform with the Basic Law, national laws and with international standards of human rights.

Following up on plans, policies and programs of public and semi-public institutions to ensure their compliance and respect for the human rights of the Palestinian citizens.

Educating Palestinian citizens about their rights and freedoms and the mechanisms for their protection against violations.

Publishing annual reports and special reports on the status of Palestinian citizens rights and the violation of those rights by the Palestinian Authority, and on Israeli violations and how these violations impact on the performance of the PA and citizens' rights.

PICCR is managed by a Board of Commissioners with 17 members who represent the Palestinian people in various locations. They are persons of high integrity and authority in the Palestinian society, including prominent persons from the Diaspora. Emanating from the Board of Commissioners is an Executive Office that supervises the work and performance of PICCR, and is headed by the Commissioner General. The Commissioner General is the main point of address for PICCR. The Director General is directly responsible for managing the programs of PICCR, as well as the performance of the staff in the main offices as well as in the branches. The main headquarters of PICCR is temporarily located in the city of Ramallah. There are also three branch offices in Gaza, Nablus and Bethlehem. PICCR intends to establish six more branches over the coming three years. PICCR presently has a team of 31 staff and intends to hire 11 more in 2005. PICCR's budget exceeds $US 1 million. PICCR receives its funding from a number of donors committed to the values of democracy and the protection of human rights. Funding channeled to PICCR is unconditional and by no means affects its independence or its mandate. PICCR expects that the PNA will contribute to the budget, following the enactment of PICCR's enabling legislation. 5. SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) Strengths

PICCR's Board of Commissioners is constituted of well-known public figures with a strong and clear commitment to democracy and human rights. Both in their individual capacities and collectively, they bear substantial moral weight in Palestinian society, which has significantly strengthened PICCR and assisted its acceptance. Furthermore, the Commissioners represent different Palestinian social sectors and communities, whether inside or outside the territories occupied since 1967.

As a result of its diligent professional activities for ten years, PICCR has established its

independence and standing in Palestinian society, before Palestinian public authorities, and among local and international NGOs working for the protection of human rights, as the National Human Rights Commission with an Ombudsman function.

PICCR's Annual Report gives a balanced and comprehensive picture of the status of citizens

rights, of progress and setbacks, and of the outcome of evaluations of relevant institutions. The

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Annual Report is taken seriously by both official and non-official parties, particularly as it is submitted to the President of the PNA and to the Speaker of the Legislative Council, and discussed by the heads of public institutions. PICCRs Special and Legal Reports are also well-respected, with their recommendations discussed and often adopted by the relevant authorities.

PICCR's distinct mandate of Ombudsman sets it apart from both NGOs and Government

institutions.

PICCRs stable and continuous programmes and activities, in spite of difficult circumstances, are an obvious strength. These have contributed to increased confidence on the part of officials and the wider public in the professionalism, independence and caliber of PICCR's work and performance. This is in addition to increased demand for PICCRs services, including legal and policy advice, and publications.

Weaknesses

PICCR currently lacks the legal enforcement power required for the implementation of its recommendations and conclusions by the relevant Palestinian public bodies/institutions, and the ability to litigate in serious cases. Such power of enforcement is also necessary to secure serious cooperation of all public and semi-public bodies/institutions with PICCR. Furthermore, without enabling legislation PICCRs position as the National Human Rights Commission is not completely ensured.

The measures imposed by the Israeli occupation authorities to restrict movement have led to

complete separation between the main office in Ramallah and the branch office in Gaza and made meetings between staff members from both offices, and also between Commissioners from the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, virtually impossible. In addition, there are no branch offices in most of the major cities of the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

PICCR has no formal mechanism for monitoring and assessing the impact of its activities on

Government institutions and the public. Currently PICCRs assessments take the form of outlining activities and outputs with an emphasis on quantitative indicators, without also providing a qualitative analysis of how the activities contribute to the achievements of its objectives.

Opportunities

Regardless of the different scenarios about Palestinian political conditions during the coming three years, there is a clear and pressing need for continuing and developing the work of PICCR. There is local, regional and international concern for democracy, and for the cause of human rights, and for supporting institutions devoted to monitoring the performance of public authorities and upholding the principles and values of good governance. Such a global interest creates many opportunities for training, joint action and the exchange of expertise.

A number of conditions make it an excellent time to present PICCR's draft law to the PLC. A

number of international and regional organizations, as well as other NHRIs and Ombudsmen actively support PICCR and its work. Members of the PLC also regularly encourage PICCR to develop and submit its legislation. Finally, the current priority being given to the Palestinian reform agenda will add momentum to the passage of PICCR's law.

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Although continued Israeli violations and the weakening of Palestinian institutions represent an obstacle to PICCR's work, they also provide an important opportunity. These conditions will make it imperative that PICCR monitors and warns against contraventions of human rights by Government institutions, in particular security agencies, but also by those parties that place themselves above the law. PICCR can also participate in the education process to create a democratic political culture based on a respect for human rights.

In the event that progress is made to establish an independent Palestinian state, there would be a

real opportunity before PICCR, as the National Human Rights Commission, to participate in building democratic and transparent state institutions, as well as instilling a commitment to human rights, the rule of law, and equality within the society as a whole.

Threats

The PLC or Executive will not pass the law or will split PICCRs dual function of Ombudsman and National Human Rights Commission.

Lack of a clear and definitive Palestinian commitment to democracy as a form of government and

social organization.

Danger of continued escalation of Israeli repression, that could lead to the division of the occupied territories into cantons separated from each other. This situation would paralyze the functioning of already weakened public institutions, threaten the development of a human rights culture, obstruct the holding of elections for the Legislative Council and local authorities, and hamper the reform process. As PICCRs activities depend on the existence of all these factors, a continuance and worsening of the current situation will seriously stymie its work.

Danger that non-democratic forces may gain weight inside Palestinian society on the one hand,

and that Palestinian society will become militarized on the other. The vision and practices of fundamentalist and extremist groups are not democratic, and will hinder any genuine democratic process, social change, and human rights respect. In addition, and as a direct result of this phenomenon, the Palestinian society has become more militarized.

All these threats, taken individually or collectively, will bear directly on the work of the PICCR, and the degree to which it can achieve its declared objectives. There are extreme difficulties in identifying what path the events may take. However, uncertainty over predicting the course of events in Palestine does not in any way absolve PICCR from the task of putting in place and seeking to achieve its objectives, and from seizing upon the various opportunities outlined above. 6. New Directions From the above analysis, it is clear that PICCR faces a number of internal and external challenges. Severe measures by the Israeli authorities, a lack of commitment of the Palestinian Authority to promote democracy, the rule of law, and institutional reform, and the increasing threat of conservative forces within the Palestinian society, establish a strong rationale for PICCR to continue its work, especially if it succeeds in obtaining a mandate as National Human Rights Commission and Ombudsman. In order to address these external challenges, PICCR must also confront a number of internal problems, which include establishing an effective monitoring and impact assessment system, activating the role of the Commissioners and improving internal communication and synergy. These challenges establish a strong

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rationale to focus on capacity building and institutional development, as significant components of PICCR's comprehensive strategy. At the beginning of this next period (2005-2007), three factors should be highlighted as significant to PICCRs direction. The draft enabling legislation, which will formalise PICCR's position within the Palestinian society, is ready for submission to the PLC. This will lead to significant changes within PICCR's operations over the coming period since a full-time Commissioner General and probably other full-time or part time Commissioners start working in the organisation. Secondly, as a reflection of the scope of its current activities and its national and international recognition, PICCR has defined its role as a National Human Rights Commission with an Ombudsman function. This definition will serve to focus PICCR's operations over the coming period. Finally, the three evaluations mentioned above have highlighted important areas for improvement in the administration and management of PICCR and have provided valuable recommendations which will guide the organisation's development over the coming three years. 7. Strategic Goals and Specific Objectives (Programme Document - 2005-2007) Strategic Goals

To follow-up and ensure that different Palestinian laws, by laws and regulations, and the work of various departments, agencies and institutions of the PA meet the requirements for safe guarding human rights.

To advance human rights in the Palestinian political culture and to entrench the rule of law and the

advancement of human rights by the Palestinian Authority. Specific Objectives

To consolidate and strengthen the role of PICCR as Ombudsman and National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in the Palestinian society.

To handle and process complaints submitted by citizens related to maladministration, abuse of

power and squandering of public funds by public and semi- public authorities that result in the violation of human rights.

To promote the legal and human rights principles among the various segments of the Palestinian

society, and to educate Palestinian citizens about their rights and freedoms and the mechanisms for their protection against violation.

To review the Palestinian laws and draft laws to ensure that they conform to international

standards and principles of human rights.

To expand and upgrade PICCR's institutional, organizational and operational capacity to adhere effectively and efficiently to its mandate and responsibilities.

To enhance and promote PICCR's relations and partnerships with various similar and related

institutions at the local, regional and international levels.

Part One

Introducing The Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens Rights (PICCR) and Its Activities During

2004

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Chapter 2: PICCR Activities During 2004 In addition to its main function of handling following up grievances, PICCR undertakes numerous activities and projects that aim at increasing awareness of citizens rights and other promoting work the of the legislative, judicial, and executive branches of government. PICCRs activities in this regard cover a number of areas: the legal reports series, the special reports series, the review and development of laws, public awareness raising, the Human Rights Quarterly, capacity building, networking and public relations, and the library. Following is a review of the most significant activities and projects undertaken by PICCR during 2004: 1. Legal Reports Through its legal report series, PICCR addresses legal issues related to the rule of law, good governance, and the three powers- the executive, the legislative and the judicial branches of government. At the end of each report, PICCR provides the relevant authorities, including researchers, legalists, and legislators, with