Tag: Apartheid

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Statement

Justice for Palestine: we will not be deterred nor silenced 

In light of the heinous actions of the State of Israel against the Palestinian people, and the extension of its oppressive structures onto Palestinians and their supporters in Europe, the ELSC expresses its unwavering solidarity with the Palestinian people in their struggle for liberation and justice against colonial oppression and apartheid. As a legal organisation supporting the Palestine solidarity movement in Europe, we stand alongside all those who are carrying the cause, taking a stand and challenging the violent complicity of European states and institutions that enables Israel’s ceaseless colonial violence and its seemingly ever-lasting impunity.  

As we stand witness to the most atrocious crimes against humanity, with our Palestinian partners and independent experts warning of the crime of genocide against the Palestinian people, we are witnessing a serious increase of anti-Palestinian racism in the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (UK). 

The large demonstrations taking place in many European cities, despite outrageous attempts to ban and repress solidarity in many places with extreme force, have shown that people are undeterred and refuse to be silenced. Now as ever, we reiterate our support to all advocates for Palestinian rights in the EU and the UK who are facing censorship, smear campaigns, sanctions, racist attacks and despicable police brutality. 

We recall that the right to resist and struggle for freedom from colonialism, apartheid and foreign occupation, and to speak up against decades-long human rights violations, is fundamental and protected by law. 

At the ELSC, we are currently devoting all our efforts to monitoring all forms of repression against the Palestine solidarity movement in Europe, including the UK. We are receiving numerous reports and requests but due to our limited resources (human and financial), we are intervening in support of the most urgent cases and connecting those facing incidents of repression to our network of lawyers. All communication is registered and we are coordinating support.  

At this critical moment, we urge you to: 

  • Report all incidents of repression and request support here: https://elsc.support/intake
  • Stay safe by consulting the ‘know your rights’ resources below if you are engaging in protests, direct actions or posting online. Follow along for the ELSC’s ‘know your rights’ resources
  • Send any footage or video showing repression to info@elsc.support, including the location and date of the incident
  • Report anti-Palestinian content online to 7amleh here in Arabic and here in English 
  • Donate to Medical Aid for Palestinians, which is responding to the current emergency in Gaza 
  • If you can support our work with a financial contribution, please donate to the ELSC
  • If you would like to volunteer with us, please complete this form
  • For translators and interpreters, please apply here to volunteer

‘KNOW YOUR RIGHTS’ RESOURCES 

Germany:

UK:

France:

Italy:

ONLINE

If you are threatened or harassed online, check this guide by CrimethInc on Prevention and Aftercare for Those Targeted by Doxxing and Political Harassment

10 things to remember when reporting on Palestine by PIPD 

The ELSC is working on additional resources for Germany, The Netherlands, and the UK. New resources will be released soon.  

Categories
Newsletter

Summer Updates & Recent Victories for the Defence of Palestinian Rights Advocacy in Europe

Dear friend,
We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people facing mass repression in Jenin and everywhere else in the world. We have been kept very busy these past few months as Europe carried on with its concerted efforts to silence Palestine, and would now like to share with you some updates covering the period from April to July. The movement perseveres, and we have many victories to report!

HELP US KEEP UP OUR WORK

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VICTORIES & CASE UPDATES

DOCUMENTA FIFTEEN CHARGES OF ANTISEMITISM DROPPED

In April 2023, Kassel’s Public Prosecutor dropped the charges of antisemitism concerning some artwork presented at the 15th edition of the renowned documenta art festival in Kassel, specifically targeted Palestinian artists and one artwork of an Indonesian artist displaying a pig and an Israeli Mossad agent.  

Documenta fifteen, which was curated by Jakarta-based artists’ collective Ruangrupa and largely featured artists from the Global South, faced months of major smear campaigns for hosting Palestinian collectives and exhibits of Palestine solidarity. 

The Prosecutor balanced the allegations with artistic freedom and context. To read the full declaration of the Prosecutor, contact us.

READ MORE

MAJOR UK ART CENTRE APOLOGISES AFTER ASKING SPEAKER TO AVOID TOPIC OF ‘FREE PALESTINE’

After asking Palestinian speaker Elias Anastas, a co-founder of the Palestine-based Radio Alhara, to avoid discussing ”free Palestine” at length during a livestreamed talk on the radical possibilities of radio, the Barbican Centre has now apologised for its intervention calling it an “unacceptable and a serious error of judgement”. The ELSC has advised Artists for Palestine UK, a network of pro-Palestinian artists and culture workers, who have successfully defended this crucial case against the silencing of Palestine! 

GERMAN BROADCASTER DEUTSCHE WELLE TO COMPENSATE JOURNALIST FARAH MARAQA FOR UNLAWFUL DISMISSAL

German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW), which fired seven Arab journalists in February 2022 based on allegations of antisemitism, will compensate journalist Farah Maraqa for unlawful dismissal and cover the legal fees, following the Court’s decision on 28 June. More will follow on the DW cases and the legal ramifications of the judgement. Stay tuned! 

SUPPORT BDS AUSTRIA’S BRAVE BATTLE AGAINST THE MUNICIPALITY OF VIENNA  

BDS Austria is still fighting the Municipality’s unjust Strategic Lawsuit against Public Participation (SLAPP) targeting them for posting a picture of the famous “Visit Apartheid” poster stuck on a billboard along with the City’s logo in 2021.  

FIND OUT MORE

What happened in court on 14 July? After the Municipality of Vienna sent a scandalous settlement offer to the activist, the activist’s lawyer stated the reasons why they refused this proposal: the Municipality proposed withdrawing its complaint in exchange for payment of € 17,838.81, which is more than the damages requested in the trial. Moreover, the settlement proposal included a gagging clause preventing the BDS Austria activist from claiming that the City of Vienna had filed “SLAPP lawsuits” and/or “abusive lawsuits” against members of BDS! The judgement is expected to be delivered in a couple of months. The activist and their lawyer Elisabetta Folliero are ready to go up to the European Court of Human Rights to protect fundamental rights, and we will be there every step of the way to support them! We will not let this shameful affront to democracy and free speech stand!

DONATE

📣 Join us in solidarity with BDS Austria – against the silencing of voices for justice; for the right to solidarity and freedom of expression!📣

SHARE on Twitter and Instagram

AFFY AND ALIYA’S COURT HEARINGS AGAINST THE FINANCIAL GIANT LLOYDS BANK POSTPONED

Affy and Aliya’s hearings against Lloyds Bank have been postponed to 2024. The two women are fighting Lloyds’ discriminatory treatment after the bank sanctioned them for speaking out in support of Palestinian rights. Although their call for justice has been delayed, we will not let it go unanswered! 

Join us and our dedicated supporters like James and Nicola in reaffirming Affy and Aliya’s unity and hope as they continue to fight the violation of their rights and institutionalised racism!

DONATE

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Consider a monthly donation to the ELSC. Every donation, no matter how small or large, makes a difference.

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ELSC NEW REPORT

In June, while the US Administration was releasing its strategy to combat antisemitism and the UN working on its own, we launched our new report exposing the harmful impacts of the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism (IHRA WDA) – which conflates antisemitism with criticism of Israel – on the freedoms of expression and assembly in the EU and the UK. The report is the first case-based account of human rights violations resulting from the institutionalisation and application of the controversial IHRA definition by the European Union and the UK.

Our case studies unmask the biased arguments of the European Commission which has ignored and concealed the the repressive realities of the IHRA WDA for years.  

READ MORE HERE

It is time for EU institutions to recognise that the use of the IHRA WDA is infringing fundamental freedoms, causing real harmful effects for individuals and groups exercising their right to free speech in the name of justice! 
 

📣 SHARE on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook and see more in our toolkit 📣 

RIGHT TO BDS

THE RIGHT TO BOYCOTT COALITION TO PUSH BACK AGAINST ANTI-DEMOCRATIC BILL IN THE UK 

The ELSC has joined a coalition of civil society organisation made up of trade unions, charities, NGOs, faith, climate justice, human rights, cultural, campaigning, and solidarity organisations, in opposing the UK government’s proposed law to stop public bodies from advocating for or participating in boycott.  

WATCH THE VIDEO

After a first vote in Parliament, the bill will be debated again in September. What can you do to help protecting our collective rights? 

SIGN THE PETITION

Do you live in the UK? Write to your MP and ask your Councillors to sign this open letter.

Are you a student in the UK? Check here how the bill would affect your activities and organise to oppose it! 

Check all the materials prepared by the UK Palestine Solidarity Campaign here!

BARCELONA OMBUDSMAN RECOMMENDS BREAKING TIES WITH TEL AVIV: A HISTORICAL PRECEDENT LEADING TO CONCRETE POLITICAL ACTION  

In a ground-breaking resolution, the Office of Barcelona’s Ombudsman recommended in December 2022 that the city revokes its Twinning Agreement with Tel Aviv over concerns about human rights violations committed by Israel against Palestinians. He emphasised that maintaining links with Israel constituted complicity in the commission of the crime of apartheid against Palestinians, thus setting an historical precedent among European public institutions in the denunciation of Israel’s crimes.  

Few months later, Mayor of Barcelona Ada Colau suspended relations with Israel. 

READ MORE

ELSC EVENTS

ELSC-SAOT PANEL DISCUSSION 

As part of this year’s SAOT Palestine Solidarity Festival in Berlin, the ELSC organised a panel discussion together with Palestinian activists and journalists, which provided insight into the political context surrounding our struggles and critically assessed the ever-growing anti-Palestinian racism in Germany. 


In line with the festival’s 2023 theme of victory, the discussion opened a conversation on how to successfully push back against these increasing attacks and empower the artist, activist, scholar, journalist, and all those who advocate for freedom and justice.

ELSC ONLINE

ELSC-FMEP PODCAST EPISODE ON THE IHRA DEFINITION 

The ELSC was invited to the Foundation for Middle East Peace (FMEP) podcast to talk to Lara Friedman about our new report on the suppression of Palestinian rights advocacy through the IHRA definition of antisemitism. 

TUNE IN

ELSC NEW REPORT IN BELGIAN NEWS

Our new report on the IHRA definition was featured in an oped published in Le Soir by our partners from Association belgo-palestinienne (ABP), Union des progressistes juifs de Belgique (UPJB), Een Andere Joodse Stem (EAJS) and Palestina Solidariteit. This comes at a time in which Belgian municipalities face increasing backlash for suspending relations with Israel until it respects international law. 

ELSC’S STATEMENT AGAINST THE NAKBA DEMONSTRATION BANS IN GERMANY ON MONDOWEISS

Read Hebh Jamal’s piece on Mondoweiss referencing our statement against Germany’s criminalisation of Palestinian existence in light of the repeated bans of Nakba commemoration and numerous arrests of anyone and anything visibly Palestinian.  

CHECK OUR FULL STATEMENT

ELSC FEATURED ON THE NEW ARAB: TOGETHER AGAINST THE UK’S ANTI-BOYCOTT BILL

We spoke with the New Arab on the coalition of more than 70 organisations in the UK who have come together to oppose this bill. Read the article here.  

USEFUL RESOURCES

NEW UN REPORT RAISING SERIOUS CONCERNS ON THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF THE IHRA DEFINITION ON FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS

A new UN report affirms restrictions and harassment of Palestinian civil society through intensified coordination between the Israeli government and pro-Israel groups globally and through the instrumentalisation of the harmful IHRA definition of antisemitism.

READ THE REPORT

📣 SHARE on twitter 📣

REPRESSION IN GERMANY

Watch this short documentary by The New Arab on how Germany’s history of antisemitism is used to silence pro-Palestine activism. The ELSC has published a related short video, exposing how the Berlin police normalised their racist aggression against Palestinians and their allies in Germany in light of the repeated Nakba bans.  

Thank you for your continued support!

In solidarity, 

The ELSC team

Remember to follow the ELSC on social media and amplify our work!

If you are interested in empowering the Palestine solidarity movement in Europe, we welcome your one-time or monthly donations to the ELSC. For any inquiries, contact us at info@elsc.support.

If you would like to put your skills (whether legal, editing, artistic, communications, or any other skills) at the service of our movement in support of Palestinian rights advocates, please contact us at info@elsc.support.

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Categories
Statement

Joint Statement: Israeli Apartheid – The Legacy of the Ongoing Nakba at 75

The ELSC signed this joint statement initiated by Al-Haq at the occasion of the commemoration of 75 years after Nakba in Palestine.

Seventy-five years have passed since the Palestinian people were ethnically cleansed and forcibly expelled from their homes, lands, and property in their ancestral land during the 1948 Nakba (meaning ‘catastrophe’ in Arabic). Palestinian society was decimated during the Nakba, 531 Palestinian villages were destroyed, and more than 70 massacres were carried out against innocent civilians, killing more than 15 thousand Palestinians between 1947 and 1949. The legacy of the Nakba events is that about two-thirds of the Palestinian people became refugees in and around 1948 and a quarter of those who remained within historic Palestine geography were internally displaced and denied their right to return to their villages, towns, and cities of origin ever since.

Since 1948, Israel established a regime of racial domination and oppression over the Palestinian people primarily in the domains of nationality and land. In the immediate aftermath of the Nakba, Israel adopted a series of laws, policies, and practices, which sealed the dispossession of the indigenous Palestinian people, systematically denying the return of Palestinian refugees and other Palestinians who were abroad at the time of the war. At the same time, Israel imposed a system of institutionalized racial discrimination over Palestinians who remained on the land, many of whom had been internally displaced. Such Israeli laws have constituted the legal architecture of the Israeli apartheid that continue to be imposed on the Palestinian people today.

The 1950 so-called ‘Absentee Property’ Law became the main legal instrument of dispossession. Israel used it to confiscate the property of Palestinian refugees and displaced persons, who were deemed ‘absentees’ despite the State denying their return. Seventy-five years later, this ‘Absentee Property’ Law continues to advance Israel’s Judaization of parts of the West Bank including the city of Jerusalem and to alter its Palestinian character, demographic composition and identity.

In turn, the 1950 Law of Return and the 1952 Citizenship Law cemented Israel’s institutionalized racial discrimination in law. Establishing domination, both in law and in practice, Israel granted every Jew the exclusive right to enter the State as an immigrant and to obtain citizenship. At the same time, Palestinian refugees have been categorically denied their right to return, to their homes, lands, and property from which they were illegally dispossessed.

Such Israeli laws compose the legal foundation of Israeli apartheid, perpetuating its systematic racial domination and oppression over all Palestinians on both sides of the Green Line, and refugees and exiles. Seven and a half decades on, Israel has strategically fragmented the Palestinian people into at least four separate geographic, legal, political, and administrative domains as a tool to impose and maintain apartheid. Israel’s strategic fragmentation of the Palestinian people ensures that they cannot meet, group, live together, or exercise any collective rights, particularly their right to self-determination and permanent sovereignty over their natural resources. Strategic fragmentation is further entrenched through the illegal closure and blockade of the Gaza Strip, the Annexation Wall, and Israel’s permit regime consisting of checkpoints and other physical barriers, severely impacting the freedom of movement of Palestinians.

As we commemorate 75 years since the Nakba, the Israeli government continues its de jure and de facto annexation of the West Bank, which represents the continuation of Israel’s land grab, pillage, and displacement of Palestinians through the maintenance of its apartheid. As reaffirmed by successive United Nations (UN) Special Rapporteurs on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, Israel’s continued annexation plans are a testament to Israel’s 21st-century apartheid, leaving in its wake the demise of the Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

The crimes of the Nakba, including the ethnic cleansing and expulsion of Palestinian refugees, extensive destruction of Palestinian property, mass killing, and the prolonged denial of Palestinian refugees’ right to return, have never been prosecuted or remedied. Just five years ago, the Israeli occupying forces, implementing its shoot-to-kill policy, mass killed some 60 unarmed Palestinian protesters in the Gaza Strip on the eve of the 70th Nakba commemoration. The injustices of the Nakba and the ongoing denial of the right of return led to the Great Return March civil demonstrations every Friday in Gaza for two years, which Israel repressed with lethal force, with impunity.

This year, as Palestinians commemorate the 75th Nakba, Israel’s most right-wing and racist government intensifies its oppression of the Palestinian people, including daily raids and extrajudicial killings in the West Bank including East Jerusalem. On 9 May, Israel carried out a 5-day horrific unprovoked military assault on the 16-year besieged Gaza Strip targeting residential buildings resulting in the killing of 33 Palestinian civilians, some of them in their sleep, including six children and four women. In addition, 147 others were wounded, including 48 children and 26 women.

On Nakba Day, we call on States, the UN, international organisations and civil society organisations from around the world to take effective legal and political measures to bring perpetrators of suspected war crimes and crimes against humanity to justice at the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the Situation in Palestine. The ICC Prosecutor Mr Karim Khan must expedite his investigation and start issuing arrest warrants, and deliver justice to Palestinian victims of mass atrocity crimes.

At this critical juncture in the Palestinian struggle for self-determination, support is also needed for the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNWRA) until a durable solution to the Palestinian refugee question, based on the full realization of the Palestinian people’s inalienable human rights.

Finally, we call on all stakeholders to recognize and join the human rights movement crystalising consensus that the situation on the ground is that of Apartheid imposed on the Palestinian people. There are many possible paths to a just future, but none should be based on permanent occupation, settler colonialism, and the domination and oppression by one group of people over another. Apartheid has no place in our world and Israel’s apartheid must be dismantled now.

ENDS

See how the Nakba has transformed Palestine since 1948 with this map by Visualizing Palestine marking the Nakba at 75: https://today.visualizingpalestine.org/?blm_aid=8507392

1. Al-Haq, Law in the Service of Mankind (Al-Haq)

2. Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association (Addameer)

3. Al Dameer Association for Human Rights

4. Al Mezan Center for Human Rights (Al Mezan)

5. Applied Research Institute-Jerusalem (ARIJ)

6. Arab Center for Agricultural Development

7. Association France Palestine Solidarité (AFPS)- France

8. Association of Women Committees for Social Work (AWCSW)

9. Australian Centre for International Justice (ACIJ)

10. Cairo Institute For Human Rights Studies (CIHRS)

11. Center for Defense of Liberties and Civil Rights “Hurryyat”

12. Civic Coalition for Palestinian Rights in Jerusalem (CCPRJ)

13. Defender Center for Human Rights (Libya)

14. Defense for Children International – Palestine (DCI-Palestine)

15. Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN)

16. Djiboutian League of Human Rights (LDDH)

17. European Legal Support Center (ELSC)

18. European Saudi Organization for Human Rights (ESOHR)

19. Forum Tunisien pour les droits Économiques et sociaux (FTDES)

20. Groningen for Palestine (GfP)

21. Habitat International Coalition – Housing and Land Rights Network

22. Human Rights & Democracy Media Center “SHAMS”

23. International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP)

24. International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH)

25. International Institute for Nonviolent Action (NOVACT)

26. Iranian League for the Defence of Human Rights (LDDHI)

27. Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center (JLAC)

28. La ligue Algérienne pour La Défense des droits de l’homme

29. Liga Mexicana por la Defensa de los Derechos Humanos, Limeddh- Mexico

30. Mwatana for Human Rights (Yemen)

31. OPEN ASIA|Armanshahr Foundation

32. Palestine Solidarity Campaign –  South Africa (Gauteng)

33. Palestine Solidarity Campaign – South Africa (Cape Town)

34. Palestine Solidarity Campaign – UK

35. Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development (PWWSD)

36. Pan-African Palestine Solidarity Network (PAPSN)

37. Platform of French NGOs for Palestine

38. Riposte Internationale

39. South African BDS Coalition

40. South African Jews for a Free Palestine (SAJFP)

41. Southern Africa Litigation Centre (SALC)

42. The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy – MIFTAH

43.The Palestinian NGOs Network (PNGO)

44. The Rights Forum

45. Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counselling (WCLAC)

Categories
Urgent call

Avoid Assisting in the Forcible Deportation & Transfer of  Human Rights Defender Salah Hamouri

Urgent Appeal to Commercial Airlines

Summary

Israel has recently announced it will imminently deport Palestinian human rights defender Salah Hamouri, an act that could be a serious violation of international law. We, the undersigned human rights organizations, call on commercial airlines to do everything in their capacity to refuse to assist in what could constitute a war crime by refusing to transport individuals undergoing unlawful forcible deportation and making a public statement to this effect.

The below document provides background to the case of Salah Hamouri, references the relevant legal obligations of commercial airlines, and sets out the practical steps commercial airlines need to take to ensure they are not contributing to serious violations of international law.

Background

On 30 November 2022, the Israeli authorities informed imprisoned Palestinian-French human rights lawyer, Salah Hamouri, 37, that he will be forcibly deported to France from occupied East Jerusalem – his hometown – for “breach of allegiance” to Israel. Hamouri has been held in administrative detention since March 2022 without charge or trial on the basis of ‘secret evidence,’ and the decision to deport him follows Israel’s revocation of Hammouri’s permanent residency status in Jerusalem.1 Hamouri has said that he refuses deportation and will not willingly board a flight.

Hammouri’s deportation, which can take place any time from December 4, 2022, onwards, will be a clear escalation in Israel’s prolonged harassment and targeting of him through arbitrary arrests, travel bans, surveillance, and family separation. 

Unlawful deportations and residency revocations in occupied territory violate numerous provisions of international humanitarian law and international human rights law. Hammouri’s deportation out of the occupied territory could constitute a grave breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention and potentially a war crime as per the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.

In accordance with the Hague Regulations and the Fourth Geneva Convention, the protected population in an occupied territory, such as is the case in the internationally-recognized occupied East Jerusalem, does not have a duty of allegiance to the Occupying Power (Israel), the basis upon which Hamouri is to be deported. 2

According to a UN Experts’ statement on 2 December 2022

“Such unilateral, arbitrary measures taken by Israeli authorities in retaliation against Mr. Hammouri as a human rights defender, violate every principle and the very spirit of international law 

[…]

These measures set an extremely dangerous precedent for all Palestinians in Jerusalem. The international community must not remain silent and quietly watch this umpteenth violation”.3 Private commercial actors have a responsibility to respect human rights and international humanitarian law in their own activities. Where they fail to abide by those responsibilities in their activities and relationships, they risk contributing to grave violations and internationally recognized crimes.4UN Experts’ statement

In light of the above, we strongly urge commercial airlines to refuse and refrain from assisting the Israeli authorities in carrying out its inhumane, discriminatory, and likely unlawful forced deportation of Salah Hammouri.5 Moreover, we ask that commercial airlines running direct flights to France make a statement on their website stating their refusal to participate in any unlawful forcible deportations by Israel of the population of the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

At a time when Hammouri’s family and loved ones, Palestinian and international civil society, the United Nations, and states are calling on Israel to halt his forcible deportation and transfer and for Hammouri to be able to remain in his hometown, commercial airlines should review and act in accordance with the relevant set duties, namely those under international human rights and humanitarian law. 

Organizational signatories

  • Adalah Justice Project
  • Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association
  • Al-Haq, Law in Service of Man
  • Alice Rothchild, MD
  • Al-Mezan Center for Human Rights
  • Bisan Center for Research and Development
  • Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies (CIHRS)
  • Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME)
  • Community Action Center, Al-Quds University
  • Democracy for the Arab World (DAWN)
  • Equipo Juridico Pueblos
  • European Legal Support Center (ELSC)
  • Freedom Archives
  • Human Rights Watch
  • International Association of Democratic Lawyers
  • International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI)
  • Just Peace Advocates
  • Justice for Palestinians
  • Law for Palestine
  • Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada
  • National Lawyers Guild, International Committee
  • National Lawyers Guild, Palestine Committee
  • Oakville Palestinian Rights Association (Canada)
  • Observatorio de Derechos Humanos de los Pueblos
  • Paz con Dignidad 
  • Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network
  • The Canadian BDS Coalition 
  • The Center for Constitutional Rights
  • The Palestine Institute for Public Diplomacy PIPD
  • The Palestinian Committee in Norway

 1 For more information concerning Hamouri’s case, see: https://justiceforsalah.net/12/2022/press-release-en/intervention-needed-salah-identity-revoked-and-to-be-deported/ and https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/08/16/israel-free-french-palestinian-rights-worker

2 For more analysis, see https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2022/12/israel-opt-deporting-salah-hammouri-would-constitute-a-war-crime/ 

 3 UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner, Israeli deportation order against French-Palestinian activist Salah Hamouri could constitute war crime: UN experts, 2 December 2022, https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2022/12/israeli-deportation-order-against-french-palestinian-activist-salah-hammouri 

4 DCAF, ICRC and the Geneva Centre for Business and Human Rights, Fact Sheet: How does armed conflict impact responsible security management?, https://securityhumanrightshub.org/sites/default/files/2022-05/Standalone%20-%20Factsheet%20%20Armed%20Conflicts_FINAL.pdf 

5 Over the years, commercial airlines around the world have been increasingly demonstrating commitment by refusing to accept forced deportations of refugees, asylum seekers and immigrants. See https://www.business-humanrights.org/en/latest-news/uk-virgin-atlantic-to-stop-accepting-forced-deportations-amid-concern-over-removal-of-windrush-generation-migrants-lgbt-asylum-seekers/ 

Categories
Fundraising Campaign

Help us carry on our fight for justice for Palestinian rights advocates

We have just launched our year-end campaign to gather the funds we need to continue our work in 2023!

We have until the end of this year to raise €20,000 to fund our legal battles for next year! Without the generosity of our supporters, our work in the defence of Palestinian rights advocates is at risk.

HELP US PROTECT OUR FUNDAMENTAL RIGHT TO ADVOCATE FOR PALESTINE

Throughout 2022, we have grown our team and now boast 10 professional staff members giving their all into tackling cases of repression, mostly in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands, and providing legal support to Palestinian civil society organisations. Owing to donations, we were able to win more cases than any year before: more than 80 individuals and organisations had their fundamental rights upheld after the ELSC intervened.

Throughout 2022, we have helped secure victories in court for our community

With our assistance, Dr Anna-Esther Younes challenged German institutions in court and the two organisations responsible for surveilling, smearing and censoring her were held accountable. Palestinian-Jordanian journalist Farah Maraqa also won her lawsuit against German broadcaster Deutsche Welle, which had dismissed her for alleged antisemitism in an attempt to silence her.

In the UK, our team helped Gazan scholar Shahd Abusalama recover her teaching position after she was suspended by Sheffield Hallam University and brutally smeared in the public sphere.

I am indebted to the ELSC. The support they have provided has really helped me in challenging the mainstream media. They provide a crucial service.

— UK activist supported by the ELSC

Some people do a great job for Palestine and the ELSC are at the top of the list.

— Football Against Apartheid

I would have probably not written about Palestine without your support and the positive outcome.

— British academic supported by the ELSC
LET’S WIN MORE CASES

In order to tackle the growing climate of repression across Europe with even more might in 2023, we urgently need the resources.

Will you join our movement for justice? Become an ELSC supporter today to ensure that defenders of Palestinian rights keep receiving free legal support by making a monthly donation to the ELSC.

DONATE

Thank you, from the whole ELSC team, for your deep dedication and solidarity.

Remember to follow the ELSC on social media and amplify our work!

If you are a legal practitioner or a volunteer who wants to be part of our movement in support of Palestinian rights advocates, please contact us at info@elsc.support.

Categories
Newsletter

ELSC Newsletter: October 2022

Throughout the past month, we’ve succeeded in empowering and defending freedom of expression and the right to advocate against repression and injustice in Palestine.

HELP US KEEP UP OUR WORK

Before all else, the ELSC wishes to draw attention to the urgent situation engulfing Palestine in recent weeks. We stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people facing mass repression. As Europe carries on with its concerted efforts to silence Palestine, the movement perseveres and we nonetheless have victories to report!

Don’t forget to sign up to our newsletter!

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AUSTRIA: FOUR UN SPECIAL RAPPORTEURS RAISE CONCERNS ABOUT ANTI-BDS LEGISLATION AND SUED BDS ACTIVIST SECURES FIRST VICTORY IN STRUGGLE FOR JUSTICE

UN Special Rapporteur (SR) on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, SR on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, SR on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and SR on the situation of human rights defenders have sent a communication to Austrian authorities. They demand clarification on the City of Vienna’s anti-BDS resolution and the lawsuit filed by the City against a BDS Austria activist.

The SRs expressed “concern that the City of Vienna’s filing of a lawsuit against a member of BDS Austria may hinder the peaceful activities of human rights defenders committed to monitor and denounce human rights violations in occupied Palestine, shrinking the civic space available to them to express legitimate grievances“.

📝 Amplify BDS Austria’s statement 📝

read more

The BDS activist in question has secured a victory on October 22 as the administrative authority at the City of Vienna drops its proceedings! We’re hopeful that this decision pushes the civil court to dismiss the SLAPP still pending against the activist.

Back in April, a judge upheld the SLAPP lodged by the City of Vienna against the activist over the same post. The City’s argument? The sarcastic “Visit apartheid” statement associated with the City’s logo constitutes defamation and BDS “incites to hatred against Israeli people”.
 

But this latest victory may mark a turning point in the judicial saga. The activist’s lawyer, Elisabetta Folliero, is hopeful that the civil court will now follow suit:

“It is very positive that the administration of the City of Vienna has reaffirmed the importance of the exercise of freedom of opinion. […] We hope that the civil proceedings still pending will also have the same outcome. It is vital to reiterate that freedom of opinion, and freedom of boycott as its component, are essential in order to safeguard democracy.“

read our press release

📣 Share the good news on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook 📣

SUPPORT FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS – TAKE ACTION  

  • Support the activist’s legal battle and donate 
  • Sign the petition to demand the Municipality of Vienna ends its lawfare against legitimate BDS action

⚖️ Will you help us win more cases? ⚖️

Consider a monthly donation to the ELSC. Every donation, no matter how small or large, makes a difference.

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UK: WHILE ABERDEEN UNIVERSITY REJECTS IHRA DEFINITION OF ANTISEMITISM, UKLFI DEFENDS TEACHER’S ANTISEMITIC COMMENTS

We congratulate Aberdeen University’s move to reject the IHRA working definition of antisemitism!

We encourage students to continue to resist the adoption and the use of the flawed IHRA definition at university with this toolkit. Combat racism, hold the Israeli government accountable, and reject the IHRA definition of antisemitism!

read more

We encourage students to continue to resist the adoption and the use of the flawed IHRA definition at university with this toolkit. Combat racism, hold the Israeli government accountable, and reject the IHRA definition of antisemitism!

📣 Amplify our Twitter thread 📣

Meanwhile, a member of UK Lawyers for Israel has provided an “expert witness” testimony in support of a teacher sanctioned for antisemitism. The teacher is a supporter of Israel and began posting antisemitic content on social media under a pseudonym in a futile attempt to “bait” Palestine solidarity organisations into endorsing racism. The UKLFI member testified in support of the teacher in an attempt to defend his actions as a supporter of Israel, stating that “the IHRA definition had never been intended for use as a tool to sanction people nor as a means to take away their livelihood or free speech, or indeed to effect discipline.”

Contrasting with UKLFI’s usual stance that anti-Zionism constitutes antisemitism and its strong campaigning for the implementation of the IHRA definition, this case reveals manipulation and insincerity in how the IHRA definition is used by pro-Israel organisations: it is not a tool to combat antisemitism but, rather, a tool to censor Palestinian rights advocacy.

📣 Share the news on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter 📣

READ MORE

Stay updated on our UK cases with our brand-new country-specific website!

GERMANY: PROGRESS IN CHALLENGING THE BUNDESTAG’S ANTI-BDS LEGISLATION AS NEXT HEARING IS CONFIRMED

The Bundestag 3 for Palestine (BT3P) suing the German federal parliament for the anti-BDS resolution adopted in 2019 mark a new step against resisting the legislation: the next hearing at the Higher Administrative Court Berlin-Brandenbur has been announced for the first half of 2023!

Eight decisions have already affirmed the illegitimacy of anti-BDS law in Germany: the Munich Regional Court, the administrative courts of Lower Saxony, Cologne, Hesse, Bavaria and, most recently Leipzig, have convicted the cities of Oldenburg, Bonn, Frankfurt and Munich for violating the constitutional rights to equality, freedom of expression and assembly.

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✊ Support this crucial legal battle against shrinking civic space in Germany ✊

UN: 65 ORGANISATIONS SEND A LETTER TO THE NEW HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS, URGING FOR CONCRETE MEASURES TO ENSURE JUSTICE AND ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

On 17 October 2022, 65 Palestinian, regional and international organisations sent a joint letter to the new High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr. Volker Türk, welcoming him in his new position and highlighting some of the recent alarming Israeli policies and practices imposed against Palestinians.

READ MORE

ONGOING CAMPAIGNS IN SUPPORT OF PALESTINE 

Meta, Let Palestine Speak!

Hold Meta accountable for censoring Palestinian content on social media.

READ THE JOINT STATEMENT

#StopSettlements

Sign the ECI petition to demand an end to European trade with illegal settlements. Please add your signature and share it with your family and friends!

SIGN THE PETITION

#JusticeForSalah

Take action for Salah Hammouri, the Palestinian-French lawyer imprisoned in administrative detention.

TAKE ACTION

#FreeAhmadManasra

Support the campaign for the release of the young Ahmad Manasra, detained in Israeli jails and suffering from serious consequences to his mental health.

SUPPORT

EVENTS

Check out the second panel on “Anti-Zionism as taboo” organised by 
Judeobolschewienerinnen with Palestine Speaks, JID Leipzig, Dr. Sarah El-Bulbeisi and Dr Anna-Esther Younes. This discussion is essential in a context such as the German and Austrian, where censorship is widespread. Freedom of expression and of assembly are continuously at risk. Dr. Anna-Esther Younes’ and Walaa Alqaisiya’s cases are clear examples of this climate.

ELSC was proud to participate in the 2022 edition of the Festival des Libertés in Brussels, attending a panel on the criminalisation of solidarity. Listen to the discussion here (French). 

USEFUL RESOURCES

Take a look at the new publication on the growing Israeli repression of Palestinian civil society and the crime of apartheid by Palestine Studies and Al Haq.

Read Hebh Jamal’s overview of anti-Palestinian racism, including of the use of the IHRA definition to repress artistic and political expression and the role of mainstream media in amplifying the racist vitriol.

You can find resources on challenging the IHRA definition here.

Read the new report by the UN Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance on ecological crisis climate justice and racial justice. Here, the SP analyses how the IHRA definition risks being weaponised to restrict freedom of expression, demonstration and the press.

Thank you for your continued support!

In solidarity, 

The ELSC team

Remember to follow the ELSC on social media @elsclegal and amplify our work!

If you are interested in empowering the Palestine solidarity movement in Europe, we welcome your one-time or monthly donations to the ELSC. For any inquiries, contact us at info@elsc.support.

DONATE

If you are a legal practitioner or a volunteer who wants to be part of our movement in support of Palestinian rights advocates, please contact us at info@elsc.support.

Categories
Press Release

First step towards justice for Palestinian rights activist in Vienna sued over social media post

European Legal Support Center (ELSC), Amsterdam and Vienna, November 9, 2022

The Viennese administrative authority has discontinued proceedings brought against the BDS Austria activist, including a fine of up to 3.500€, which accused the activist of committing an administrative offence. The activist and their lawyer are hopeful that this verdict will compel the civil court to dismiss the pending SLAPP and lead to a full vindication of the activist’s rights.  

On 20 October 2022, in a positive turn of events, the administrative authority dismissed the proceedings brought against a BDS activist for posting a third-party photo of the famous “Visit apartheid” poster parodically emblazoned with the City of Vienna logo. The charges were initially brought on the grounds of the improper use of the City’s logo, a violation of the Administrative Offences Act which warranted a fine of up to €3.500.

The administrative authority based its sudden halt of the proceedings on section 45(1) of the Administrative Offences Act 1991 (VStG), which allows for a dismissal of proceedings where, among other things: the defendant is innocent, the offence is not reprehensible or the harm raised by the claim is not severe enough to justify the proceedings. Although the administrative authority was unable to specify any one of the reasons listed in section 45(1), the fact that it relied on this provision in the first place clearly shows that it understood the claim to be baseless.

In the meantime, the City of Vienna’s SLAPP against the activist for defamation is still ongoing.

Back in April 2022, a judge contestably upheld the SLAPP lodged by the City against the activist over the same post. In the submission, the City of Vienna complained that the sarcastic “Visit apartheid” statement associated with the City’s logo would amount to defamation and that the BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement “incites to hatred against Israeli people”. The activist has appealed this decision.

In a letter sent in May 2022 to the Austrian authorities, four UN Special Rapporteurs had also expressed concerns about the City of Vienna’s anti-BDS resolution and the lawsuit that “may hinder the peaceful activities of human rights defenders committed to monitor and denounce human rights violations in occupied Palestine, shrinking the civic space available to them to express legitimate grievances”.

The latest victory may mark a turning point in this judicial saga. 

The activist’s lawyer, Elisabetta Folliero, welcomes the decision dated 20 October 2022:

It is very positive that the administration of the City of Vienna has reaffirmed the importance of the exercise of freedom of opinion, thus demonstrating that Viennese institutions still have willpower to tackle violations of fundamental human rights. We hope that the civil proceedings still pending will also have the same outcome. It is vital to reiterate that freedom of opinion, and freedom of boycott as its component, are essential in order to safeguard democracy.

The judgment on the appeal against the interim decision has not yet been issued, and a hearing for the civil lawsuit is yet to be set.

TAKE ACTION

Categories
Release

65 Organisations Send a Letter to the New High Commissioner for Human Rights, Urging for Concrete Measures to Ensure Justice and Accountability for the Palestinian People

On 17 October 2022, 65 Palestinian, regional and international organisations sent a joint letter to the new High Commissioner for Human Rights, Mr. Volker Türk, welcoming him in his new position and highlighting some of the recent alarming Israeli policies and practices imposed against Palestinians.

Specifically, the letter underscored Israel’s 15-year-old closure and blockade of the Gaza Strip; Israel’s escalation in its invasive military incursions into Palestinian cities in recent months; and its closure as acts of collective punishment of Shu’fat Refugee Camp and ‘Anata; as well as an aggravation in the Israeli Occupying Forces’ (IOF) use of its ‘shoot-to-kill’ policy. Furthermore, the letter underlined the increase of Israel’s campaign of mass arbitrary arrests and detentions, including in its arbitrary, coercive, and punitive administrative detention policy.

Noting how the Palestinian people have been denied their right to self-determination for decades, the joint letter emphasised that the human rights situation in Palestine should be at the top of the High Commissioner’s agenda, including by prioritising the annual updating the UN Database on Settlement Business Activities, as mandated. The letter noted with concern, the repeated and unexplained delays regarding the update of the Database, which are unprecedented in the way the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has handled prior mandates, and are due to reported political pressure and interference exerted on the OHCHR. To this end, the letter highlighted Israel’s systematic efforts in silencing human rights defenders, voicing their opposition to Israel’s unlawful policies and practices and pushing for international justice and accountability, including by arbitrarily outlawing six prominent Palestinian civil society organisations. That being said, the organisations expressed their trust that such pressure will not derail the OHCHR from its commitment to human rights, justice, and accountability, and urged the new High Commissioner and his Office to:

  1. Recognise and acknowledge the root causes of the prolonged denial of Palestinian rights, embedded in Israel’s settler-colonialism and apartheid;
  2. Prioritise the annual updating of the UN Database, as mandated under HRC Resolution 31/36 and ensure that appropriate resources are allocated so as to allow for continued development of the Database;
  3. Continue working with civil society organisations and human rights defenders in full transparency for the completion and continuous updating of the Database;
  4. Address Israel’s institutionalised and systematic targeting of the Palestinian people, including the 15-year-long closure on the Gaza Strip, and Israel’s mass and arbitrary ‘shoot-to-kill’ and administrative detention policies; and
  5. Investigate and report, by means of country visits or otherwise, attacks against human rights defenders working on issues related to Palestine and facing intimidation or arbitrary legislative or administrative restrictions, and ensure their protection.

Read the full letter here.

Picture: CC-by-2.0 Justin McIntosh

Categories
Case Update Press Release

Four UN Special Rapporteurs Address Their Concerns to Austrian Authorities About Anti-BDS Resolution and Lawsuit Against Activist 

UN Special Rapporteur (SR) on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, SR on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, SR on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association and SR on the situation of human rights defenders sent a communication to Austrian authorities, asking clarification on the City of Vienna’s anti-BDS resolution and the lawsuit the City filed against a BDS activist.  

In the communication sent on 20 May 2022, the SR raised their concerns about the resolution adopted in 2018, “which includes undue restrictions to the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, peaceful assembly and of association”. They further expressed “concern that the City of Vienna’s filing of a lawsuit against a member of BDS Austria may hinder the peaceful activities of human rights defenders committed to monitor and denounce human rights violations in occupied Palestine, shrinking the civic space available to them to express legitimate grievances”.  

The BDS Austria activist published a social media post showing a picture of the famous poster stating “Visit Apartheid” that was stuck on a billboard along with the official logo of the Municipality of Vienna. The post had the sarcastic caption “We are pleased that the City of Vienna also takes note of apartheid and publicly states it”.  In November 2021, the City of Vienna filed a SLAPP (Strategic lawsuit against public participation) against the activist on the grounds of defamation and unlawful use of the City’s logo. It claimed that the BDS movement “incites to hatred against Israeli people” and therefore being publicly associated with BDS would amount to defamation since “the designation of the situation in Israel/Palestine as an “Apartheid” constitutes damage to our reputation”. In a highly contestable decision delivered on 6 April 2022, the Commercial Court of Vienna endorsed the City’s lawsuit and ruled against the BDS activist. 

The SR are worried that “this judgement in the first instance consolidates the City of Vienna’s motion against the BDS movement”. The resolution, which falsely labels the BDS movement as “antisemitic”, was indeed invoked by the City in the lawsuit. As stated in a legal opinion commissioned by the ELSC and authored by Professors Xavier Dupré De Boulois, Eric David, Richard Falk and John Reynolds, the resolution infringes on the fundamental rights of freedoms of expression, association and assembly of Palestinian rights advocates. 

Moreover, the SR recalled the legality and legitimacy of the BDS movement: “we point out that expressing support for, or opposition to, BDS, is fully guaranteed by the rights to freedom of opinion, expression and association” enshrined in articles 19, 21 and 22 of the International Covenant on Civil and political Rights. They also cited the European Court of Human Rights milestone judgement Baldassi and Others v. France and positive case law confirming the right to BDS in France and Germany. The SR further added that “this is in line with the Jerusalem Declaration on Antisemitism (JDA)” which “stipulates that ‘boycott, divestment and sanctions are commonplace, non-violent forms of political protest against states’.” 

On 8 July 2022, the Austrian authorities replied to the communication, failing to respond to most of the requests sent by the Special Rapporteurs. Instead, they reiterated their baseless and unfounded claims targeting BDS Austria: “Their movement’s campaigns are often referred to as antisemitic”. They stood firm in a problematic position that was observed in the context of the lawsuit against BDS Austria and that contradicts the freedom of expression and protection of human rights defenders. 

The reply of the Austrian authorities makes the legal battle of the activist even more necessary in order to challenge the suppression of Palestinian rights advocacy in Austria. The BDS activist appealed the Court decision and is ready, if necessary, to stand before the European Court of Human Rights to assert his fundamental right to freedom of expression, a right enshrined in Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights. 

SUPPORT FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS – TAKE ACTION 

  • Donate to help the activist covering the legal fees 
  • Sign the petition co-sponsored by the ECCP to ask the Municipality of Vienna to stop its lawfare against BDS activists 

Read more about the case.

Categories
Newsletter

ELSC Newsletter: September 2022

Throughout the past few months, the solidarity movement has won several victories in pushing back against repression. Through legal challenge and public advocacy, it is possible to make our critical voices heard!
 
We need your continued support to keep up the crucial fight for freedom of expression and Palestinian rights.

DONATE

And don’t forget to sign up to our newsletter!

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER

GERMANY: TWO SUCCESSFUL LAWSUITS AGAINST DEUTSCHE WELLE

In July 2022, we witnessed the first victory for a journalist involved in the Deutsche Welle (DW) case that began back in February 2022, when the public broadcaster fired seven Arab journalists based on allegations of antisemitism. The Bonn Labour Court found that the dismissal of Palestinian journalist Maram Salem by the German outlet was unlawful. 

Then, in September 2022, the Berlin Labour Court ruled in favour of Farah Maraqa, ordering DW to reinstate her and cover the costs of the legal dispute.

READ MORE

The ELSC is proud to have supported Farah Maraqa, who stood firm in her convictions and had the courage to take DW to court.

📣 Share the good news on Twitter and Instagram! 📣

However, the DW management seems to have institutionalised its prejudiced stance in a new Code of Conduct that mentions Israel twice, including: “Due to Germany’s history, we have a special obligation towards Israel.” It is unclear what obligations this statement is implying for DW employees or subcontractors. This raises important questions related to press independence.

⚖️ Will you help us win more cases? ⚖️

DONATE

NETHERLANDS: A POSITIVE PRESS COUNCIL DECISION FOR PALESTINIAN RIGHTS ADVOCATES

In August 2022, the Dutch Press Council ruled that Dutch daily newspaper Algemeen Dagblad acted carelessly by publishing allegations of antisemitism against The Rights Forum without hearing them.

This is an important achievement considering the Dutch NGO has been facing a harsh smear campaign since the beginning of the year, after it filed a Freedom of Information Request (FOI) seeking to research ties between Dutch universities and pro-Israel advocacy groups as well as Israeli institutions, government agencies and Israeli arms, surveillance and security companies.

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The Rights Forum also achieved a significant victory against disinformation. After the organisation alerted Google about a Google ad sponsored by the Israeli government labelling Amnesty International as antisemitic, Google took down the ad within one day.

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DOCUMENTA FIFTEEN: “WE ARE DETERMINED, WE ARE TOGETHER, WE ARE NOT GIVING UP”

On 25 September 2022, the world’s largest contemporary art exhibition, documenta fifteen, closed after months of brutal and unfounded allegations against the curators ruangrupa, members of the artistic team and participating artists. Palestinian artists and others who expressed solidarity with them faced smears, insults, assaults, death threats, cyber harassment and vandalism.

In the latest development, a committee appointed to investigate antisemitism into documenta fifteen issued a very controversial preliminary report and a statement accusing the lumbung community (ruangrupa and artists) of Israel-related antisemitism. The community responded with a powerful statement denouncing racism, Eurocentrism and censorship.

READ MORE

📣 Share and express your solidarity on Twitter and Instagram! 📣

VIENNA: NEW COURSE AT VIENNA FINE ARTS ACADEMY SIGNALS FURTHER ERASURE OF PALESTINIAN NARRATIVE

The Austrian institution that censored Palestinian academic Dr. Walaa Alqaisiyia will host a course entitled “Antiantianti – Conflicts about Antiantisemitism and Antiracism in the Politicized Art World” and will be using Walaa’s disinvitation as a case study.

The abstract of the course clearly displays a pro-Israel bias and misrepresents the Palestine solidarity movement. We condemn the holding of a course that is likely to fuel insidious censorship of genuine anti-racist discourse.

READ OUR STATEMENT

📣 Share on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook! 📣

#STOPTRADEWITHSETTLEMENTS: A NEW PARTNER IN THE GLOBAL CAMPAIGN TO BAN EU TRADE WITH ILLEGAL SETTLEMENTS

Avaaz just joined the #StopTradeWithSettlements coalition and calls on everyone to sign the European Citizens’ Initiative to ban EU trade with illegal settlements!

SIGN

📣 Share the campaign on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook! 📣

Friends of the Earth Europe also published a compelling and important blog post over the summer. The largest grassroots environmental network in Europe explains the link between food sovereignty in Palestine and Israeli settlements, highlighting the necessity to stop all EU trade with the latter.

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#STANDWITHTHE6: A NEW PHASE OF REPRESSION AGAINST PALESTINIAN CIVIL SOCIETY

On the morning of 18 August 2022, the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) raided the offices of seven Palestinian organisations including the six that were designated as “terrorist” by the Israeli government in October 2021. The IOF confiscated documents and equipment, destroyed material, sealed entrance doors and left military orders ordering the closure of the organisations. Over 150 organisations, including the ELSC, demanded the international community take all the necessary action to support and protect Palestinian human rights defenders.

So far, the EU has remained quiescent on the matter, as it has regarding the protection of French-Palestinian human rights defender Salah Hammouri.  For the past two decades, Salah has been subjected to constant harassment and deprivation of his fundamental rights by Israeli authorities. His three-month administrative detention based on “secret evidence” was again renewed at the beginning of September 2022 and he has now been transferred into solitary confinement. Along with other political prisoners, Salah began a hunger strike on 25 September and has since been deprived of salt. Read more in the urgent letter sent to French President Emmanuel Macron by Salah’s lawyers.

READ OUR JOINT STATEMENT

📣 Join the #JusticeforSalah campaign and amplify it on Twitter and Instagram  📣

Undeterred by these worrying recent developments which contradict the basic principles of international law, the EU continues to tighten its cooperation with Israel by convening the EU-Israel Association Council after 10 years amid widespread protest from Palestinian, European, and international civil society organisations.

RESOURCES & NEWS FROM AROUND EUROPE AND BEYOND

#PromisedLand: the Italian centre for investigative journalism Irpi Media launched a series of reports exposing the links between the Israeli government and far-right parties in Europe. The first piece of “Promised Land”, authored by journalists Christian Elia and Lorenzo Bagnoli, shows how the Italian far-right cultivates relationships with antisemitic figures while strongly supporting Israel’s policies, including silencing pro-Palestine voices.

READ MORE

📣 Amplify on Twitter 📣

Our Canadian partners, Independent Jewish Voices (IJV), are launching a pivotal report on the suppression of speech concerning Palestine in Canada. Join the report launch event with a panel of brilliant activists and scholars, including Anna-Esther Younes.

REGISTER

📣 Share on Twitter and Instagram  📣

Dr Anna-Esther Younes has herself been facing ongoing attempts to suppress her voice as a Palestinian decolonial scholar. Read more about her case and how you can help us push back against increasing repression in Europe below:

READ MORE

The ELSC recently joined CASE, the Coalition Against SLAPPs in Europe! We are happy to join other non-governmental organisations united in recognition of the threat posed to public watchdogs by SLAPPs (Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation). SLAPPs are an abuse of the legal system and an attempt to intimidate and silence public watchdogs, including Palestinian rights advocates, through lengthy and expensive litigation that drains a target’s resources and seeks to dissuade critical voices.

read more about case

With CASE, we will work to expose legal harassment and intimidation, protect the rights of those who speak out and advocate for comprehensive protective measures and reform. As part of this work, the ELSC will join the next European Anti-SLAPP Conference in Strasbourg on 20 October 2022.

Remember to follow the ELSC on social media @elsclegal and amplify our work!

If you are interested in empowering the Palestine solidarity movement in Europe, we welcome your one-time or monthly donations to the ELSC. For any inquiries, contact us at info@elsc.support.

DONATE

If you are a legal practitioner or a volunteer who wants to be part of our movement in support of Palestinian rights advocates, please contact us at info@elsc.support.

Photo: CC Jan-Hendrik Pelz12, “An Inner Place” talk at the documenta fifteen exhibition.

Categories
Statement

Over 150 Organizations Demand International Community Stand Against Raids and Closures of 7 Palestinian Organizations

The ELSC joined over 150 organisations to condemn the raids and closures of 7 prominent Palestinian organisations and urge the international community to take effective measures. Read below the joint statement originally published on the CIHRS website.

Amid Israel’s escalating attacks targeting their work, a group of more than 150 Palestinian, regional, and international organizations express our full solidarity with the designated seven leading Palestinian civil society organizations, Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, Al-Haq Law in the Service of Man (Al-Haq), Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCI-P), Health Work Committees (HWC), the Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC), and the Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees (UPWC).

On the morning of 18 August 2022, the Israeli occupying forces (IOF) raided and sealed the doorways into the offices of the seven Palestinian organizations. The IOF also confiscated documents and equipment and destroyed items in the offices. On the doors of the organizations, military orders were left behind ordering the closure of the offices under Article 319 of the Emergency Regulations of 1945. This development follows the 19 October 2021, Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz designation of six leading Palestinian civil society organizations as terrorist organizations under Israel’s Anti-Terrorism Law (2016), which was then extended to the West Bank on 3 November 2021 by a military order that outlawed the same organizations.

We urge the international community to unequivocally condemn Israel’s targeting of Palestinian civil society and tactics to further repress of freedom of expression. States must take all necessary action to support and protect Palestinian human rights defenders and ensure the continuation of their invaluable work.

These raids and closures represent the latest escalation in Israel’s widespread campaign aiming to silence and discredit any Palestinian individual or organization that dares to seek accountability for Israel’s grave human rights violations, war crimes, and crimes against humanity. The “persecution of organizations and persons, by depriving them of fundamental rights and freedoms, because they oppose apartheid” is a method used by Israel, amounting to acts of apartheid prosecutable under the Rome Statute, to maintain its domination and oppression over the Palestinian people.

The organizations remain at an additional risk of closure of bank accounts, travel bans and movement restrictions, and the arrest and detention of staff members for their work. Israel’s attacks against these organizations pose an existential threat to independent Palestinian human rights organizations and civil society who work to monitor and document violations of human rights and provide basic services to the Palestinian people.

We call upon the international community to demand that Israel immediately revoke its designations of Palestinian human rights and civil society organizations as “terrorist organizations,” reverse the military orders designating the organizations and closing their offices and repeal its Anti-Terrorism Law (2016) as it does not meet basic human rights standards.

Moreover, we call on the international community to take effective measures to end all other actions that deny Palestinians their inalienable human rights.

Lastly, we call on the members of the international community to continue their support and increase funding to the organizations and engage with financial institutions to ensure the transfer of funds to the organizations.

Signatories:

  1. Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies
  2. 11.11.11
  3. Abductees’ Mothers Association
  4. Academic Program for Studies of Arab and Muslim Communities in Diaspora
  5. ACAT-France
  6. Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association
  7. Advokatfirmaet Roli
  8. Al Mezan Center for Human Rights
  9. Al-ataa Benevolent Association
  10. Aldameer association for human rights
  11. Al-Haq
  12. Alrowwad Cultural and Arts Society
  13. Andalus Institute for Tolerance and anti-Violence Studies
  14. Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ)
  15. ARTICLE 19
  16. Artists for Palestine UK
  17. Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA)
  18. Asociacion Palestina Biladi
  19. Association Belgo-Palestinienne
  20. Association des Universitaires pour le Respect du Droit International en Palestine (AURDIP)
  21. Association for Freedom of Thought and Expression
  22. Association France Palestine Solidarité (AFPS)
  23. Aswat Nissa
  24. Atfaluna Society for Deaf Children’
  25. Australian Centre for International Justice
  26. Basmeh & Zeitooneh for Relief and Development
  27. Baytna
  28. Bds Maroc
  29. BDS Netherlands
  30. BDS Vancouver Coast Salish Territories
  31. Belgian Campaign for Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (BACBI)
  32. Bytes For All, Pakistan
  33. Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME)
  34. Center for Constitutional Rights
  35. Center for Strategic Studies to Support Women and Children
  36. Centre for Global Education
  37. Centro de Estudios Legales y Sociales
  38. CIVICUS: World Alliance for Citizen Participation
  39. CNCD-11.11.11
  40. Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid
  41. Comhlamh Justice for Palestine
  42. Committee for a Just Peace in the Middle East, Luxembourg
  43. Committee for Justice
  44. Community Empowerment and Social Justice Network (CEMSOJ)
  45. Conectas Human Rights
  46. Cultura è Libertà, una campagna per la Palestina
  47. DefendDefenders (East and Horn of Africa Human Rights Defenders Project)
  48. Een Andere Joodse Stem / Another Jewish Voice (Belgium)
  49. Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms
  50. Egyptian Front for Human Rights (EFHR)
  51. Egyptian Human Rights Forum
  52. Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights
  53. El Nadim Center For Management & Rehabilitation of victims of violence
  54. ESCR-Net, International Network for Economic, Social & Cultural Rights
  55. EuroMed Rights
  56. European Coordination of Committees and Associations for Palestine – ECCP
  57. European Legal Support Center (ELSC)
  58. European Trade Union Network for Justice in Palestine
  59. FIDH (International Federation for Human Rights), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
  60. Financial Justice Ireland
  61. Foundation for Middle East Peace (Washington, DC)
  62. Front Line Defenders
  63. Fundación Mundubat
  64. Gaza Action Ireland
  65. Global NPO Coalition on FATF
  66. Herbst Law PLLC
  67. Human Rights & Democracy Media Center “SHAMS”
  68. Human Rights for All (HR4A) Saskatchewan
  69. Human Rights in China
  70. Human Rights Watch
  71. Human Security Collective
  72. ICAHD-USA
  73. International Accountability Project
  74. International Civil Liberties Monitoring Group
  75. International Commission to support Palestinian People’s Rights
  76. International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT)
  77. International Service for Human Rights
  78. International Women’s Rights Action Watch Asia Pacific
  79. Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign
  80. Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions – UK
  81. Just Peace Advocates/Mouvement Pour Une Paix Juste
  82. Just Words Limited
  83. Justice for Palestinians Calgary
  84. Justitia Center for legal protection of human rights in Algeria
  85. Kairos Ireland
  86. Kenya Human Rights Commission
  87. League for the Defence of Human Rights in Iran (LDDHI)
  88. Local Development and Small Projects Support (LDSPS)
  89. Makan
  90. MakeShiftPublishing
  91. MENA Rights Group
  92. Muslim Peace Fellowship
  93. Mwatana for human rights
  94. Nederlands Palestina Komitee
  95. New Weapons Research Groups
  96. Niagara Movement for Justice in Palestine Israel
  97. North Bronx Racial Justice
  98. Norwegian Confederation of Trade Unions (LO-Norway)
  99. Norwegian Union of Municipal and General Employees
  100. NOVACT Institute for Nonviolent Action
  101. Oakville Palestinian Rights Association
  102. Palestina Solidariteit vzw Belgium
  103. Palestine Solidarity Alliance
  104. Palestine Solidarity Campaign UK
  105. Palestine Solidarity Network – Edmonton
  106. Palestine Solidarity, St. John’s, NL
  107. Palestine Solidary Organisation at Nelson Mandela University
  108. Palestinian and Jewish Unity (PAJU)
  109. Palestinian Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign (Stop the Wall)
  110. Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
  111. Pan African Palestine Solidarity Network
  112. Paz con Dignidad
  113. Peace and Building Foundation
  114. Physicians for Human Rights Israel
  115. Platform of French NGOs for Palestine
  116. Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED)
  117. Project South
  118. Riposte Internationale
  119. Sadaka-the Ireland Palestine Alliance
  120. Sadaqa
  121. Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network
  122. Scottish Friends of Palestine
  123. Sexual Rights Initiative
  124. SOLIDAR
  125. Solsoc
  126. South African BDS Coalition
  127. South African Jews For a Free Palestine
  128. STEILAS
  129. Syrian Center for Media and Freedom of Expression (SCM)
  130. Tamkeen for Legal Aid and Human Rights
  131. Teaching Palestine: Pedagogical Praxis and the Indivisibility of Justice
  132. The African Centre for Democracy and Human Rights Studies
  133. The Applied Research Institute – Jerusalem (ARIJ)
  134. The Association of Norwegian NGOs for Palestine
  135. The Canadian BDS Coalition
  136. The civic coalition for Palestinian rights in jerusalem
  137. The Danish House in Palestine
  138. The International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims (IRCT)
  139. The Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church USA
  140. The Norwegian Initiative DEFEND INTERNATIONAL LAW
  141. The Palestine Committee of Norway
  142. The Palestine Institute for Public Diplomacy
  143. The Palestinian Human Rights Organization “PHRO”
  144. The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy – MIFTAH
  145. The Rights Forum
  146. The Tahrir Institute for Middle East Policy (TIMEP)
  147. Union Aid Abroad – APHEDA (Australia)
  148. United Network for Justice and Peace in Palestine and Israel (UNJPPI)
  149. University Network for Human Rights
  150. University of KwaZulu-Natal Decoloniality Action Group
  151. US Campaign for Palestinian Rights
  152. Visualizing Palestine
  153. Viva Salud
  154. Vrede vzw
  155. West African Human Rights Defenders Network
  156. Women in Black Vienna
  157. Women Now for Development
  158. Women’s Centre for Legal Aid and Counseling (WCLAC)
  159. World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), within the framework of the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders
  160. Yemen Future Foundation for Culture & Media Development
Categories
Newsletter

ELSC Newsletter: June 2022

This month, at least three cases confirmed, again, that public pressure and collective support, sometimes coupled with litigation, constitute a great tool to achieve our rights as advocates for Palestinian rights!

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GERMAN AUTHORITY HOLDS RIAS AND MBR ACCOUNTABLE FOR VIOLATING ANNA YOUNES’ DATA RIGHTS

The Berlin Data Protection Authority (DPA) held German organisations RIAS Berlin and MBR accountable for violating the rights of German Palestinian scholar Dr. Anna-Esther Younes. The two organisations had previously circulated a secret dossier which led to her disinvitation from a public event.

Two years after Dr. Anna Younes filed a complaint to the DPA with our support, the DPA finally found that RIAS/MBR violated European data protection law (GDPR) in refusing to give Dr. Younes access to the data they hold on her. The DPA recognised Dr. Younes’ basic data rights as a European citizen, which comes after another previous success where the civil court affirmed the right of Dr.Younes to have access to her data.

READ MORE

Share this new victory on social media: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn

But this is not over yet! RIAS/MBR previously acknowledged that the purpose of the dossier was to identify Dr. Younes’ positions on Israel and BDS. They secretly sent this dossier to a third party to get her disinvited. However, the DPA considered that this was lawful and that RIAS/MBR pursued a legitimate purpose in collecting and transmitting information about Dr. Younes.

We will appeal this decision. Do you want to help us?

DONATE

Read more in the last media articles published about the case:
– See an update by Dania Akkad in Middle East Eye
– this piece by Hebh Jamal in +972 Magazine
– a piece in German by Nidal Thawri in Marx21
– an oped by Abir Kopty in Middle East Eye

EU RESUMES FUNDING TO TWO PALESTINIAN NGOS

After Palestinian human rights organisation Al-Haq started legal proceedings against the European Commission for suspending its funding in May 2021 based on an Israeli disinformation campaign, the EU recognised there were no grounds to do so and resumed its funding to Al Haq on 28 June 2022.

Read Al-Haq’s statement and share the good news on Twitter.

The EU also resumed unconditionally and with immediate effect its funding to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), which had faced the same suspension as Al-Haq.

READ MORE

MOHAMMED EL KURD V. GOETHE INSTITUTE

The prominent Palestinian activist and poet Mohammed El Kurd faced an attempt of censorship at a conference organised by the Goethe Institute in Hamburg about right-wing extremism and authoritarian regimes’ tactics, where he was invited to speak. Few days before the start of the conference, the institution revoked the invitation, raising social media posts criticizing Israel that they “did not find acceptable”. In solidarity with El Kurd, the curators of the conference Moshtari Hilal and Sinthujan Varatharajah withdrew their participation and denounced the climate of anti-Palestinian racism in German institutions. Thanks to this push back, many other participants of the event withdrew, which led to the entire program being scaled down.

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OTHER CASE UPDATES IN GERMANY

We also celebrate a victory in Stuttgart this month, as the City of Stuttgart decided it will not appeal the decision issued by the Stuttgart Administrative Court on 21 April 2022 in favour of the Stuttgart Palestine Committee. The Court had upheld the Committee’s complaint against the City’s decision to remove their access and details from the Municipality’s website.
 
This incident had happened following a smear campaign launched by the Jerusalem Post against the Committee because of its support to the Palestinian-led BDS movement. The City of Stuttgart had justified its decision citing the Bundestag’s anti-BDS resolution, while the Court had recalled that the BDS movement is protected by freedom of expression and that the Bundestag’s resolution is not binding.

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But this time, the City acknowledged the illegality of their decision. One of their spokespersons said:

for purely legal reasons, we have decided not to appeal against it. Based on the current jurisprudence, as it has been elsewhere, we estimate the chances of being successful with an appeal to be very low. That is why we have put the address of the Palestine Committee back on the municipal homepage.

Share this victory on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook

Palestinian-Jordanian journalist Farah Maraqa, who has been unfairly dismissed by German broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) along with five other Arab journalists in February 2022, published an update about her court case against DW.

READ MORE

SUPPORT HER CASE

AUSTRIA: THE CASE OF PALESTINIAN SCHOLAR WALAA ALQAISIYA

Dr. Walaa Alqaisiya, Research Fellow at Columbia University, the LSE Middle East Centre and Università Ca’ Foscari, also faced anti-Palestinian racism and censorship from Austrian public institutions when she was disinvited by the Mumok Museum and the Academy of Fine Arts of Vienna from their Spring Curatorial Program at the end of May 2022. The cancellation of her lecture followed a smear campaign on social media and a complaint from pro-Israel advocacy groups. Art media Art Forum and Hyperallergic wrote about the episode.


Hundreds of artists, writers and academics, including Judith Butler, Roger Waters, Angela Davis and Dirk Moses, have voiced their outrage in the wake of the last-minute cancellation, which pushed one of the co-curators to remove the remainder of the program from the premises of the cancelling institutions. Nevertheless, the Fine Arts Academy and the MUMOK still have not stepped back on their statement, nor recognised the damage done to Dr. Alqaisiya’s reputation. She is still waiting for a public apology from the Rector of the Fine Arts Academy and further explanation on the decision making process.

7 MORE MONTHS TO BAN EU TRADE WITH ILLEGAL SETTLEMENTS WORLDWIDE!

Join the European Citizens Initiative #StopSettlements to ban EU trade with illegal settlements!
 
With one million EU citizens signing the Initiative, the EU will have to reassess its complicity with illegal settlements. It would be an historical step in realigning the EU with its own rules when it comes to trade and in making Israel accountable for its illegal settlement policy.

SIGN

Send the petition to your friends, family members. Share on your chat groups and social media: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

UK: LEGAL ACTION AGAINST TWITTER TROLL AFTER AN ONLINE SMEAR CAMPAIGN

Peter Bolton is a journalist with The Canary, where he writes about Israel-Palestine among other topics. One year ago, Peter Bolton published a piece denouncing the continuous smear campaigns and unfounded allegations of antisemitism made against the Left in the UK.

Following that, Peter Bolton became himself the target of similar unfounded allegations on Twitter. A fake Twitter account started to spread smears against the journalist, which were amplified by other accounts and retweeted many times. Peter Bolton decided to take legal action against the troll to make it accountable and deter others who would spread defaming allegations online against anyone standing for justice with Palestinians and Palestinian rights advocates.

SUPPORT HIS CASE

EVENTS: PANEL DISCUSSION IN THE NETHERLANDS

Last month, the ELSC joined the in-person panel organised in Amsterdam by the Leonhard-Woltjer Foundation (LWS) and Een Ander Joods Geluid (A Different Jewish Voice) on “How Israel lobbies make it harder to speak up against Israel’s policies”.

Our Advocacy and Communication Officer Alice Garcia joined Dina Zbeidy (anthropologist at Leiden University and LWS board member), Peter Beinart (professor of journalism and Editor-at-large of Jewish Currents), as well as Layla Kattermann and Itaï van de Wal (student activists in Leiden and Utrecht universities) in the panel to give an overview of the situation in The Netherlands (see from 45min).

Read our report on the attempt to suppress Palestinian rights advocacy in the Netherlands.

OTHER GOOD NEWS FROM EUROPE

In a milestone decision for accountability and Palestinian rights, Catalonia Parliament became the first Parliament in Europe to recognise that Israel is committing the crime of apartheid, after the approval of a resolution.

READ MORE

Categories
Newsletter

ELSC Newsletter: April

Dear friend,

This month, we have a few exciting victories for Palestinian rights advocacy. We recall an important success in The Netherlands, share with you a new report by Human Rights Watch detailing the crime of apartheid being committed by Israel against Palestinians, and report on the University of Toronto being censored for cancelling the employment of ELSC Advisory Board member Dr. Valentina Azarova for her human rights work.

A WIN FOR PALESTINIAN ACTIVISM IN THE NETHERLANDS

Earlier this month we shared details of a major win for activists in the Netherlands after the Israeli Product Centre (IPC) was fined €2100 for mislabelling products originating from Israeli settlements in Palestine.

DocP (BDS Netherlands), who led this campaign, had previously been threatened with a defamation lawsuit by the IPC because of their advocacy efforts which highlighted that incorrect labelling could result in a possible evasion of import duties. The ELSC assisted docP in their response to the IPC’s threat by clarifying the legal basis for the accusation of mislabelling and that the evasion of import duties was a suspicion.

In the EU, products originating from illegal Israeli settlements must be clearly labelled that their provenance is from “occupied territory” and an “Israeli settlement”. In accordance with the 2019 Psagot judgement, these labelling requirements apply in all 27 EU member states.

We congratulate docP for this important win and for continuing their activism in the face of repression. The ELSC continues to support activists in the Netherlands and throughout Europe who seek to end the import and trade of products from illegal Israeli settlements.

Read more about the case here

The ELSC relies on generous donations in order to defend Palestinian rights advocacy all across Europe. As the first and only organization protecting the solidarity movement in Europe, we push back against acts of repression and need your support to do so.

Please consider supporting us by giving a monthly tax-exempt donation or a one-time donation to help us realize our 2021 goals. Read more about our 2021 work so far here. For further info on how to make your contribution tax-free please contact sam@elsc.support.

https://elsc.support/donate

HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: ISRAEL COMMITTING APARTHEID AGAINST PALESTINIANS 

On April 27, Human Rights Watch released a report detailing the crimes of apartheid and persecution being committed by the Israeli government against Palestinians. The report is based on findings of Israeli legislation and government policy that maintains the domination by Jewish Israelis over Palestinians, while systematically committing grave human rights abuses against Palestinians living in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, i.e., the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and Gaza.

The report reflects years of advocacy by Palestinian civil society who have long claimed Israeli policy and actions over Palestinians constitute the crime of apartheid. As stated by Human Rights Watch Executive Director, Kenneth Roth, “Prominent voices have warned for years that apartheid lurks just around the corner if the trajectory of Israel’s rule over Palestinians does not change, this detailed study shows that Israeli authorities have already turned that corner and today are committing the crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution.”

https://www.hrw.org/node/378469

Human Rights Watch is the first major international NGO to address the crime of apartheid in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory. We hope this report will be a turning point for individuals and the international community alike in investigating, condemning and taking action to end the lived reality of apartheid and persecution for millions of Palestinians.

Read the report “A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution” here

TEACHERS UNION CENSORS UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO

This month, delegates to the Canadian Association of University Teachers (CAUT) council voted to impose a rare censure on the University of Toronto for cancelling the hiring of ELSC Advisory Board member, Dr. Valentina Azarova.

Dr. Azarova, a distinguished legal Scholar and practitioner, research fellow at Manchester International Law Centre (MILC) and legal advisor to the Global Legal Action Network (GLAN), was abruptly removed from the hiring process at the University of Toronto following ‘concerns’ on her academic work on human rights in Israel and Palestine.

The council of the CAUT found that cancelling the hiring of Dr Azarova constituted a grave breach of widely recognized principles of academic freedom and took the decision to censure Toronto University for their action. This measure, last imposed by the CAUT in 2008, asks academic staff across Canada to not accept appointments or speaking engagements at the institution until satisfactory changes are made.

“The decision to censure was not taken lightly. It is a measure of last resort used only when we are faced with serious violations of academic freedom and other principles that are fundamental to higher education,” explained CAUT Executive Director David Robinson.

“The CAUT vote sends an important message to universities everywhere that discrimination against Palestinian human rights advocates is unacceptable. The ELSC welcomes this decision and we hope the University of Toronto will issue a full apology and hire Dr. Azarova, ensuring such actions do not occur again.”

ELSC Director, Giovanni Fassina

Read the CAUT press release here

RESOURCES & NEWS FROM AROUND EUROPE

Read here a new report published by the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders (an FIDH-OMCT partnership) on the Israeli government’s campaign to silence and discredit Israeli, Palestinian and Syrian Golan Heights-based human rights NGOs.

The report highlights the strategy put in place by the Israeli government, in particular, the Ministry of Strategic Affairs and Public Diplomacy (MSA), which aims to delegitimise critical civil society voices through “naming and shaming” and associating them with terrorism or antisemitism; putting pressure on anyone that provides a platform for their discourse; and lobbying to cut off their sources of funding.

Read the report here

The UK-based organization, Free Speech on Israel, this month released a new report on how the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism is being misrepresented. The report, written by University of Oxford academic Jamie Stern-Weiner details how the IHRA definition was manipulated to protect the State of Israel from legitimate criticism by equating such criticism with antisemtism.

Read the report here