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Israel has outlawed six Palestinian human rights organizations. Why?

By:   []

Date: 2021-11

All six banned organizations have for decades been critically involved in the documentation and monitoring of alleged Israeli human rights violations, war crimes and Apartheid in the OPT. Their work covers rights violations of Palestinian prisoners, children, women, rule of law and seeking accountability for Israel’s alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity. All of this work has been a major evidential basis for the demand to open criminal investigations by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

In December 2019, following a preliminary examination of the situation in Palestine, the former chief prosecutor of the ICC, Fatou Bensouda, concluded that the statutory criteria for the opening of a criminal investigation had been met.

Israel immediately attacked the decision, which the prime minister called anti-Semitic, and lobbied its allies to pressure the ICC prosecutor over her decision. Despite this, the Pre-Trial Chamber of the ICC decided on 5 February 2021 that the court’s jurisdiction does extend to the territories occupied by Israel and on 3 March, Bensouda announced her decision to open the criminal investigation.

Karim Khan, who was sworn as the new chief prosecutor of the ICC in June this year, is expected to use evidence, material and documentation provided by Palestinian human rights organizations once he convenes the investigation. This includes evidence gathered by Alhaq, one of the organizations banned last month, which also submitted its arguments before the Pre Trial Chamber of the ICC. Alhaq is expected to take a major role in providing evidence, material and documentation for the investigation of Israel’s war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Occupied Territory.

In this sense, the Israeli minister’s recent decision could be read as an attempt to silence Palestinian organizations and prevent them from providing such evidence.

History lessons

Outlawing and banning civil society, political organizations and activists is a common practice used by racist and totalitarian regimes throughout history to silence those fighting against racism or exposing human rights violations. It serves to degrade the dignity of the oppressed groups in a society or those affiliated with them.

In South Africa, the government initiated the bans on some individual activists during the 1950s. Anti-Apartheid political activists such as Steve Biko, Ruth First, Oliver Tambo, Winnie Mandela and many others were jailed, tortured or even killed while in police custody. Others had to flee the country.

After the 1960 Sharpeville massacre when police opened fire on Black protesters marching against racist ‘pass laws’, killing 69 and injuring 180 people, the practice intensified. Both the African National Congress (ANC), whose main mission was to defend the rights and freedoms of all Africans, and the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) were soon banned.

The massacre was a major turning point not only in the history of the anti-Apartheid struggle but also in the attention of the international community to that struggle and the atrocities of Apartheid. Outlawing anti-Apartheid activists and associations was a way to limit that exposure and minimize international solidarity with the plight of the Black South Africans. Most importantly, this silence would ensure the impunity of the Apartheid regime.

The response of activists and associations in South Africa back then was to continue with their struggle for freedom and against Apartheid whether inside South Africa or in exile. This is also how the six banned Palestinian organizations have responded, declaring that they will continue their work and struggle for freedom and against oppression but most importantly to contribute to the ICC investigation and end Israel’s impunity over war crimes and crimes against humanity.
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