The United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) recently conducted discussions on the human rights situation in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPTs) and Israel.
Mr.
Issam Younis, Director of Al Mezan Center for Human Rights, participated in the committee meetings.
The Israeli Government issued its own report to the committee, while Al Mezan and a number of Palestinian, regional and international human rights organizations conducted a parallel report on the human rights situation in the OPTs.
The latter report reviews Israel’s violations of Palestinian economic, social and cultural rights and its policy of collective punishment, particularly its sieges and blockades, restrictions on travel, home demolitions, continued settlement expansion and land seizure.
On Friday May 16, 2003, Mr.
Younis participated in a press conference at the United Nations Headquarters in Geneva.
He called upon the international community to fulfill its moral and legal obligations to protect the civilian population of the OPTs.
Mr.
Younis highlighted the fact that Israel has escalated its aggressive and destructive policies against the Palestinian People since the latest visit of US Secretary of State Colin Powell, and reminded his listeners that a just peace cannot be achieved in the Middle East without genuine respect for international law and human rights standards.
END Parallel report jointly submitted to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 30th Session, Geneva, 9 May 2003