13 days following the kidnapping of Johnston, Al Mezan calls upon the PNA and the government to secure his release

Thirteen days have passed since the kidnapping of the BBC's correspondent Alan Johnston and the situation remains mysterious.
The Palestinian Ministry of Interior and other executive authorities have failed to undertake their obligations to secure his release.
Johnston was kidnapped at app.
14.
45pm on 12 March 2007, while driving down Al Wehda Street in Gaza City, as four gunmen in a white vehicle blocked his way, and forced him out of his car.
No information on his whereabouts has yet been released.
Although 13 days have passed since Johnston's kidnapping, the PNA has failed to undertake its legal obligations in securing and protecting him and other foreign citizens in the territory under its control.
Al Mezan Center for Human Rights condemns the kidnapping of Johnston as a flagrant violation of human rights, and holds the PNA, both the government and presidency, responsible for failing to take sufficient steps to secure his safety and release.
The Center reiterates its regret and solidarity with Johnston and all the other victims of kidnapping in OPT, which is generally undertaken to pressurize the PNA, and not the victims themselves.
Such conduct, besides being an infringement upon the victims' dignity and wellbeing, has caused much damage to the real image of the Palestinian people and has undermined their pursuit of their legitimate rights of self-determination, freedom and independence.
Al Mezan calls upon president Mahmoud Abbas and the Prime Minister Ismael Haniya to take immediate, effective steps towards securing the quick release of Johnston and the bringing of the perpetrators to justice.
The Center asserts that the history of failure to uphold the law in previous cases of kidnapping and other crimes will only encourage them and undermine the rule law in OPT.
END