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TITLE: Two Verdicts, One Conclusion: Children's Rights are Non-Existent in the Occupied Palestinian Territory |
AUTHOR: |
PUB: Defence for Children International/Palestine Section |
DATE: January 22, 2001 |
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Yesterday, 21 January 2001, two important verdicts were issued reflecting the dismal status of Palestinian children's rights in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. The first concerns 17 year old Su'ad Hilmi Ghazal, detained since her arrest on 13 December 1998. The second in relation to the brutal killing of 11 year old Palestinian child, Hilmi Shawasheh, in 1996. After over two years of being held in prison without sentence, Su'ad Ghazal was sentenced yesterday to 6 ½ years in prison, and 8 subsequent years of probation, for the charge of stabbing an illegal Israeli settler. At the same time, the Jerusalem District Court sentenced 37 year old Nahum Korman, another illegal Israeli settler, to 6 months of community service for the slaying of Shawasheh. Originally arrested at the age of 15, Su'ad Ghazal, from Sebastia village near Nablus, has spent most of the past two years inside the women's section of Neve Tertze (Ramle) prison. During the period of her detention, Su'ad has suffered violations of virtually every one of her rights, including being tortured, both physically and psychologically; detained without trial; detained with adults and outside the Occupied Territories; and initially, denied access to family visits and legal representation, all in violation of international law. Despite thousands of letters from international activists and organizations calling for her release, Su'ad received a sentence far greater than the maximum sentence of 3 years given previously to Palestinian minors tried for the same offense. Su'ad's severe sentence was issued on the same day as that of Nahum Korman, the convicted killer of a Palestinian child. According to eyewitness testimony, on 27 October 1996, Korman, from the settlement of Bitar Elit, in the Bethlehem area, brutally murdered Hilmi Shawasheh, from the village of Husan, kicking him in the head and striking him with the butt of his gun. Korman was originally acquitted of the murder by Judge Ruth Orr of the Jerusalem District Court; however, after an appeal by the prosecutors, the Israeli Supreme Court, on 13 November 2000, overruled the decision, found Korman guilty, and remanded him to the District Court for sentencing. In spite of the Supreme Court ruling finding Korman responsible for the vicious killing of Shawasheh, Korman received a sentence of only 6 months community service and a fine of NIS 70,000 (~USD 17,000). These verdicts occur in the midst of an intensified campaign of child rights violations waged by the Israeli occupation authority. From 29 September 31 December 2000, 94 Palestinian children were killed, with an additional 5 declared clinically dead, as a direct result of Israeli military and settler presence in the Occupied Territory. In addition, approximately 3,000 children have been injured and over 250 Palestinian minors are currently detained in Israeli prisons and detention centers. Among other characteristics of the recent period have been repeated attacks by Israeli settlers against Palestinian civilians and their property. These attacks take place with the full knowledge and often the participation of Israeli soldiers. Yesterday's verdicts illustrate clearly Israel's blatant disregard, not only for children's rights, but for Palestinian life itself. The UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) entered into force in Israel on 2 November 1991. Of particular relevance to the cases at hand are articles 6 and 37. The former guaranteeing the sanctity of children's inherent right to life. The latter stipulating that "the arrest or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time." Moreover, it guarantees that "every child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person." As a States Party to the CRC, Israel is legally bound to uphold the articles contained therein. Yesterday's verdicts painfully highlight the utter lack of respect for children's rights, on the part of the Israeli occupation authority, and of that for its commitments under international law as-a-whole. Particularly disturbing, however, is that the two verdicts also indicate the blatant system of discrimination that exists within the Israeli legal system as well as reflect an Israeli state policy that places absolutely no value on Palestinian life. DCI/PS calls on all international organizations and activists to write the following individuals and protest the blatant discrimination evident in the two verdicts issued yesterday as well as Israel's ongoing disregard for Palestinian children's rights: Prime Minister Ehud Barak +972 2 566 4838 Minister of Justice Yossi Beilin +972 2 628 5438 END |