Ref: 56/2010

On 29 May 2010, lawyer Raji
al-Sourani, Director of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), concluded
his visit to Japan by attending a ceremony organized by the Japanese Bar
Association in his honor. 

Mr. Sourani’s visit to Japan began on
19 May 2010, after accepting an invitation by Human Rights Now (HRN) to visit
select Japanese universities and discuss the human rights situation in the
Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT).

With a number of judges, lawyers and
jurists in attendance at the ceremony, Mr. Sourani talked about Israel’s
failure to conduct serious investigations into crimes committed by the Israeli
Occupation Forces (IOF) against Palestinian civilians during the latest Israeli
offensive on the Gaza Strip. Mr. Sourani
noted that Israeli courts play a major role in providing legal coverage for
IOF’s crimes against the Palestinian civilians.  He also spoke particularly about
extra-judicial executions, forcible deportation, administrative detention,
torture, land confiscation, and settlement activities, and reminded the
audience of the Israeli position rejecting the Advisory Opinion of the International
Court of Justice on the Annexation Wall that Israel continues to construct on
the West Bank territory. 

In addition, Mr. Sourani reviewed
the developments taking place with regard to the report published by the UN
Fact-Fining Mission on Gaza Conflict (i.e. the Goldstone Report) and discussed
efforts to prosecute Israeli war criminals, highlighting PCHR’s role in
employing the universal jurisdiction in order to ensure solutions for
Palestinian victims seeking justice. 

Before this honorary ceremony, Mr. Sourani
participated in a variety of activities and meetings in addition to lecturing
at the University of Tokyo, Kyoto University and Saint Paul’s University about
the human rights situation in the OPT and in the Gaza Strip, specifically, and
about relevant international laws applicable to the Palestinian case. Many researchers, academics, jurists,
specialists in the Arab-Israeli conflict and supporters of the Palestinian
cause attended Mr. Sourani’s three lectures. 

During the lectures, Mr. Sourani
reviewed the human rights situation in the OPT, pointing out the unprecedented
deterioration of the living conditions of the civilian population in the Gaza
Strip as a result of systematic Israeli policies, especially the imposition of
the siege that denies the civilians the enjoyment of their rights guaranteed
under international standards and instruments. Mr. Sourani

also discussed the Israeli policies
applied in the West Bank, including settlement activities, those activities
aimed at creating a Jewish majority in Jerusalem, arrests, house raids,
property destruction, among others.

Mr. Sourani’s trip to Japan also
included his participation in a number of important TV shows, and he was
interviewed by several Japanese media outlets and newspapers. In these meetings and interviews, Mr. Sourani
discussed the human rights situation in the OPT, especially in the Gaza Strip,
focusing in particular on the consequences of the continued illegal siege
imposed on the Gaza Strip by Israel. He
also spoke during these meetings and interviews about IOF’s actions in the West
Bank and in Jerusalem, in particular. 

Mr. Sourani also spoke to the media
about the difficult conditions of the approximately 9,000 Palestinians detained
in Israeli jails. He drew attention to the honorable efforts of international
human rights organizations, who reject the siege and Israeli policies while
supporting Palestinian civilians. Mr. Sourani
spoke during his meetings and interviews with the Japanese media about the
Goldstone Report, which challenged the international community by developing a clear
application mechanism and unmasked the international community, which, he
argued, provides political and legal cover to criminal actions of the Israeli
occupation. 

During interviews with Japanese
journalists and TV channels, Mr. Sourani explained that, although more than one
year has passed since the latest Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip, Gaza’s
pain and suffering continues due to the continued siege that bans the delivery of
construction materials required to reconstruct houses and civilian facilities
which were destroyed during the offensive. Mr. Sourani condemned the silence of the international community towards
the continued humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip and condemned their
inaction to prosecute criminals and hold them accountable. 

With regard to the prosecution of
Israeli war criminals, Mr. Sourani noted that Palestinians will not forget and
will not tolerate with the crimes committed by IOF against them nor will it do
so with regard to the silence of the international community and its
crimes—i.e. the toleration of IOF practices and the protection it extends to
Israel through its sanction of such practices. He stressed that human rights organizations, with PCHR at the forefront,
will continue their efforts to prosecute war criminals, noting that the
prosecution of war criminals constitutes a human, moral and legal duty, a solution
for innocent Palestinian victims seeking justice, and a victory for the rule of
law against the law of the jungle.

In reference to the report published
by the extremist Zionist group of Im Tirtzu, in which the group discusses the
efforts by PCHR in cooperation with international lawyers and Israeli civil
society organizations to prosecute senior Israeli officers, Mr. Sourani
reiterated that all conferences, reports and threats of such groups will not intimidate
or frighten PCHR and others, nor will they cause despair and force groups like
PCHR to cease their activities.

During the visit, Mr. Sourani also met
with an number of Japanese Parliamentarians, academics, international
journalists and lawyers. 

At the conclusion of his visit, Mr. Sourani
thanked HRN for their invitation and their efforts to make his visit productive
and enjoyable, including their preparation of a number of fruitful meetings and
activities. He stressed that it is
important to maintain cooperation with HRN and to promote such cooperation in
the near future. 

Human Rights Now (HRN) is a Japanese
human rights organization established in July 2006. HRN implements activities locally and
internationally to protect human rights and to eliminate human right abuses
beyond boundaries in the world with the aim to make differences in the world.