Ref: 21/2010
On Sunday, 21 February 2010, after
the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) had denied him and the accompanying
delegation access to the Gaza Strip, the Mayor of Geneva, Remy Pagani, and the
delegation comprised of Kristen Lutas, Legal Advisor; Jacques Alfred Francois, Representative
of the Swiss Agency for Development; Tubias Schnepli, Director of the Group for
Switzerland without an Army, convened a meeting through video conference with
Rafiq Mekki, Mayor of Gaza City, Iyad Sarraj, Director of Gaza Community Mental
Health Program (GCMHP), and Raji Sourani, Director of
the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR), who talked from PCHR’s main
office in Gaza City.
A year ago, Pagani and members of
Geneva Municipal Council decided to hold a conference on the 60th
anniversary of the signing of the Fourth Geneva Convention so as to discuss
serious violations of the Convention, and the failure of the High Contracting
Parties to fulfill their obligations, including taking effective measures to
ensure respect for the Convention articles and protection for civilians in times
of war. The Geneva Municipality decided
to visit the most prominent places, which witness grave breaches of the
Convention, including: Congo, Former Yugoslavia, and the Occupied Palestinian
Territory (OPT), particularly the Gaza Strip.
Pagani started the meeting from the
West Bank by expressing his condemnation of banning him by IOF from reaching
the Gaza Strip. He considered this
measure as a restriction of his right to freedom of movement, indicating that
Israel is continuously trying to restrict access to the Gaza Strip in order to
prevent people around the world from observing the catastrophic situation,
under which Palestinian civilians live.
Inhumane conditions in the Gaza
Strip and deterioration of the human rights situation with continued crimes and
human rights violations perpetrated by IOF in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank
were all highlighted during the meeting.
The Mayor of Gaza City talked about
the escalating Israeli violations related to the environment. Besides, he spoke about electricity, water
and sanitation crises in the Gaza Strip and the arising daily problems at the
humanitarian and living levels.
Director of GCMHP emphasized the
disastrous impacts of the siege and the latest Israeli offensive on the Gaza
Strip, referring to their destructive impacts on Palestinian civilians, and how
they have been the major victims of IOF’s practices and crimes. He further stressed that Israel has imposed
the role of jungles when dealing with the Palestinian people.
Director of PCHR pointed out that
the international humanitarian law (IHL) is not enforced in the OPT, due to
which, Palestinian civilians have been deprived of protection. He stressed that the major Palestinian demand
is to enforce IHL and human rights in the OPT and to obligate the occupying
power to respect them. Moreover, he
emphasized that, a year after the latest Israeli offensive on the Gaza Strip,
the worst has yet to come. Director of
PCHR highly appreciated the human and moral role played by the Mayor of Geneva
and Members of the Municipal Council, as being part of the international
community, in support for the Palestinian people and their just cause and in
condemnation of IOF’s crimes and practices, including the siege and
Judaization.
It is worth noting that the Mayor of
Geneva is member of the Swiss Leftist Solidarity Party, which supports the
Palestinian cause, and he is concerned about all what happens in the area.
