Ref: 17/2011

On Thursday, 31 March
2011, the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights’ (PCHR) Training Unit organized a
training course on “the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression Under
PNA Rule” in cooperation with Southern Gaza Female Journalists Forum. A
number of journalists from Rafah and Khan Younis attended the course which was
organized in the Forum’s office.

Mr. Salah Abu Hatab, a
social activist, facilitated the course. He talked about the right to freedom
of opinion and expression in a democratic society. Mr. Mahmoud al-Efranji,
researcher at PCHR’s Democratic Development Unit, presented a paper on the
right to freedom of opinion and expression guaranteed by international human
rights standards and under Palestinian laws and on human rights organizations’
role in defending the rights of journalists and Palestinians to express their
opinions.

Mr. Imad Muhsen,
researcher and journalist, presented a paper on the situation of the right to
freedom of opinion and expression under the rule of the Palestinian National
Authority (PNA), especially in view of the ongoing political fragmentation in
the oPt. Participants were then invited to engage in discussions about the
situation of the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the freedom of
the press in view of violations committed by the Israeli occupation forces
against Palestinian media professionals and in view of the ongoing
fragmentation. Participants agreed that media professionals pay a price because
of the ongoing political fragmentation between the two Palestinian governments
in Gaza and Ramallah. Palestinian media professionals were subjected to
different violations including arrest and being summoned, the closing of media
offices, beatings and preventing media coverage.

At the end of the
training, the participants agreed that it is necessary to unify efforts exerted
by media professionals in order to defend their rights, reactivate the role
played by the Union of Palestinian Journalists and to cooperate with
Palestinian human rights organizations in order to promote the situation of the
press and uphold the right to freedom of opinion and expression under PNA rule.