Ref: 115/2012
Date: 04 November 2012
Time: 13:00 GMT
The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) condemns obstruction of the work of its field worker in Ramallah and threats to arrest him by the Palestinian Presidential Guard, when he was covering a sit-in organized by Ph.D. holders in Ramallah on Thursday, 01 November 2012. PCHR calls upon security services to respect the provisions of the UN Declaration on the Human Rights Defenders and relevant international standards, particularly the right to freedom of opinion and expression and the right to have access to information, which are constitutionally ensured.
The PCHR field worker, Shareef ‘Aasi, stated that approximately 10:50 on Thursday, 01 November 2012, he headed to the Palestinian presidential compound (Muqata’a) in Ramallah, after he had received a phone call from a participant of the sit-in, informing him that the participants were being harassed by members of the Palestinian Presidential Guard in an attempt to disperse the sit-in. Once ‘Aassi arrived at the southern entrance of the compound, where the sit-in was being organized, and started to receive testimonies from a some of the participants, several members of the Presidential Guard stopped him from doing his work. They threatened to arrest him and forced him to leave the area even though he had informed them about the nature of his work and the reason for his presence in the area.
It should be noted that a number of Ph.D. holders organized a sit-in on Thursday morning, demanding implementation of President Abbas’ promises to employ them as governmental bodies refused to hire them due to their high qualifications.
PCHR condemns the obstruction of the work of its field worker in Ramallah by the Presidential Guard, and calls upon security services to respect the provisions of the UN Declaration on the Human Rights Defenders and relevant international standards, particularly the right to freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to have access to information, which are constitutionally ensured.
