Ref:
20/2015 

On Wednesday, 13 May 2015, the Palestinian Center for Human
Rights (PCHR) organized a workshop for a group of journalists and bloggers on
the death penalty and extra-judicial execution in the Palestinian Authority.
The workshop was organized in cooperation with Palestinian Institute for
Communication and Development and was attended by 16 persons, including 6
females. The participants discussed opinions and perspectives related to the
death penalty and the need to abolish it. Mohammed Abu Hashem, a legal and
human rights researcher at PCHR, facilitated the workshop.

The workshop addressed a number of topics, the most prominent
of which were: the death penalty in domestic and international laws; guarantees
of the application of the death penalty under domestic and international
standards; controversy over the abolishment of the death penalty; and the legal
and objective justifications for PCHR’s rejection for the death penalty in
Palestine. Moreover, the workshop addressed the application of extra-judicial
executions for suspicions of collaboration with Israeli forces and how they
pose threats to the safety and security of the Palestinian society and the rule
of law.

The attendants praised the workshop and emphasized on the
importance of the addressed topic and the need to discuss it widely so that everyone
becomes aware of the risks of the application of the extra-judicial executions
or any other executions especially in light of the complicated circumstances of
the Palestinian people.  Most of the
attendants stressed that the workshop made them rethink about the
extra-judicial execution under the claims of collaboration with Israel and the
death penalty in general after knowing the serious negative consequences of the
extra-judicial execution on whatever grounds. 
Moreover, they became more understanding of PCHR’s legitimate fears of
applying the death penalty particularly in light of the severe shortage of the
potentials and experience in criminal investigation in Palestine especially in
the Gaza Strip. 

This workshop is part of PCHR’s effort to abolish the death
penalty, as PCHR targets journalists and media organizations due to their
important role in influencing the Palestinian public opinion.  PCHR seeks to raise awareness of human rights
to create a new generation of journalists with legal backgrounds.

It should be noted that this
workshop is part of a project implemented by PCHR in cooperation with the
Representative Office of the Federal Republic of Germany to the Palestinian
Authority.