Ref: 113/2010
On
16 December, 2010, The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) sent a letter
to the Prime Minister in Gaza, Mr. Isma’il Haniya. The letter included a memorandum regarding
the closure of Sharek Youth Forum, following a decision taken by the Attorney
General in Gaza at the end of November. PCHR called upon the Prime Minister to reopen Sharek Youth Forum and its
branches in the Gaza Strip, as the closure decision is considered a clear
violation of Palestinian Law.
The
memorandum explained that PCHR has followed up, with great interest, the
incidents and procedures that preceded and accompanied the decision issued by
the Attorney General in Gaza, Mr. Mohammed ‘Abed, to close Sharek Youth
Forum. Furthermore, PCHR has held
meetings, on a legal basis, with some ministers in the government and
repeatedly tried to meet with the Attorney General in Gaza; however, these
attempts to meet the Attorney General were unsuccessful, as he claimed to
‘busy’.
In
the memorandum, PCHR highlighted its legal position regarding the closure of
Sharek Youth Forum:
1. Since the issuance of the closure decision, none of the four
persons mentioned by the Attorney General in the media – including the
executive manager of the Forum – have been brought before the Attorney General
to be questioned. As a result, PCHR is
concerned that the Attorney General will direct charges based upon (pending)
investigations carried out by security bodies. Being a just opponent, the Attorney General is legally obliged to
conduct his investigations and examinations before directing any charges against
people;
2. ‘Trial by Media’: Directing charges against any person through the
media undermines the chances of litigation and arbitration according to the
rule of law. Charges are supposed to be
directed through legal indictments prepared by the Attorney General after
investigations have been conducted;
3. Notably, the police – as judicial officers who work directly under
the supervision of the Attorney General – did not detain any person from Sharek
Youth Forum despite all the charges announced in the media;
4. PCHR emphasizes that searching Sharek Forum and confiscating some
computer sets by the security services is in violation of the law, as it
happened in the evening when none of the Board of Directors’ members was
available, according to testimonies of eyewitnesses;
5. Investigations conducted by the Internal Security Service (ISS) or
General Investigation Service (GIS) into the activities of members of the Board
of Directors did not prove any
administrative or financial violations. In accordance with the Societies Act #
01 (2000) such violations may be a reason for closing the Forum by the concerned bodies, but not by the
Attorney General;
6. The Board of Directors called upon the security services (ISS) and
(GIS) to provide them with information on the violations committed by any of
the Forum’s workers in order to take the necessary legal action. However, their requests were rejected, which
indicates that the official bodies had a previous established intention to
close the Forum;
7. According to the Societies Act # 01 (2000), the legal reference for
societies and civil society organizations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
is the civil society organizations’ department in the Ministry of
Interior. This department is the only
body legally entitled to file complaints in case of legal violations; this
procedure was not followed in the case of Sharek Forum;
8. PCHR confirms its position that in the event that legal violations
were committed by persons working in the Forum, they must be prosecuted
according to procedures stated in the Palestinian Law. However, this does not
entail closing the institution and its branches in the Gaza Strip.
In
light of the above, PCHR concluded that the closure decision issued by the
Attorney General in Gaza, Mr. Mohammed ‘Abed, can only be interpreted as a
clear violation of the Palestinian Law, particularly, the Code of Criminal
Procedures # 03 (2006). PCHR called upon
the government in Gaza to reopen Sharek Youth Forum and its branches in the
Gaza Strip, and not to attack the institution when a person, who has a relationship
with this institution, is suspected of committing violations against the law.
The
memorandum on the closure of Sharek Youth Forum by the Attorney General in Gaza
is attached.
16 December 2010
Memorandum on the Closure of Sharek
Youth Forum in the Gaza Strip following the Decision of the Attorney General
With
great interest, the Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) followed up the
incidents and procedures, which preceded and accompanied the decision issued by
the Attorney General in Gaza, Mr. Mohammed ‘Abed, to close Sharek Youth
Forum. This decision was carried out by
the security services (a joint force of the Police, General Investigation
Service (GIS) and Internal Security Service (ISS)) on 30 November 2010. Following this event, PCHR held meetings with
some ministers in the government, on a legal basis, and explained its position:
the government has the right to take the proper legal action against those who
are proven to violate the law, without causing any harm to the
institution. PCHR repeatedly tried to
meet with the Attorney General in Gaza; however, these attempts to meet the
Attorney General were unsuccessful, as he claimed to ‘busy’. Equally, PCHR attempted to meet with the
relevant security bodies in initial attempts to prevent them hindering the
Forum’s work and closing it. Now, PCHR
must resort to publishing what happened after following all means to legally
contain the crisis.
PCHR
expresses its serious reservation regarding the decision taken by the Attorney
General and carried out by the security services, as they refused to give the
individuals responsible for the Forum a copy of the decision. Furthermore, the Attorney General has delayed
giving this copy to the Forum’s lawyer, despite the fact that it was announced
in the media. A piece of news was
announced in specific media accusing and scandalizing four persons, including
the executive manager of the Forum, in violation of the Code of Criminal
Procedures # 03 (2006). The news has
been modified after it was published.
PCHR
is gravely concerned over closing Sharek Youth Forum in the Gaza Strip
following the decision of the Attorney General in Gaza. It would like to clarify the following:
1. Since the issuance of the closure decision, none of the four persons
mentioned by the Attorney General in the media – including the executive
manager of the Forum – have been brought before the Attorney General to be
questioned. As a result, PCHR is
concerned that the Attorney General will direct charges based upon (pending)
investigations carried out by security bodies. Being a just opponent, the Attorney General is legally obliged to
conduct his investigations and examinations before directing any charges
against people;
2. ‘Trial by Media’: Directing charges against any person through the
media undermines the chances of litigation and arbitration according to the
rule of law. Charges are supposed to be
directed through legal indictments prepared by the Attorney General after
investigations have been conducted;
3. Notably, the police – as judicial officers who work directly under
the supervision of the Attorney General – did not detain any person from Sharek
Youth Forum despite all the charges announced in the media;
4. PCHR emphasizes that searching Sharek Forum and confiscating some
computer sets by the security services is in violation of the law, as it
happened in the evening when none of the Board of Directors’ members was
available, according to testimonies of eyewitnesses;
5. Investigations conducted by the Internal Security Service (ISS) or
General Investigation Service (GIS) into the activities of members of the Board
of Directors did not prove any
administrative or financial violations. In accordance with the Societies Act #
01 (2000) such violations may be a reason for closing the Forum by the concerned bodies, but not by the
Attorney General;
6. The Board of Directors called upon the security services (ISS) and
(GIS) to provide them with information on the violations committed by any of
the Forum’s workers in order to take the necessary legal action. However, their requests were rejected, which
indicates that the official bodies had a previous established intention to
close the Forum;
7. According to the Societies Act # 01 (2000), the legal reference for
societies and civil society organizations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
is the civil society organizations’ department in the Ministry of
Interior. This department is the only
body legally entitled to file complaints in case of legal violations; this
procedure was not followed in the case of Sharek Forum;
8. PCHR confirms its position that in the event that legal violations
were committed by persons working in the Forum, they must be prosecuted
according to procedures stated in the Palestinian Law. However, this does not
entail closing the institution and its branches in the Gaza Strip.
In
light of the above, PCHR concluded that the closure decision issued by the
Attorney General in Gaza, Mr. Mohammed ‘Abed, can only be interpreted as a
clear violation of the Palestinian Law, particularly, the Code of Criminal
Procedures # 03 (2006). PCHR called upon
the government in Gaza to reopen Sharek Youth Forum and its branches in the
Gaza Strip, and not to attack the institution when a person, who has a
relationship with this institution, is suspected of committing violations
against the law.
