Ref: 70/2011
On Wednesday morning 26 November 2011, the
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights’ (PCHR) Deputy Director for Program
Affairs, Hamdi Shaqqura, met with John Edwards, the British Consul General, and
Edward Evans, Vice Consul (Political), in the British Consulate office in Gaza
City.
During the meeting, the situation of human
rights in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt), especially in Gaza, was
addressed. Shaqqura stressed the
importance of the international community, especially the United Kingdom and
the European Union, taking action and compelling Israel to lift the illegal
closure imposed on the Gaza Strip for more than five years now. He noted that the pretext which was used by
Israel to justify the collective punishment imposed on the civilian population
of the Gaza Strip ended with Shalit’s release. This necessarily requires prompt and urgent action by the international
community to put an end to the suffering of the civilian population which is
the result of the ongoing closure.
During the meeting, Shaqqura reiterated that it
is important to take action in order to support the principle of accountability. He called on the international community for
submitting the Goldstone report to the Security Council and then to the
International Criminal Court, as Israel failed to conduct serious
investigations and hold accountable the perpetrators of war crimes against
Palestinian civilians. Shaqqura
explained that crimes committed against civilians cannot go unpunished, adding
that the failure by the international community to prosecute war criminals and
hold them accountable has encouraged the continued commission of more crimes
and violations.
The meeting also addressed the internal
Palestinian situation and the Palestinian reconciliation. Shaqqura reiterated that there is no
justification to delay the reconciliation. He noted that it is important to immediately
start taking tangible actions on the ground and pave the way for free and fair
elections under the Cairo Agreement which was signed last May.
