PHA-Exch> Call to end the isolation of the Gaza Strip

[Claudio Schuftan]

From: Intal - Wim De Ceukelaire wim.deceukelaire at intal.be


* **Call to end the isolation of the Gaza Strip *

* *

The political, economic and social isolation imposed on the occupied Gaza
Strip violates international law and has dire consequences for future peace,
development and security in the region.



We, the undersigned international, Palestinian and Israeli development and
human rights organisations urgently call for an end to the Israeli blockade
of the Gaza Strip, an end to the international isolation, and dialogue and
reconciliation between Palestinian parties.  We also call for an end to 40
years of Israeli occupation in the interests of peace and justice for all.



[image: Text Box: "We are living in fear of the devastation of our society.
The siege of the Gaza Strip is a terrible crime. I want to tell the world:
don't say that you didn't know." Culture and Free Thought Association, Gaza
"The blockade makes export impossible so farmers are abandoning their crops.
Israeli incursions result in huge destruction to lands and enterprises.
Almost every industry in Gaza is facing ruin. This is collective punishment
and must end." Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC), Gaza/West
Bank "Gaza alone without the West Bank cannot survive. It needs free borders
and access. 1.5 million people cut off with no trade or water, it's
impossible." Palestinian Medical Relief Society, Gaza/West Bank "Gaza is a
prison. There is no other way to describe it. 1.5 million people are trapped
in Gaza and the result is violence. I'm not just talking about factional
violence, domestic violence is also increasing." Women's Affairs Centre,
Gaza "How can Gaza be a normal place, how can we live a normal life here?
Firstly there has to be free movement between Gaza and the West Bank and
open access to the outside world." Palestinian Centre for Human Rights,
Gaza]Israel's 40-year occupation of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and East
Jerusalem, and its policies of closure and isolation have resulted in
fragmentation across the occupied Palestinian territory.



Israel first imposed its closure policy on the Gaza Strip in the early 1990s
and since then it has had a steadily worsening impact on access to
education, medical care, employment and the economy. Now effectively
imprisoned and with only a drip-feed of humanitarian aid, 1.5 million
Palestinians in the Gaza Strip are entirely cut off from the West Bank and
the outside world, facing a life without the essential requirements for
survival let alone development. Over 80% of the population in Gaza live
below the poverty line.



By sealing off the Gaza Strip, declaring it a hostile entity, cutting fuel
and threatening to cut electricity, Israel is retreating from its
responsibilities as the occupying power. Not only does it make a mockery of
international humanitarian law, the illegal policy of collective punishment
is only serving to deepen despair and frustration in Gaza. It does not
provide security for either Israelis or Palestinians. Crucially, the
security of one is indivisible from the security of the other.



The international community has exacerbated this situation by further
isolating Gaza and pursuing a 'West Bank first' approach to aid and
diplomacy that abandons 1.5 million people to poverty. The violent collapse
of the Palestinian national unity government in June 2007 and split between
Hamas in Gaza and Fatah in the West Bank has further entrenched the
isolation of the Gaza Strip at the expense of an already impoverished
population.

* *

*Continuing the isolation policy is illegal and will only lead to more
suffering and take the whole region further away from peace. *



·       *The right to work and to an adequate standard of living: *The
economy has been decimated as 85% of manufacturing businesses in Gaza have
closed down, over 70,000 workers have lost their jobs, imports and exports
remain blocked and production has ground to a halt.



·       *The right to health: * Deteriorating conditions and a lack of
medical supplies are diminishing the capacity of hospitals to treat patients
in Gaza, while patients seeking medical care unavailable in Gaza are
frequently denied permits to leave.

* *

·       *The right to education: *Students are prevented from studying at
universities in the West Bank or abroad, while school textbooks cannot be
printed due to lack of raw materials.  The next generation is being held
back which will have serious implications for future development.



·       *The right to life*: Isolating Gaza has not stopped Palestinian
rocket attacks into Israel and the entire population of Gaza remains
vulnerable to continuing Israeli military attacks. All civilians, Israeli
and Palestinian, must be protected under international law.

* *

*The organisations listed below are signatories only to the English version
of this statement which can be found at*
www.christianaid.org.uk/gaza_statement

* *

*Adalah: The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, Addameer
Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association, Al Haq, Al Mezan, Arab Human
Rights Association, BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and
Refugee Rights, Broederlijk Delen, B'tselem, CARE International UK,
Christian Aid, CODA International, Council for Arab-British Understanding,
Culture and Free Thought Association, Defense for Children
International-Palestine Section, Diakonia, Gaza Community Mental Health
Programme, Gisha: Legal Center for Freedom of Movement, HaMoked, Housing and
Land Rights Network - Habitat International Coalition, Ittijah-The Union of
Arab Community Based Associations, Medical Aid for Palestinians, Medico
International, Near East Council of Churches, Norwegian Church Aid,
Palestinian Agricultural Relief Committees (PARC), Palestinian Centre for
Human Rights, The Palestinian-International Campaign to End the Siege on
Gaza, Palestinian Medical Relief Society,  Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO),
Physicians for Human Rights – Israel,Plateforme des ONG françaises pour la
Palestine, Public Committee Against Torture in Israel, Swedish Cooperative
Centre, Trócaire, War on Want, Women's Affairs Centre, YMCA Rehabilitation
Program and Beit Sahour YMCA, YMCA–YWCA Joint Advocacy Initiative *
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