Dear representatives of the COHOM and MAMA council working groups,

As the European Union (EU) is about to adopt two new human rights strategies, one for the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and the other for Israel, the Palestinian Council of Human Rights Organisations (PCHRO) would like to encourage the EU to take this opportunity to integrate the 14 May Council Conclusions and the European Parliament Resolution on EU policy on the West Bank and East Jerusalem of July 2012. As such, we call on the EU to address Israel’s international human rights and humanitarian law obligations towards the Palestinian people in its human rights strategy for Israel. We also call on the EU to recognise and prioritise the right to self-determination, including the right of the Palestinian people to exercise sovereignty over their natural resources, in the same strategy.

Addressing coherently Israel’s legal obligations towards the Occupied Palestinian people

The EU has on several occasions affirmed Israel’s international human rights and humanitarian law obligations towards the Palestinian people in the indivisible OPT, including East Jerusalem, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. Israel’s international legal obligations stem from its status as an Occupying Power in the OPT, and Israel is therefore the correct interlocutory with whom the EU should address these legal obligations. To this end, it is paramount that the MAMA and COHOM working groups approve a human rights strategy for Israel on the condition that it addresses Israel’s international legal obligations towards the occupied Palestinian people.

We also take this opportunity to stress that the EU’s human rights strategies should address both international humanitarian law (IHL) as well as human rights law. IHL and human rights both apply in times of armed conflict and during occupation, with IHL as lex specialis,^[1] and should therefore be addressed by the EU as two complementary branches of international law. Such an approach is in conformity with the EU Guidelines on Promoting Compliance with International Humanitarian Law, which establishes that respect for IHL in conflict situations is a priority for the EU.

Should the EU fail to address Israel’s human rights and humanitarian law obligations towards the occupied Palestinian people in its strategy for Israel, it would be inconsistent with its self-commitment to be guided by respect for the principles of the United Nations Charter and international law in its actions on the international scene,[1] member States’ individual legal obligation as High Contracting Parties to ensure respect for the Geneva Conventions, and the EU’s “Strategic Framework and Action Plan on Human Rights and Democracy” of 25 June 2012. Indeed, the latter instrument emphasises that “[t]he EU will place human rights at the centre of its relations with all third countries, including its strategic partners. While firmly based on universal norms, the EU’s policy on human rights will be carefully designed for the circumstances of each country, not least through the development of country human rights strategies”^[2].

Prioritising the right to self-determination

As organisations committed to the promotion and protection of human rights in the OPT, we also call on the EU to include the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people as a human rights priority in its strategy for Israel for the coming three years. Palestinians have an inalienable right to self-determination, which includes the right to return and to exercise permanent sovereignty over its natural resources in accordance with their interests of national development and well-being.[3] However, from the outset of the occupation, Israel has appropriated vast expanses of Palestinian territory and implemented restrictive measures limiting Palestinian use of Palestinian natural resources such as land and water. By means of a manipulation of legal concepts, Israel is appropriating hundreds of thousands of square metres of land in contravention to the Fourth Geneva Convention, with the aim of expanding and establishing settlements, which are illegal under IHL. Of particular concern is Israel’s de facto exercise of sovereign powers over the most fertile areas of the OPT located in Area C, including the Jordan Valley which contains the land reserves and water resources for the natural expansion of Palestinian towns and cities. Israel maintains control over this part of the Palestinian territory by denying Palestinians from accessing 70 per cent of Area C and imposing heavy restrictions on another 29 per cent.[4] In contrast, Israel has already placed more than 500.000 settlers in the OPT.

 Whilst Israel consolidates its illegal annexation of Palestinian land in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, it continues to isolate the Gaza Strip from the rest of the Palestinian territory. Israel’s closure, amounting to collective punishment, has entered its fifth year and aggravates the denial of Palestinian self-determination.

	Addameer Prisoners’ Support and Human Rights Association Sahar Francis General Director			Aldameer Association for Human Rights Khalil Abu Shammala General Director
	Al-Haq Shawan Jabarin General Director			Al Mezan Center for Human Rights Issam Younis General Director
	Badil Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights Najwa Darwish General Director			Defence for Children International Palestine Section Rifat Kassis General Director
	Ensan Center for Human Rights and Democracy Shawqi Issa General Director			Hurryyat - Centre for Defense of Liberties and Civil Rights Helmi Al-araj General Director
	Jerusalem Center for Legal Aid and Human Rights Issam Aruri General Director			Ramallah Center for Human Rights Studies Iyad Barghouti General Director
	Women’s Centre for Legal Aid and Counselling Maha Abu Dayyeh General Director

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[1] Legal Consequences of the Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,