The DEVE Delegation to the Palestinian territories urges EU to stop the Israeli collective punishment against the Palestinian people

Saturday September 22, 2007 23:18 by Delegation of the European Parliament’s Committee of Develop

The delegation is deeply shocked by the unprecedented humanitarian crisis it witnessed in the Palestinian Territories. It urges the European Union to take immediate action to stop the collective punishment against the Palestinian people inflicted by the Israeli authorities which deprives them from building a viable economy, impedes the delivery of humanitarian assistance and the implementation of development aid projects.

21 September 2007, Jerusalem

The delegation warns against the risk and unpredictable consequences of the current crisis, if the occupation does not end.

The Members of the delegation consider that the planned Middle-East Peace conference, to be held in November 2007 in New York, would represent an opportunity for achieving peace between Israelis and Palestinians providing that all relevant stakeholders are actively involved in the conduct of negotiations and in good-faith, resulting in a final agreement according to the UN Resolutions and the Arab initiatives.

In the meantime, it is essential that the Palestinian extremists groups stop any military action against the Israeli population. Israel has to remove the existing closure and check points, ensuring the freedom of movement for people and goods and refrain from any military actions against the Palestinian population.

The delegation visited agricultural projects, the Shifa hospital, the Director of the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility for the Palestinian National Authority. They also met with the Minister of Planning, the Mayor of Gaza, The Mayor of Hebron, several human rights activists, representatives of the civil society, businessmen, the Commissioner General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), and the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

It heard dramatic testimonies regarding the food security situation, the problems regarding water resources and energy supplies. Other important points raised were the Palestinians struggle for the right to basic education and health services, accompanied by a complete disruption of the economic life and suspension of development projects.

The constant deterioration of the situation in the Palestinian Territories pre-empts the conduct of a normal development policy and results in the high dependency on emergency aid. The delegation takes the view that in order to resume a sustainable economic activity, the removal of the political obstacles, and in particular the existing closures are essential.

The delegation considers the humanitarian crisis in Gaza to be of the highest urgency, and in this respect shares the views expressed by UNRWA; IMF and the World Bank Report. The economic, social and cultural life is disrupted. As the area is closed and goods can not be imported or exported, this brings the economy to collapse. The unemployment rate has risen sharply (currently around 70 %), most factories and shops are closed, and many families are unable to pay for basic commodities, even bread. The disposal of household waste is very intermittent giving further concern to the health of the population of the Gaza Strip. The water system is polluted which is a risk to babies and to all people. The NGOs denounced the suspension of development projects due to the closures, and the lack of construction materials. The scarce resources diminish the quality of medical care. The Gaza Strip and Hebron resemble ghost cities.

Deep concern was expressed about Israel’s decision to interrupt the provision of essential services, such as electricity and fuel to the Gaza Strip.

The delegation became very aware that the chance to have a lasting and just peace in the area through negotiations and agreements which will put an end to the military occupation and bring to the coexistence of two states in reciprocal security and defined borders can only be realised if the obstacles which makes daily life impossible for Palestinians (notably the construction of walls, the increasing number of settlements and the daily intrusion of the military in the West Bank), be removed now.

Mr Thijs Berman (PES, NL) Chair of the Delegation; Mr Ryszard Czarnecki (UEN, PL), Ms Margrete Auken (GREENS/EFA, DK), Ms Luisa Morgantini (GUE/NGL, IT); Mr Kyriacos Triantaphyllides (GUE/NGL, CY), Chair of the EP delegation for relations with the Palestinian Legislative Council.

Fair Use Notice

This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.