2017-08-10

Ramallah

West Bank / Announcement

The Palestinian NGOs Network condemns the arrest of a number of journalists last night by the Palestinian Security Services. PNGO described the arrest as a serious intensification of the continuous violations against the Palestinian press body, a confiscation of public freedoms and an arbitrary measure that infringes the Basic Law, which warns of further deterioration at the internal level, entering an unprecedentedly dangerous phase. 

In the form of a press release, PNGO warned that keeping journalists Amer Abu-Arafeh, Mamdouh Hamamra, Tarek Abu-Zeid and Qutaiba Qasim in detention contradicts with the recent understandings with the Palestinian Journalists Syndicate. The security services disassociated themselves from the agreement on flimsy grounds. This requires an immediate intervention by the Civil Society Organizations (CSOs), political parties, and trade unions, in addition to the formation of a widespread civic coalition to defend public freedoms, including the freedom of opinion and expression.

The statement pointed out that talking of a leak of "sensitive information" to adverse parties, in addition to other accusations, to justify the arrest and going after the journalists is a flagrant violation of community values and understandings as well as the core of the Basic Law. This issue should be addressed instantly through the immediate release of the arrested journalists. Also, a joint committee should be established, consisting of the Syndicate as a representative of the journalists, CSOs, and the relevant official authorities to reach a clear agreement on the appropriate arrangements in this regard, without restricting or prejudicing the professional work of the journalists in any way whatsoever.

The statement also stressed the importance of drafting a national code of conduct that addresses all of the key components of the internal situation in its entirety, and sparing the press body, in particular, the internal division between the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, including the continued detention of journalist Fuad Jaradah in Gaza for more than 60 days.

Moreover, the statement reminded of the issuance of the Decree-Law on Cybercrimes, the continued blocking of electronic sites, and tightening the noose on the work of journalists during the last period. This requires a high-level intervention to put an end to the situation immediately. Also, it was stressed that the journalists served as role-models for professionalism and patriotism in the recent past weeks where they were present in the city of Jerusalem to reflect the suffering of the Palestinian people who live under occupation. Respect should be shown in response to such a role, played to serve the Palestinian society.