2020-02-11

West Bank and Gaza Strip

Human Rights Defenders / West Bank / Gaza / position paper

The Right to a Nationality is a Constitutional Right that Should Never be Restricted or Violated

His Excellency the Prime Minister and the Minister of the Interior, Dr. Mohammad Ishtayya

Subject: The Right to a Nationality is a Constitutional Right that Should Never be Restricted or Violated

MUSAWA- The Palestinian Center for the Independence of the Judiciary and the Legal Profession extends its warmest greetings to your Excellency, noting that on 12/1/2020, the center received a complaint from Sabrine Al-Terri, from Gaza, on behalf of her sick husband, Omar Al-Terri, stating that he was prevented from renewing his passport, which he needed for receiving treatment abroad. The complainant addressed the competent official authorities to renew his passport, which expired on 27/06/2008. However, he was surprised that the Ministry of the Interior refused to renew his passport for security reasons that were kept classified by your ministry, noting that the complainant’s last application in this regard was duly submitted to the Ministry of the Interior on 30/07/2019. The complainant added that he is a Palestinian citizen and the bearer of identity card no. (800911364), indicating that his deprivation from renewing his passport led to the deterioration of his health and neurological conditions, which could be fatal according to the attached medical reports.

MUSAWA believes that the contents of the complaint, if true, entail a serious violation of human rights, foremost among which is the right to life and the right to citizenship, which shall not be violated or denied according to the provisions of the Basic Law, since they are part of the citizenship rights and proceeding from the fact that the passport is a legal expression of nationality and citizenship and a proof of the national affiliation of any citizen or nation, and that the deprivation or restriction of the citizens access to such rights, regardless of the grounds, is constitutionally prohibited, as it violates the right to life, existence, human dignity and national descent, contradicts with the Basic Law, breaches the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, impairs the citizen's constitutional right of movement, which may only be restricted by a judicial ruling, and constitutes a penalty that violates personal freedom, which is a natural right that shall not be restricted without a legal cause or justification, taking into account that human rights and fundamental freedoms shall be respected under the Basic Law and the international treaties and conventions to which Palestine has acceded, not to mention that the provisions of the law are binding on all, which requires holding accountable those who violate them, and that the court does not have the right to act both as the plaintiff and the judge. Based on the foregoing, if there is anything that condemns the defendant and requires prosecuting him, the court can initiate its proceedings following the enforceable methods and legal means and procedures provided by the law, to give effect to the principle of separation of powers, and having regard to fair trial guarantees and the right of defense, bearing in mind that the Basic Law and the applicable laws do not contain any provisions that propose the revocation or deprivation of nationality as a penalty, thus, the ministry's decision to deprive the complainant of his right to obtain a passport is a serious violation of the laws and regulations in force, and therefore it must be immediately reversed. Therefore, MUSAWA demands that you instruct the departments and personnel of your distinguished ministry to cancel all procedures and decisions that prevent the complainant from obtaining a passport, to respond to his request promptly, and to provide him with a passport instantly, since he is a Palestinian citizen, whose nationality is not a subject of discussion, and since obtaining a passport is a sacred right that shall not be violated. Concerning the right to travel, we note that the judiciary alone has the competence to ban citizens from traveling temporarily when there are sufficient grounds for banning them from traveling in accordance with the law.

With All Due Respect,

Issued on 11/2/2020

MUSAWA