2020-06-06

West Bank and Gaza Strip

West Bank / Gaza / Announcement

Yes to the Content of the Family Protection Decree-Law If A, Entrusted Environment to its Implementation and to Prosecute the Hate Speech and the Incitement is Provided

Having considered the entire text of the draft decree-Law on family protection from violence, and while we reiterate our position that the adoption of decree-laws shall be ceased, particularly if these decree-laws involve unjustifiable discrimination, or do not comply with the requirements of article 43 of the Basic Law, we believe that the mentioned decree-law constitutes a societal need and an urgent imperative that shall be provided the legislative authority to guarantee the protection of Palestinian families from violence under a system of governance keen to implement it. Whereby it is inconceivable that the provisions of this decree-Law would be respected and guaranteed by institutions that adopt or practice violence and torture and do not follow the principles of efficiency and accountability impartially and effectively, not to mention that the policies and practices of the governing system violate the principle of the rule of law, the separation of powers, and the citizens’ rights and freedoms. Whereas the protection of victims of violence is not limited to criminating the acts of the violence they were subject to, but also requires the provision of a safe environment for the victims where they can undergo an appropriate rehabilitation therapy, monitoring individual and collective behavior at the official and civil levels alike, and considering the specialists’ views in accordance with the requirements of the public interest, particularly under the absence of participatory instruments of dialogue and the breakdown of confidence in the official performance, which resulted in doubting the provision of legitimacy to the contents of such legislation, and the official authorities' willingness to fulfill their responsibility to protect the families and the survivors of violence following effective criminal prosecution policies.

In this context, we believe that the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Social Development, which is the most familiar with the circumstances of Palestinian families, has hit the nail on the head by describing this decree-law as a national and humanitarian demand. On the other hand, we believe that the buzz of intimidation, blasphemy, incitement, apostasy, and threats that filled out the social media pages would not undermine the significance, content, and necessity of such decree-law, noting that the circulation of the ambiguity of some of the articles was more akin to inciting hatred, instead of showing religious affiliation and allegiance, especially since this draft decree-law has been on the table since 2005, and since its essence draws on articles 5, 6, 9, 10 and 23 of the Basic law, which all adopt the provision of article nine that prohibits and criminalizes the acts of discrimination among Palestinians based upon race, sex, color, religion, political views or disability, drawing your attention to the fact that many families, especially women, suffer from various forms of physical, sexual, economic and psychological violence, which in many cases has led to honor killing or deprivation of the right to inheritance.

Proceeding from the fact that respecting and protecting the family unit requires the provision of a legal mechanism to guarantee the inviolability of this unity and the psychological, social and economic observance of its human nature, which shall promote social integration that respects and protects individual and collective rights, root out the foundations for violence, ignorance, poverty, disintegration, addiction to drugs, extremism, isolationism, repression, and violation of human dignity and citizenship rights, and confront the culture of ignorance and possession of lives and bodies, which have been manifested in a series of violent offenses, which usually get concealed by covering them up or preventing their victims from reporting it or demanding justice and redress;

And given that the draft does not contain any texts, provisions, or articles that violate our social contract (the Basic Law) or prejudice human values and principles, but rather criminalize the exploitation of family members, especially women, juveniles, and older persons, depriving them of their economic and social rights, and degrading their physical and psychological dignity, address the act of deviation, torture, and intimidation against women, and provide the protection of their lives and human dignity;

And as we fully agree with Mr. Daoud Al-Deek's conclusion that the campaign of slander, defamation and apostasy led by some extremists is driven by their opposition to lifting the victims from the quagmire of violence, their insistence on depriving the victim of all forms of protection, and their endorsement and support of violence against women, of depriving their liberty without being held accountable, and of subjecting the initiation of criminal proceedings on domestic violence crimes to the victims’ complaint, which would never get filed before the competent bodies under the continued violence against the victim, manifested in preventing them from filing a complaint, insisting on keeping the guardianship and custody of the victim, even in case of domestic violence, maintaining the battered victim’s silence and submissiveness, concealing the crimes of domestic violence, preventing the providers of medical, educational, social or legal services from reporting the crimes of violence, disempowering the victim to obtain protection, and inducing the victim to drop her right, complaint, claim or usurped rights so their crimes can be committed in peace, away from accountability or redress. This attack was carried out by people who are practicing economic violence, forced labor, control over properties and archeological rights, and various forms of physical, psychological, and sexual violence as a source of wealth and as an expression of pride, arrogance, and domination, which are advantages they were granted by the current system, thus, they will fight to preserve;

We believe that official policies and practices have provided the legal basis for such acts, referring to the Constitutional Court's decision, which gave the values of treason and apostasy precedence over the constitutionally protected rights, by stating that international conventions and covenants guaranteeing human rights cannot be considered if they conflict with the religious and cultural identity, which was confirmed by the Government's statements.

Although we support the content of the draft decree-law, we believe that the governance policies and practices do not provide the tools and conditions necessary to respect it, and as we distinguish between expressing an opinion on a text, a provision, or an expression, with the aim of ensuring the right to community participation in the drafting of legislation, such as listing incest under criminal acts, and between characterizing its manner of application, with the aim of guaranteeing its legitimacy, its conformity with the legislation governing it, and its adoption of general rules concerning harmful acts and their consequences, we believe that the priority is to raise public confidence in the governance environment, and that the leaders of the campaign of incitement, threats and apostasy that we witnessed did not participate in the discussion on the mentioned legislation, demanding to publish the international covenants and agreements to which the state of Palestine is a party, including the Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW), in accordance with the Declaration of Independence, the Basic Law, and the International Conventions, before enforcing this decree-law.

 At the same time, we believe that the manifestations of disseminating hate speech and inciting violence should not be tolerated, as they constitute a crime that threatens social peace and draws on an obscurantist, takfirist ideology that shall be held accountable.

Issued on 6/6/2020

MUSAWA