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Friday, April 18, 2014
Not a parody: Senior PA official argues that Palestinian legislators who murder Israelis enjoy immunity

Not a parody: Senior PA official argues that Palestinian legislators who
murder Israelis enjoy immunity

"Where else in the world could a State imprison the elected representatives
of another country"


Statement by Erekat Marking the Day of the Palestinian Prisoner
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=24936

RAMALLAH, April 17, 2014 (WAFA - PLO news agency) – Staggering 800,000
Palestinians have been arrested by Israeli forces since 1967. 5224 remain
incarcerated today, including administrative, sick, female and children
detainees. These numbers reflect one of the worst experiences of
imprisonment in contemporary history, designed to break the will of an
entire nation seeking freedom.

A statement by Palestine Liberation Organization Negotiations Affairs
Department stated that Israel must choose between the pursuit of occupation
and the pursuit of peace. Each settlement, each arrest, each violation, each
refusal to abide by its commitments and obligations, shows that Israel is
heading in the wrong direction. But history teaches us that justice
prevails. We follow the example of Nelson Mandela and the people of South
Africa. No oppression, no denial of rights can continue forever.

For Palestinians, having loved ones in prison is not the exception: it is
something which has affected every Palestinian family. In the context of
prolonged occupation, Israel- a foreign military power- has unlawfully
imposed itself on the land of another people and has oppressed millions, in
many varying ways. The plight of the prisoners reflects the plight of the
Palestinian people as a whole, said the statement.

The statement said that Israel has criminalized all forms of resistance,
both armed and peaceful, and even political and civic engagement. The
Palestinian leadership has chosen to resist through diplomatic and peaceful
means, in order to achieve the Palestinian people's inalienable rights, as
enshrined in international law. We now need to demonstrate to our people
that this path leads to freedom and justice in an independent and democratic
State of Palestine. Exist so that we can coexist.

The release of the Palestinian prisoners will be the first signal that
freedom is on the way, said the statement.

Now, we await the release of the remaining 30 Pre-Oslo prisoners still
captive in occupation prisons. These are people who have been incarcerated
for over 20 years. Karim Younes, the longest serving of these prisoners, has
spent over 32 years of his life in Israeli jails.

Israel committed to releasing these prisoners as part of the Oslo Agreement
in 1993, again in 1999 through the Sharm el-Sheikh agreement, and a third
time in July 2013. In July last year, we agreed to postpone our accession to
multilateral treaties and conventions for nine months in order to finally
release the 104 Pre-Oslo prisoners. We fulfilled our commitment. Israel, yet
again, did not.

Where else in the world could a State imprison the elected representatives
of another country with such impunity? The national leader Marwan Barghouthi
was the first Member of Parliament to be detained. April 15th 2014 marked
the 12th anniversary of his abduction.

There has been a total of 50 Palestinian parliamentarians in Israeli jails
at one time or another, equivalent to over one third of the Palestinian
Parliament. Eleven remain detained today, including the Secretary General of
the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine Ahmed Saadat.

The level of support gathered by the International campaign for the freedom
of Marwan Barghouthi and all Palestinian prisoners, and the signing of the
Robben Island Declaration by prominent international figures, including six
Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, church leaders, artists, parliamentarians,
human rights figures, trade unions, and thousands of citizens, sends a clear
message that must be heard: “freedom of the Palestinian prisoners and
freedom of the Palestinian people will pave the way to peace.”

T.R.

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