Stand Strong with Palestinian Civil Society

Stand Strong with Palestinian Civil Society; Stand up for Human Rights

I stand in full solidarity with the six Palestinian civil society organisations - Addameer, Al-Haq, Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International - Palestine, Union of Agricultural Work Committees, Union of Palestinian Women's Committees* subjected to an escalated Israeli attack as a part of its settler-colonial and apartheid regime.

On 19 October 2021, these organisations were unlawfully designated by the Israeli colonial rule as “terror organisations,” under Israel’s domestic Counter-Terrorism Law, 2016.

This attack comes as part of an Israeli campaign against the Palestinian people and civil society to delegitimize, eliminate, and smear their human rights, gender, and social and environmental justice work. The organizations are targeted because of their powerful and professional work in documenting human rights violations and conducting advocacy to hold Israel accountable for its war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Palestinian civil society has been tirelessly documenting human rights violations, advocating for protection and justice, and offering legal and social support to the Palestinian people.The work of civil society is fundamental to upholding democratic practices and the protection of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, especially the right of self-determination and the right of Palestinian refugees to return.

Building solidarity with Palestinian civil society and mounting pressure on policymakers and representatives to take measures is needed now more than ever.

Join us in demanding concrete action to:

1. Demand that Israel rescind its unlawful designation of the six Palestinian organisations;
2. Ask your political representatives to issue political statements for the reversal of Israel’s unlawful designation criminalising the work of Palestinian CSOs;
3. Strongly condemn Israel’s anti human rights and discriminatory Counter-Terrorism Law;
4. Actively support Palestinian civil society in their human rights work.

Palestinian civil society should not be left alone in their fight for dignity, freedom, and self-determination. We cannot allow Palestinians to be silenced, and human rights defenders criminalised and targeted, neither in Palestine nor anywhere else in the world.

An attack on Palestinian civil society is an attack on universal struggles against oppression and colonisation.

*Follow #StandWithThe6 on social media to get updates, and learn more about the six organizations here:
http://www.addameer.org/
https://www.alhaq.org/
https://www.bisan.org/
https://www.dci-palestine.org/
https://www.uawc-pal.org/
http://upwc.org.ps/?lang=en