UNHCR- Protect rights of African asylum seekers in Israel
Dear friends and allies around the world -
We write to you as the united African asylum seeker community in Israel. We are over 50,000 people, mostly from Eritrea and Sudan.
While most of the world recognizes us as refugees – the State of Israel does not. Instead, it has chosen a policy of imprisonment, deportation and incitement against us.
Next week, over a thousand asylum seekers in Israel will be sent to Holot “open” prison in the remote Negev desert. Many of them are fathers and husbands. Israel's Immigration authorities make daily arbitrary arrests while the Ministry of Interior obstructs renewal of short term visas. Our asylum seeker prisoners are pressured to sign “voluntary” departure forms that will put their lives at risk.
Last month, 200 asylum seeker prisoners marched out of Holot prison to the Israeli Parliament, demanding their freedom and recognition as refugees. They have been violently arrested and are on hunger strike in Saharonim prison since 5 January 2014.
We live in fear, facing a future of imprisonment or deportation.
For the past month, we have held peaceful, mass popular protest. Our whole community united to participate in general strike, mass demonstrations in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, appeals to the Israeli Government, UNHCR Israel and International Embassies, in an attempt to make our voice heard – We are refugees! Not Infiltrators! Not criminals! We need asylum! We need protection! So far, our cry has been ignored.
We now turn to global civil society for your help – Join your voice to ours. Please support us by adding your signature to our letter addressed to the High Commissioner of the UN's Refugee Agency in Geneva.
We ask the UNHCR to uphold its responsibility towards us as the safeguard of refugee rights.
We demand the UNHCR upholds Israel to the UN'S Refugee Convention and directly monitors our asylum request procedures. If Israel will not recognize us as refugees- it is the UNHCR's responsibility to resettle us in countries that respect the human rights of refugees according to international standards and remove Israel's signature from the UN's Refugee Convention.
This is our letter-
Dear Mr. António Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Geneva.
We are writing to you as the united community of African asylum seekers living in Israel. More than 50,000 asylum seekers currently reside in Israel, with few that have ever been granted refugee status.
We are refugees. We did not come to Israel for a better life. While in many other countries we would be acknowledged as refugees, the Israeli government has repeatedly denied the fundamental reality of our situation. The government of Israel has refused to determine our refugee status in any systematic or transparent manner through a fair and efficient Refugee Status Determination (RSD) process that allows us to have our claims individually heard. Instead, it has chosen a policy of imprisonment and incitement against us.
On December 11th, 2013, the government of Israel passed a new amendment to the Prevention of Infiltration law, in response to the recent High Court of Justice (HCJ) decision that overturned previous amendments to the law. The new amendment allows for one year of closed detention followed by indefinite detention without judicial review in an “open” detention facility called Holot. In reality, it is an isolated desert prison. Israel is also employing a policy of arbitrary arrests and coerced return by pressuring refugee prisoners into signing "voluntary" departure forms in exchange for a $3500 departure grant.
In mid December, around 200 asylum seekers walked out of Holot desert detention facility and after three days of traveling arrived in Jerusalem to protest their conditions and demand freedom. Following this march, they were violently arrested and have been confined in Saharonim Prison. Since January 5th, 150 of these asylum seekers have been on an ongoing hunger strike that they intend to continue until there is a response from the international community. We share the words of one of the hunger strikers, who spoke for the many in saying "We shall live like human beings with basic rights or we shall not live at all."
Drawing inspiration from their brave actions, on January 5th the community of African Asylum seekers in Israel announced a general strike, demanding that Israel finally adhere to its obligations under the 1951 Refugee Convention and undertake an honest, thorough determination of our refugee status through a reformed RSD process.
We have since been leading a peaceful, respectful, mass popular struggle with the participation of our whole community. We have held mass demonstrations of 30,000 refugees in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem, public assemblies in refugee communities across Israel, demonstrations and appeals to the international diplomats in Israel, and specifically to UNHCR Israel, who has repeatedly failed us over the years by deserting its obligation to criticize Israel's inhumane policies and safeguard our rights as asylum seekers in Israel.
With the progression of events over the past few weeks, we have brought forth our demands to the Government of Israel. These demands are:
Cancel the new amendment to the anti-infiltration law; stop all arrests; and release all asylum seekers and refugees.
Check individual asylum claims in a fair and transparent way, according to international standards. We demand direct UNHCR involvement and monitoring of the RSD procedure from start to end.
Start respecting the human rights of refugees, including social rights, health and welfare.
The responses so far have been disappointing. The UNHCR Israel made a public statement that the Israeli government’s policies do not adhere to the 1951 Refugee Convention. This is too little, too late.
Mr. Netanyahu's indirect response, reiterating a message that we often hear, was to state we are infiltrators, not refugees, and that his Government will step up the enforcement of its current policy of Imprisonment and coerced return.
This leaves us no choice but to turn to you for your IMMEDIATE intervention -
UNHCR - You are the international body in charge of monitoring whether the Israeli government meets its international obligations to the UN Refugee Convention. We call for your help in our time of need.
In consideration of our current predicament, we ask for the following:
Fulfill your obligation to uphold Israel to the international standard of the UN's Refugee Convention.
Supervise UNHCR Israel 's actions. Monitor and publicly criticize Israel's policies towards us, monitor directly its RSD procedures from start to end.
If Israel continues to deny our refugee status and avoids UNHCR direct monitoring of RSD procedures – We demand the UNHCR takes immediate and direct responsibility for our fate. If Israel does not abide, we ask to be re-settled in countries that respect the human rights of refugees according to international standards, in addition to Israel's signature being removed from the UN's Refugee Convention.
We will no longer be silent about Israel’s humiliation of the African refugee community. Our peaceful, popular struggle for our human rights and recognition of our refugee status continues.
On 22 January 2014 we expand our struggle in solidarity with the worlds Refugee population. We join all refugee communities around the world in their demand to uphold their human rights, dignity and freedom in their host countries and in their homelands.
We call on the entire global civil society to join their voices to ours in demand of refugee's human rights, in Israel and all countries, according to the UN's refugee convention.
Sincerely,
The Committee of African Asylum Seekers in Israel
contact | Freedom4refugees@gmail.com
follow | Freedom4Refugees in Israel- International Solidarity @ Facebook
watch | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AEZOoIxaDHE&feature=youtu.be