Date: 9th November 2014 (13/2014)
The Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) is extremely concerned by the detainment of the President of the Public Servants Trade Union (PSTU) Bassam Zakarneh and his Deputy Moein Ansawi by the Palestinian police. On Thursday, 6/11/2014, the Palestinian police summoned Trade Union’s President and Deputy and held them until Sunday 9/11/2014. They were brought before the Public Prosecution for interrogation on charges of joining an “illegal association”. Their detention was extended for (48) hours.
In a related context, the Preventive Security Agency arrested on Sunday 9/11/2014 a number of the Trade Union’s members while they were protesting against the detention of the Union’s President and Deputy before Ramallah Court.
ICHR does not find legal excuses for detaining these citizens and depriving them of their personal freedoms especially that their detention was as a result of enjoying their rights to participate in trade union activities. These rights are protected in the Palestinian Basic Law and international human rights standards.
ICHR emphasizes that personal freedoms of citizens should be respected and restricting these freedoms should be in exceptional cases according to Article (11) of the Palestinian Basic Law that states that “personal freedom is a natural right and shall be guaranteed and may not be violated. It is unlawful to arrest, search, imprison, restrict the freedom, or prevent the movement of any person, except by judicial order in accordance with the provisions of the law”. Articles (25) and (26) also emphasize that the fundamental rights and freedoms should be protected. The articles state that “organization of unions is a right that should be regulated by law and unions, associations, societies, clubs and popular institutions should be in accordance with the law”.
In the same breath, ICHR recalls that Palestine accession to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights abides Palestine to respect its obligations nationally and internationally and to protect the right to form unions and become a member in other unions. It is not permitted to restrict this right in a democratic society unless there is a legal excuse such as for national security, public safety, public order, public health protection, public decorum or protection of the rights and freedoms of others.
According to the above, ICHR calls for:
- Respecting rights and freedoms mentioned in the Palestinian Basic Law especially personal freedoms and prohibition of detention without judicial warrants.
- Reviewing the legal excuses and detention circumstances of the Trade Union’s President, Deputy and members by the judicial police.
- Achieving balance between the right to trade union activities and strike on one hand and the public interest of citizens on the other. Strikes should take place according to certain measures in accordance with the law.
