Freedom in the World 1998 - Palestinian Authority-Administered Territories

1998 Scores

Status: Not Free
Freedom Rating: 5.5
Civil Liberties: 6
Political Rights: 5

Overview

Accusations of autocratic leadership, mismanagement, and rampant corruption plagued Palestinian leader Yassir Arafat throughout 1998, and led the marginalized Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) to threaten its first no-confidence vote against his government. As his popularity wanes, support for the militant Islamic Hamas grows and presents a creeping challenge to Arafat's authority. Hamas' increasing political influence presents a dilemma for Arafat, who has promised to crack down on its activists as part of peace negotiations with Israel. The Middle East peace process remains deadlocked despite a breakthrough agreement in October. Israeli leaders refused to implement the terms of the agreement, calling Palestinian efforts to guarantee Israeli security inadequate.

The West Bank, Gaza, and East Jerusalem came under the British Mandate in 1920. Jordan seized East Jerusalem and the West Bank in 1948, while Egypt took control of Gaza. In the 1967 Six Day War, Israel took the West Bank, Gaza, East Jerusalem, and the Golan Heights, which had been used by Syria to shell towns in northern Israel. Israel annexed East Jerusalem in 1967, and the Golan Heights in 1981.

Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza began attacking mainly military targets in 1987 to protest Israeli rule in what became known as the intifada (uprising). A series of secret negotiations between Israel and Arafat's Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) conducted in Oslo, Norway produced an agreement in August 1993. The Declaration of Principles provides for three Israeli troop withdrawals and gradual Palestinian autonomy in the West Bank and Gaza before mid-1998, and negotiations on the final status of East Jerusalem and the fate of refugees by May 1999.

Elections for the first Palestinian Legislative Council and head of the Council's executive authority were held in January 1996, and were considered to be generally free and fair. Independents won 35 of the 88 Council seats, while Arafat's Fatah movement won the remainder. Arafat won the leadership of the executive authority with 88 percent of the vote.

The Oslo agreement has languished since the election of Netanyahu's conservative Likud government in 1996. Dependent on the votes of ultra-conservatives who oppose the peace process, Netanyahu has stalled implementation of Oslo by continuing to build Jewish settlements in disputed territories while accusing Arafat of reneging on promises to combat terrorism. Under the provisions of Oslo implemented so far, the Palestinians have full autonomy in three percent of the West Bank, with another 24 percent jointly controlled. Most of Gaza and the West Bank town of Jericho were turned over to the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in May 1994, and in late 1995, Israel began redeploying its forces in the West Bank. An interim agreement concluded in January 1997 provided for Israeli redeployment in Hebron, a West Bank town with Jewish and Muslim holy sites.

After months of pressure from the U.S., Netanyahu and Arafat met for nine days of intense negotiations at Wye River Plantation, Maryland. On October 23, they signed an interim agreement for a second Israeli redeployment, from 13.1 percent of the West Bank, in exchange for Palestinian security guarantees. The Wye agreement also provides for the transfer of 14.2 percent of jointly controlled land to Palestinian control; CIA monitoring of Palestinian anti-terrorism measures; the revocation of clauses in the Palestinian National Charter deemed hostile to Israel; an Israeli guarantee of two safe passages between the West Bank and Gaza; the release of 750 Palestinian prisoners; and the opening of a Palestinian airport at Gaza. However, Netanyahu formally suspended implementation of the agreement in December after the beating of an Israeli soldier by Palestinians in the West Bank.

Allegations of corruption and abuse of power have been increasingly problematic for Arafat's government. His autocratic tendencies have put him at odds with the PLC. In early 1998, he announced an indefinite freeze on local elections. In late April, Attorney General Fayez Abu Rahma resigned after just nine months in office, citing government interference in the judicial process. In May, the PLC threatened a no-confidence vote against the government, but Arafat sidestepped the motion by agreeing to a cabinet reshuffle. The announcement of a "new" cabinet in August drew harsh criticism; Arafat had simply added ten ministers to the original lineup.

Government corruption and popular disaffection with the peace process have benefited Hamas, an Islamic group whose military wing is largely responsible for terrorist attacks against Israel. Vocal opposition to Israel and to Oslo has turned Hamas into a political alternative to Arafat's Fatah even as the Palestinian leader, under western pressure, routinely jails Hamas activists. Sheikh Ahmad Yassin, founder and spiritual leader of Hamas, was warmly received as he toured the Middle East in 1998, capitalizing on the deadlock in the peace process and denouncing Arafat for undermining Palestinian unity.

In what is seen by Palestinians as a major diplomatic victory, the United Nations General Assembly in July voted 124-4 to upgrade Palestinian status to "non-voting member." The new status allows Palestinian representatives to raise issues, co-sponsor draft resolutions on Middle East peace, and reply on record to speeches made in the chamber. Palestinians had been granted observer status in the UN in 1974.

Political Rights and Civil Liberties

Palestinian residents of the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem chose their first popularly elected government in 1996. Despite some irregularities, international observers regarded the vote as reasonably reflective of the will of the voters. The PLC has complained of being marginalized by executive authority; though it has debated hundreds of draft laws, only one has been signed into law. The Palestinian government indefinitely postponed local elections in May, citing the threat of Israeli interference. However, most believe that democratic municipal elections would reflect widespread Palestinian disillusionment with Oslo and Arafat's leadership.

Although the PLC passed a Basic Law in 1997, the government has not approved it. Such a law would outline the separation between legislative and executive authority, and presumably curtail Arafat's authority.

The PNA judiciary, consisting of criminal, civil, and state security courts, is not independent. Attorney General Fayez Abu Rahma resigned in April because of what he called continuous intervention by the minister of justice and the security services in judicial matters. The Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment (LAW) described a "precarious situation ... in which the judiciary has been seriously undermined, its decisions disregarded, and the Attorney General's position eroded." The post remained unfilled at year's end.

Palestinian judges lack proper training and experience. Israeli demands for a Palestinian crackdown on terrorism have given rise to state security courts, which lack almost all due process rights. Suspected Islamic militants are rounded up en masse and often held without charge or trial. There are reportedly some 1,200 administrative detainees currently in the PNA. Trials are conducted in secret and sentences are often issued only hours after arrest. Human Rights Watch reported that judges who complained about judicial abuses faced retaliation. Of 23 death sentences issued since 1994, only two have been carried out. Brothers Mohammad and Ra'id Abu Sultan, both military intelligence agents, were executed on August 30 for murdering two brothers in a dispute.

Palestinian security forces routinely abuse, and sometimes torture, detainees. This practice is not prohibited under Palestinian law. Two Palestinians died in custody during 1998; at least one from torture.

Palestinians accused by Israel of security offenses in Israeli-controlled areas are tried in Israeli military courts. Security offenses are broadly defined. Some due process protections exist in these courts, though there are limits on the right to counsel, bail, and the right to appeal. Administrative detention is widely used. Most convictions in military courts are based on confessions, which are often obtained through torture. Confessions are usually spoken in Arabic and translated into Hebrew for official records. Palestinian detainees seldom read Hebrew and thus sign confessions that they cannot read.

Human Rights Watch reported widespread and systematic torture and ill-treatment during interrogation by the Israeli General Security Services (GSS). Israeli authorities investigate allegations of torture, but the results of such investigations are generally not made public. At least three Palestinians died in Israeli custody in 1998. Pursuant to the Wye accord, Israel released some 250 Palestinian prisoners in November. However, those released were mostly common criminals rather than political prisoners.

Israel continued to destroy Palestinian homes built without permits throughout 1998, displacing hundreds. Building permits are nearly impossible for West Bank Palestinians to obtain. In addition, Israel revoked permanent residency permits of Palestinian residents of East Jerusalem who could not prove that their "center of life" was within the city's municipal boundaries. Along with residency rights, these Palestinians lost health insurance and other social benefits. Meanwhile, the Israeli government approved the vast expansion and construction of Jewish settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, offering economic incentives to prospective Jewish settlers.

Israeli soldiers shoot rubber-coated bullets indiscriminately at Palestinian demonstrators. Clashes between Palestinians, who often throw stones, and Israeli soldiers resulted in the deaths of at least 16 Palestinians in 1998, including a 13 year-old boy. Four Palestinians were killed by Israeli security forces at military checkpoints and roadblocks, and Israeli officers killed several other Palestinians whom they claimed were involved in acts of terrorism. A 1997 draft law limits the right of Palestinians to claim compensation for wrongful injury or death caused by Israeli soldiers.

Under a 1995 press law, journalists may be fined and jailed and newspapers closed for publishing "secret information" on Palestinian security forces or news that might harm national unity or incite violence. Several small private radio and television stations are pressured by authorities to provide favorable coverage of Arafat and the PNA. Official Palestinian radio and television are government mouthpieces. In 1998, a Reuters office and a television station were shut down. Late in the year, dozens of journalists were arrested and numerous news offices were temporarily closed for covering pro-Iraqi demonstrations.

Newspapers are subject to Israeli censorship on security matters, though such control has eased since 1993. Israeli authorities prohibit expressions of support for Hamas and other groups that call for the destruction of Israel. Numerous journalists were injured by Israeli security forces while covering clashes with Palestinians during 1998.

The Israeli government limits freedom of assembly; military orders ban public gatherings of ten or more persons without a permit, though they are generally only enforced with regard to Palestinians. The PNA requires permits for rallies and demonstrations, and prohibits violence and racist sloganeering. Private Palestinian organizations must register with Israeli authorities. In the PNA, Palestinian and pro-Islamic organizations that oppose Arafat's government have been harassed and detained.

Freedom of movement is heavily restricted by Israeli authorities. All West Bank and Gaza residents must have identification cards in order to obtain entry permits to Israel and Jerusalem. Israel often denies permits to applicants with no explanation. Even senior Palestinian officials are subject to long delays and searches at Israeli West Bank checkpoints. Residents of Gaza are rarely given permission to enter the West Bank, and vice-versa. Israel continued to impose curfews in areas of the West Bank during Israeli and religious holidays, which are considered high risk periods. During curfews, Israelis are generally free to move about while Palestinians are confined to their homes. Israel frequently seals off the West Bank and Gaza in response to terrorist attacks, preventing tens of thousands of Palestinians from traveling to their jobs in Israel and causing economic hardship.

Palestinian women are underrepresented in most professions, and encounter discrimination in employment. Under shari'a (Islamic) law, women are disadvantaged in marriage, divorce, and inheritance matters. Rape, domestic abuse, and "honor killings," in which unmarried women thought not to be virgins are murdered by male relatives, continue. Since societal pressures prevent reporting of such incidents, the exact frequency of attacks is unknown.

Labor affairs in the West Bank and Gaza are governed by a combination of Jordanian law and PNA decisions pending the enactment of new Palestinian labor codes. Workers may establish and join unions without government authorization. Palestinian workers seeking to strike must submit to arbitration by the PNA ministry of labor. There are no laws in the PNA-ruled areas to protect the rights of striking workers. Palestinian workers in Jerusalem are subject to Israeli labor law.