On the occasion of the international day to honor the disabled, the
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights is calling on the international
community to intervene in Palestine. The call is issued to all parties of
international law makers, including the High Contracting Parties to the
Fourth Geneva Convention of 1949, all components on the United Nations,
and intergovernmental organizations and non-governmental organizations.
The Gaza City-based NGO, PCHR, is calling for said parties to pressure the Israeli military authorities to cease and desist its violations of the norms of international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and to stop its violations against the Palestinian civilian population.
The PCHR also called for the immediate cessation of all violations by the Israeli military occupation authorities against Palestinians with disabilities, including the killings and injuries to which they have been subjected. “All attacks against institutions of the care, rehabilitation, and education of the disabled must also stop.”
Sunday's statement includes a call to the international community to force the government of Israel to abide international law, to respect international conventions and human rights treaties, including those for the disabled. They called on donor countries to immediately stop their complicity in the United States-led political and economic blockade as the “economic and social aspects are devastating to all levels of Palestinians society, leading to further impoverishment, deprivation, and deteriorating living conditions.”
The Palestinian Authority is being tasked to update the Rights of the Disabled Palestinian to aid in helping the disabled provide decent lives for themselves and their families through increased education and work programs. The PCHR is also calling for ministries and government institutions to adhere to the provision of the law in order to ensure that the minimum of five percent of ministry and government positions are held by disabled people.
Since the Intifada began in September 2000, Israeli forces have killed 79 Palestinians with disabilities such as Down Syndrome.
