Palestinians face “physical, social and psychological destruction”
New York. At a press briefing on November 12, Jean Ziegler, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, will discuss the findings of a new report condemning Israel for creating a hidden humanitarian crisis through denying the right to food and water to 3.8 million Palestinians in the Occupied Territories.
“Behind the headlines of military conflict and escalating violence, there is a continuing physical, social and psychological destruction of a whole and very ancient society,” said Ziegler. “This tragedy is being largely ignored by world public opinion, the mass media, and the international community of nations.”
Among the main findings of his report:
- 22% of Palestinian children under five are suffering from malnutrition—a three-fold increase from 2000.
- 9.3% suffer acute malnutrition—an eight-fold increase from 2000.
- 15.6% suffer acute anemia, which can lead to permanent impairment of physical and mental development.
- Food consumption has fallen 30% per capita; 60% of Palestinian households now live in acute poverty; and 50% are dependent on international food aid.
“The main causes of this humanitarian catastrophe are Israeli practices of closures, curfews, and denial of free movement even to sick persons and relief organizations,” said Ziegler. “These practices are rooted in an overall policy of occupation that continues to expand Jewish settlements in the OPT, isolate Palestinian communities from one another, and destroy Palestinian homes and farmland. Population transfer from the occupying state to occupied territory is expressly prohibited by Article 49 of the 4th Geneva Convention, yet almost 500,000 Israeli citizens now live in the OPT, including East Jerusalem.”
Mr. Ziegler is the first UN human rights representative ever to be granted access by the Israeli government to report on conditions in the OPT. As a prominent sociology professor in Swizerland, he is well known for his research exposing the complicity of Swiss banks in exploiting Jewish victims of the Holocaust.
From 3-13 July, 2003, he traveled with and interviewed Israeli political leaders and military commanders, UN officials and relief workers, and representatives from Israeli, Palestinian and international NGOs. His report relies on the most recent statistical data from the World Bank, UN missions and agencies, U.S. university surveys, the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, and NGO reports.
Ziegler reports that Israeli commanders acknowledged and regretted the humanitarian crisis yet insisted that the security requirements of Israeli citizens, both inside the Green Line and in the OPT, necessitated drastic measures.
“The Israeli government has the right and obligation to assure the security of its citizens,” said Ziegler. “As any other sensible human being, I deeply regret the violence that has cost the lives of over 800 Israelis and 2700 Palestinians over the past 3 years. But the systematic denial of adequate food and water to an occupied people constitutes an act of collective punishment prohibited under any standard of international law. If Israel is allowed to continue these policies, particularly the ongoing construction of the separation wall and the bantustanization of the OPT, there will be no possibility for a future Palestinian state to guarantee the right to food for its citizens. The international community has a vital interest in taking effective action to safeguard the human rights of Palestinians and Israelis alike.”
For further information, please contact:
Jean Ziegler
United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food
(212) 490-8900 room 623
Roger Normand
Executive Director
Center for Economic and Social Rights
(718) 237-9145 ext. 12