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| Issa Amro is merely the latest casualty of Palestine’s war on free speech | Issa Amro is merely the latest casualty of Palestine’s war on free speech |
| (14 days later) | |
| Last week, Palestinian human rights activist Issa Amro was released from Palestinian Authority (PA) police custody following a week-long illegal detention. His crime? Calling for the release, on Facebook, of a journalist detained by the PA for criticising Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and the authority itself. | Last week, Palestinian human rights activist Issa Amro was released from Palestinian Authority (PA) police custody following a week-long illegal detention. His crime? Calling for the release, on Facebook, of a journalist detained by the PA for criticising Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and the authority itself. |
| Amro is no stranger to arrest. As a human rights activist based in Hebron, he has used non-violent tactics to confront Israeli soldiers and settlers who seek to take over Palestinian homes in order to expand settlements. But his imprisonment by the PA is different: Amro is being charged with “causing division” among Palestinians and for speaking ill of the authority, based on a new law issued by Abbas’s presidential decree last month. | Amro is no stranger to arrest. As a human rights activist based in Hebron, he has used non-violent tactics to confront Israeli soldiers and settlers who seek to take over Palestinian homes in order to expand settlements. But his imprisonment by the PA is different: Amro is being charged with “causing division” among Palestinians and for speaking ill of the authority, based on a new law issued by Abbas’s presidential decree last month. |
| Known as the Electronic Crimes Law, this law broadly empowers the PA to imprison Palestinians for publishing on websites or social media any statement critical of Abbas, his rule or the authority. It also allows it to block any website critical of Abbas. | Known as the Electronic Crimes Law, this law broadly empowers the PA to imprison Palestinians for publishing on websites or social media any statement critical of Abbas, his rule or the authority. It also allows it to block any website critical of Abbas. |
| The passage of this law, and the PA’s subsequent actions, make clear that neither Israel nor the authority will tolerate dissent; their respective actions do not simply target the press but also those who speak out, as in the case of Amro. As part of Israel’s tactics to quash dissent, it has arrested Palestinians, including Palestinian citizens of Israel, for writing poems, for criticising Israel on Facebook and for broadcasting stories critical of Israel, its occupation or leadership. To this end, Israel recently announced it would ban al-Jazeera from operating for allegedly inciting violence. Israel also is working tirelessly to try to quash the growing Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement (BDS) by targeting its supporters, and attempting to criminalise support for it. | The passage of this law, and the PA’s subsequent actions, make clear that neither Israel nor the authority will tolerate dissent; their respective actions do not simply target the press but also those who speak out, as in the case of Amro. As part of Israel’s tactics to quash dissent, it has arrested Palestinians, including Palestinian citizens of Israel, for writing poems, for criticising Israel on Facebook and for broadcasting stories critical of Israel, its occupation or leadership. To this end, Israel recently announced it would ban al-Jazeera from operating for allegedly inciting violence. Israel also is working tirelessly to try to quash the growing Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement (BDS) by targeting its supporters, and attempting to criminalise support for it. |
| To be clear, the arrest of activists is not a new phenomenon: for years, effectively serving as Israel’s military subcontractor, the PA has arrested Palestinian activists and others who speak out. While Abbas and Israel often try to portray these individuals as affiliated with Hamas, in reality the arrests extend beyond that organisation. | To be clear, the arrest of activists is not a new phenomenon: for years, effectively serving as Israel’s military subcontractor, the PA has arrested Palestinian activists and others who speak out. While Abbas and Israel often try to portray these individuals as affiliated with Hamas, in reality the arrests extend beyond that organisation. |
| So close are the connections between the two that in August alone, the authority arrested five Palestinian journalists and bloggers in the West Bank, accusing them of “tarnishing the image” of the authority and “spreading false news”. Just weeks before these arrests, Israeli soldiers raided three Palestinian media offices in the West Bank and arrested journalists. Some of these same offices were also targets of the PA’s arrest campaign. | So close are the connections between the two that in August alone, the authority arrested five Palestinian journalists and bloggers in the West Bank, accusing them of “tarnishing the image” of the authority and “spreading false news”. Just weeks before these arrests, Israeli soldiers raided three Palestinian media offices in the West Bank and arrested journalists. Some of these same offices were also targets of the PA’s arrest campaign. |
| Abbas’s actions are those of all weak leaders, who are so afraid to address dissent that they instead try to quash it | Abbas’s actions are those of all weak leaders, who are so afraid to address dissent that they instead try to quash it |
| This dangerous trend – of imprisoning activists for speaking out and journalists for publishing pieces critical of government action – speaks volumes about Abbas and his rule. Abbas has presided over the PA for more than 12 years, even though he was only elected to serve for four. During this time, he has passed twice the number of laws through presidential decree as were passed democratically by the Palestinian parliament in its 10 years of operation. Throughout his rule, Abbas has crushed any Palestinian resistance, including non-violent protests. He remains wedded to a failed and deeply flawed negotiations process, even though history has demonstrated that negotiations between occupied and occupier will never succeed. He has entrenched Palestinian donor dependency and ensured that dissent, even within his own political party, will face dire consequences. | This dangerous trend – of imprisoning activists for speaking out and journalists for publishing pieces critical of government action – speaks volumes about Abbas and his rule. Abbas has presided over the PA for more than 12 years, even though he was only elected to serve for four. During this time, he has passed twice the number of laws through presidential decree as were passed democratically by the Palestinian parliament in its 10 years of operation. Throughout his rule, Abbas has crushed any Palestinian resistance, including non-violent protests. He remains wedded to a failed and deeply flawed negotiations process, even though history has demonstrated that negotiations between occupied and occupier will never succeed. He has entrenched Palestinian donor dependency and ensured that dissent, even within his own political party, will face dire consequences. |
| Thus, instead of effecting a strategy to unite Palestinians, to empower them and to liberate Palestine, Abbas has turned his sights on effecting the opposite: dividing Palestinians, disempowering them, and sticking to policies that will ensure their perpetual subjugation. His are the actions of similarly weak leaders, including Benjamin Netanyahu, who are so afraid to address dissent that they instead try to quash it. For its part, Israel has demonstrated that it will stop at nothing to maintain its 50-year military rule and continuing colonisation. | Thus, instead of effecting a strategy to unite Palestinians, to empower them and to liberate Palestine, Abbas has turned his sights on effecting the opposite: dividing Palestinians, disempowering them, and sticking to policies that will ensure their perpetual subjugation. His are the actions of similarly weak leaders, including Benjamin Netanyahu, who are so afraid to address dissent that they instead try to quash it. For its part, Israel has demonstrated that it will stop at nothing to maintain its 50-year military rule and continuing colonisation. |
| The international community unflinchingly supports Israel and the PA, even as both continue to demonstrate that they are repressive regimes. It may be easy and convenient to dismiss these actions as being necessary for the sake of “security”, as both Israel and the authority continuously assert. But when regimes begin criminalising speech and claiming that it must be quashed for the sake of “security” or in order not to “tarnish” a regime, we should be very worried. For if a well-known activist such as Issa Amro is deemed fair game, so too are the rest of us. | The international community unflinchingly supports Israel and the PA, even as both continue to demonstrate that they are repressive regimes. It may be easy and convenient to dismiss these actions as being necessary for the sake of “security”, as both Israel and the authority continuously assert. But when regimes begin criminalising speech and claiming that it must be quashed for the sake of “security” or in order not to “tarnish” a regime, we should be very worried. For if a well-known activist such as Issa Amro is deemed fair game, so too are the rest of us. |
| • Diana Buttu is a Palestinian-Canadian lawyer and a former spokesperson for the Palestine Liberation Organisation | • Diana Buttu is a Palestinian-Canadian lawyer and a former spokesperson for the Palestine Liberation Organisation |