The Executive Summary of the Annual
Report 2015
The lawful conditions of the
Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon
The observer to the general lawful conditions of the
Palestinian refugees in Lebanon observes directly the nullity of occurrence of
any substantial change in the Lebanese laws towards the Palestinian Refugees in
Lebanon, and the affairs are still swaying in their places in depriving the
Palestinian Refugees from the right of possession and work in tens of
professions especially the free professions as medicine, engineering, legal
practice and pharmacy, besides the strict chains in allowing the expansion of
the area of the camps or admitting building materials to them.
As
the year 2015 passed, the Palestinian Refugees are still waiting impatiently
the changing of their travel documents, from documents written by hand and un
magnetized to magnetized documents and biometric, as the International Civil
Aviation Organization stipulated, and what complications that caused in the
travel of Palestinian Refugees wherever granting them travel visas to travel by
these documents or regarding the Airlines permission for them to ride on board.
Thus, the security look is still prevailing in the
Lebanese official dealing with the Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon, and the
Lebanese politicians are pleading with the obsession of settlement or
acquisition of the citizenship justifying their determination on non-granting
the Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon their civil, social, and economic rights.
The condition of the Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon
becoming more and more difficult year after year, and there is no clear view
with the meant in finding a legal and human approach for their suffering. And
consequently, what is the lawful and human reality of the Palestinian Refugees
in Lebanon during the year 2015 and what are the main recommendations issued
from this report for this year?
The Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon and the UNRWA
Instead of trying to
improve its services for Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon, especially, the guest
country "Lebanon" doesn't offer them any basic services and under the
auspices of depriving them from their civil, social and economic rights, UNRWA
hastened to decrease its services as follows:
- Reducing the services in the field of education through merging
schools and putting 50 students in the classroom.
- Suspension of employment operations for new teachers and employees,
and motivating old employees for early resignation.
-Giving compulsory leave and without salary to employees according to
what the administration perceives, without taking into consideration the living
condition of the employees.
-Reduction in the number of scholarships offered to university students
to more than 50% of the previous years.
- The deflation of health services and obligating the sick ones to
participate in a rate of the treatment surpassing their financial abilities,
despite the circumstances of poverty and unemployment that refugees suffer
from.
- Stopping the equivalent of lodging for the Palestinian Refugees from
Syria and the inhabitants of Nahr Al-Barid Camp who are still living in
temporary houses, garages and rented houses.
- The cancellation of the emergence program from the refugees of Nahr
Al-Barid Camp and reducing the services offered to them in education, health,
relief, and employment.
- The semi suspension of building of Nahr Al Barid camp, and what
entails that from loss of money on administrative problems, besides
administrative bureaucracy in dealing with all the files of Nahr Al Barid.
- The non-existence of strict control by UNRWA engineers for the
projects of rebuilding houses and executing projects of infrastructure in camps
which leads to the appearance some times of many blemishes and problems.
- Ending the contracts of employees whether on emergency programs, or
employees of stores, driving cars and trucks and not employing instead of them.
These steps of services
reduction aggravated the conditions of the Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon and
the Palestinian displaced from Syria, and exceeded their daily sufferings,
which resulted in a continuous wave of Palestinian refugees protests against
the policies of UNRWA, which are expected to continue in the next year 2016 if
UNRWA doesn't retreat from its resolutions.
The continuity of the Lebanese State in the Restraint of Admitting
Construction materials into the Palestinian Camps:
Since 1997 the Lebanese
State is still putting severe restrains on admitting building materials into
the Palestinian camps in Lebanon especially in Tyre and Saida area and from
these materials are the following:
(cement-pebbles-iron-sand-tiles-painting-doors and windows-electric
wires-reservoir) in the auspices of the continuity of depriving them from the
right of possession even a small living flat. The process of entering materials
was subjected to permissions granted form the Ministry of defense, as these permissions
were imposed in the UNRWA when it set out to perform the infrastructure, or
rehabilitation the houses of the refugees besides qualifying its premises inside
camps.
These restrains and
measures contradicted Item 11 from the international convention related to
economic, social and cultural rights for the year 1966, which confess the right
of every person to have a suitable living level. This includes the right of
enough nourishment, dress, and lodging and "in the continuous improvement
of his living circumstances". As it creates commitment on the sides to
work together and destroy hunger in the world.
These problems are repeated in camps
from time to time in terms of shelters collapse and occurrence of casualties.
The legal personality of the Palestinian Refugees : " The Travel
Documents and Evidence of Identity pattern":
Despite appointing an
original general director for the directorate of the political affairs and
refugees, whom the Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon were waiting impatiently to solve
many of their problems especially
registration of their newborn children, or contractions of marriage or other
documents and records which are suspended or delayed, that were previously
demanding an original general director, but this appointment of the original
director didn't change the previous state except at a very limited rate. Since
the director of the refugees and political affairs Mrs. Fatin Younis justifies
nonperformance of these delayed transactions, the necessity of charging a
committee of registration from the ministry of the Interior. And this will not
be implemented unless a resolution from the cabinet should take for this issue.
So this new director did not perform any radical
change in the file of IDs of the Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon, so many of
the transactions are still delayed without any horizon for any solution.
Similarly, a group of rumors were issued about the release of the magnetic
identity cards for Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon in 2015, and that was after
a series of demands presented by the legal and human rights institutions to the
Lebanese Ministry of the Interior and to the Lebanese and Palestinian Dialogue
committee in Lebanon. But this affair is still under the seal of secrecy and
didn't catch sight, and what negative reflection that has on the refugees and
their IDs.
As for the travel documents
of Palestinian Refugees and which are issued by the directorate general of
the Lebanese public security, the year 2015 has been finished without the
occurrence of any change despite the previous promises from the Lebanese
authorities, that there will be mechanization for IDs and travel documents
related to Palestinian Refugees in Lebanon, but it is still the same with huge
size, not identical to the international specifications as for the possibility
of scanning. Although the International Civil Aviation Organization (IKAW)
declared that it will stop using documents and passports which are un biometric
and written with hand after the date 24-11-2015, but it overlooked temporarily
the travel documents of the Palestinian Refugees on conditions of changing them
as soon as possible, and this demands from the Lebanese Government the
necessity of finding a quick solution to this problem.
The Waves of Immigration of Palestinian Refugees from Lebanon and Syria:
The year 2015 witnessed great immigration
waves of Palestinian Refugees from Lebanon and Syria to Europe through the
Sudanese and Lybian deserts and across seas from Turkey and other areas, due to
the difficult economic circumstances from which the Refugees in Lebanon suffer.
The Conditions of Palestinian Refugees from Syria in Lebanon:
The Palestinian Refugees
from Syria are still suffering from the illegitimate existence in Lebanon, and
restrains on movement without getting residence or permission from the Army
Intelligence and the capture of many on checkpoints and threatening of driving
out from one time to another. As for UNRWA, it reduced most of its services,
left them without residence or remedy facing miserable and very complicated
human circumstances.
Security Conditions in Palestinian Camps in Lebanon:
The Palestinian Camps witnessed many security problems
during2015 that sometimes happened between some families and other times
between armed forces inside these camps and resulted the fall down of many
wounded and dead among the citizens from the inhabitants of these camps, and
the destructions of many general possessions of the refugees in these camps.
Many of these security problems were focused in Ein Al Hilwi Camp. These are
repeated from time to time because of:
1- The weakness of the security references in these camps as a result of
the severe restrains imposed on them by the Lebanese security authorities.
2- The nullity of granting the security references wide authorities which
enable them to take strict resolutions against those who disturb the peace
whether arresting or punish him.
Recommendations:
Face to Face with this situation, the Palestinian Association for Human
Rights (Witness) recommends the following:
First-: The International Community
The Palestinian cause and the suffering of the Palestinian people are
the result of the shameful International negligence which took part in the
growth of the Israeli Occupation State, and gave it the political and lawful
cover, and granted it the quality of the state in the United Nations, then
ignored the continuous crimes with respect to the Palestinian people in the
occupied territories and in Diaspora especially in Lebanon, then continued to
more than 68 years in the dedication of the Palestinian Refugees issue without
just solution which suits the general International law, and without attention
to their long sufferings. The International Community undertakes the greatest
responsibilities towards the Palestinian cause in general and the refugees
issue specially.
The International Community must definitely satisfy the following affairs:
- Application of the International laws connected with the human
International law and the International law of the human rights, and
presentation of the leader of occupation to Criminal International Courts
(Formation of International criminal court specially to try the leaders of
occupation), and impose economic and political penalties, and even the
military, so that the state of occupation submits to the International law.
- Exerting pressure on the state
of occupation to commit it applying the International resolutions related to
the Palestinian problem, particularly the right of return of the Palestinian
Refugees to their cities and villages.
- Making the budget of the UNRWA as a part of the budget of the United
Nations, and not to make the budget based on the voluntary participations of
states which makes the donations connected with the advantages of states, not
with limited international commitments, so that the UNRWA agency will satisfy
its commitments towards the refugees and their rising needs..
Second-: The Lebanese State
It is inevitable that
the Lebanese State must carry out its international commitments concerning the
respect of the humanity of Palestinian refugees, and adjust all the laws and
resolutions which contradict with the texts of the International law of the
human rights and its rules especially:
- Permitting the Palestinian to take possession and amend the text of
the law 2001\296, which enables the Palestinian refugees to possess real
estates in Lebanon.
- Amendment of the rules which organize the free profession, especially
the vocation of medicine, engineering, pharmacy, legal practice and others, so
as to permit the Palestinian refugees to practice these professions legally.
- The amendment of the social security (insurance) which allows the
Palestinian employee or worker take full advantage of the social insurance fund
as the Lebanese citizen.
- Taking decision to increase the area of the camps which suits its
population increase, and coordination with the UNRWA agency in this respect.
- Compensating the refugees in the new camp of Nahr Al Barid (Near the
old camp) following the example of their Lebanese brothers, who got just compensations?
- The hastening of ruling Nahr Al Barid detained and Abra events fairly,
and the release of those who are innocent.
- Finding human approaches when dealing with the Palestinian camps,
especially in what is concerned with the freedom of movement and the passing of
the ordinary inhabitants, and not dealing with population of camps as if they
are demanded for justice, and permitting the entering of building materials
easily and simply without any complications which reach some times the limit of
forbiddance at all.
- Issuing Geographical areas and governorate centers to issue the IDs
for the refugees (Family and individual, birth and death certificates).
- Settling the situations of those who lost their IDs which realizes the
lawful personality to them.
- Settling the situations of the Palestinian refugees coming from Syria
in a lawful settlement harmonizing with the rules of the human international
law and the international law for the human rights, with regard to the fact
that they are refugees and not coming as Arabs tourists , and not imposing any
restrains on their movement.
Third-: United Nations Relief and Work Agency (UNRWA)
- The necessity of increasing the
services to the Palestinian Refugees and improving them in all sectors,
especially health and education sectors.
- concentrate of the refugees prior needs and acting on covering them.
- The necessity of creating working chances for the Palestinian Refugees
in Lebanon, and the reduction of using foreign employees.
- Granting the UNRWA employee the syndicalist freedom of labor, and not
putting restrains on the freedom of employees in expressing their national and
demanding emotions.
- Setting up ways of transparent control for the projects of the
infrastructure, fixing and rebuilding.
- The necessity to increase the university scholarships with what suits
the number of successful students every year, and the aid must include all
students, disregard the averages of success, and finding a way to take care of
the excellent students.
- The necessity to rationalize the expenditure in a way to allow the
exploitation of the available sources at the utmost degree possible.
- The necessity to finish the file of Nahr Al Barid Camp, as to achieve
all the packages and ensuring all the needs of the camp inhabitants till they
return to their houses.
- The necessity to continue giving regular aids to the Palestinian
Refugees from Syria to Lebanon, and not to stop these aids under any
justification or excuse.
- The necessity to follow a clear and transparent way from the human
resources in the operations of determine the required qualifications in the
employees, and to offer the chance for best qualified ones., and declaring the
roster for all.
Fourth-: The Palestinian Liberation Organization:
- The necessity to activate the Palestinian political
reference, and focusing its role on following up the problems and rights of the
refugees in Lebanon with the Lebanese sides being related.
- The necessity to take care of the Palestinian Red Cross hospital as
for equipment and modern techniques, and work to append them with the
Palestinian Ministry of Health and improving the living circumstances of their
employees.
- The necessity to support the Palestinian Student Fund Box financially
and politically to continue offering services to Palestinian students in
Lebanon, in parallel with other associations and supporting boxes.
- Increasing the sources of the Palestinian Medical Insurance box to
enable it to improve the rate of covering the medicament for the Palestinian
Refugees in Lebanon.
- The necessity to follow up the file of Nahr Al Barid Camp with the
UNRWA in a strict manner, in the auspices of the dramatic reduction of the
services in different fields, and in the auspices of stumbling in the information
to complete areas N-5, N-0, N-17 despite that the UNRWA had informed everyone
about the availability of money in these sectors.
Beirut on April11/2016
The Palestinian Association for
Human Rights
"Witness"