“Israel is not perfect, but it is a democracy committed to international law, open to criticism. This sentence from Yaïr Lapid, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel, is a jewel of irony.
Posted at 9:00 a.m.
The head of Israeli diplomacy issued the message on Monday just as he was trying to prevent the publication of an Amnesty International report, calling it “anti-Semitic”.
In the document, released Tuesday, the human rights organization details for 211 pages how the Middle Eastern country violates international law by imposing a “system of oppression and domination on the Palestinian people wherever they controls his rights.
Through examples, touching on access to property, the right to dissent, the justice system or even democratic representation, the Amnesty report affirms that all Palestinians – whether they are citizens of Israel or whether they rather live in the occupied territories or in refugee camps in neighboring countries – are subject to the “system whose objective is to favor Israeli Jews in the distribution of land and resources, and to minimize the presence of the Palestinian population and its access to land”.
At the end of the analysis which mobilized a team of a dozen researchers for four years, Amnesty concludes that Israel is committing the “crime of apartheid”, a crime against humanity, and asks the International Criminal Court to investigate this.
Director General of the French Canadian section of Amnesty, France-Isabelle Langlois, who was consulted in the process of writing the report, notes that every word of the document was weighed. “This report should in no way be construed as a charge against Jews or Israel’s right to exist. An organization like ours does not want to add grist to the mill of the anti-Semitic and fascistic tendencies that we observe. This report talks about what the Palestinians go through on a day-to-day basis. We have to name it, say it and continue to put pressure on it. There are activists and citizens in Israel who are also fighting against these violations,” notes Ms.me Langlois.
Amnesty is not alone in its camp. Last April, the organization Human Rights Watch, in a very detailed report on Israel and the occupied territories, came to a similar conclusion and used the same term: crime of apartheid.
Apartheid? Let’s be clear, this accusation is not trivial. The term evokes the South African regime which relentlessly oppressed the “black” and “colored” populations for the benefit of the whites from 1948 to 1991.
However, a distinction must be made between this authoritarian regime and the crime of apartheid, which has been recognized in international law since the 1960s.
This crime is defined as a set of serious violations of human rights with the aim of maintaining the domination of one racial group over another through discriminatory laws, policies and practices.
The same legal concept is found in the Rome Statute, which defines the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court, located in The Hague. This court can investigate and try individuals accused of the most serious crimes, which include genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
To date, no one has been tried for apartheid crimes.
Under these circumstances, it is no wonder that Israel does not react very well to the accusation. One cannot forget that the country was created to give a state to the Jewish people after the Holocaust and the unparalleled persecutions of the Second World War. A State carrying with it the promise of the protection of a population too long subjected to discriminatory laws and anti-Semitism in Europe and elsewhere. A state that has to deal with a difficult, even hostile and undemocratic neighborhood.
In its original concept, Israel was to be the reverse of apartheid. The reports of Human Rights Watch and Amnesty therefore attack the spinal cord of the Jewish state, and that hurts.
In Canada, we also saw an outcry when the country was accused of “cultural genocide” by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission which looked into residential schools for Aboriginals. There too, the report is hard, but the government nevertheless took note of the conclusions and started a process of reconciliation which promises to be long and difficult.
And that is also what the Israeli government and its staunch allies should do today: take note of the demonstration of wrongs done to them, analyze it with a cool head and work to improve the situation. Drastically.
At least, that is what “a democracy committed to international law, open to criticism” should do.
“Crimes against humanity”, according to Amnesty
In its report, Amnesty denounces a set of discriminatory measures, but considers that some of them amount to crimes against humanity. Extracts.
Deportation and forced transfers
“Since 1948, Israel has destroyed tens of thousands of Palestinian homes and other properties in all areas under its jurisdiction and control. Those affected are often the poorest and most marginalized communities in Israel and Palestinian society. »
Arbitrary detention
“Since the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip in 1967, Israeli authorities have used administrative detention extensively to imprison thousands of Palestinians, including children, without charge or trial. […] Israel often uses administrative detention against political opponents of this occupation. In comparison, administrative detention is rarely used to detain Jewish citizens of Israel. »
Torture
“For decades, the Israel Security Agency, the Israel Prison Service and the Israeli military forces have tortured or ill-treated Palestinian detainees, including children, during their arrest, transfer or interrogation. »
Unlawful killings
“The unlawful killing of Palestinian protesters is arguably the most egregious example of the Israeli authorities’ use of unlawful acts to maintain the status quo. In 2018, Palestinians in the Gaza Strip began to organize weekly protests along the border with Israel, demanding the right of return for refugees and demanding an end to the blockade. Even before the protests began, senior Israeli officials warned that any Palestinian approaching the wall would be targeted by gunfire. By the end of 2019, Israeli forces had killed 214 civilians, including 46 children. »