Press Release: Alkarama Releases Its 2013 Annual Report in Arabic, English, and French

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May 12, 2014
[Logo of the Alkarama Foundation. Image from alkarama.org] [Logo of the Alkarama Foundation. Image from alkarama.org]

Press Release: Alkarama Releases Its 2013 Annual Report in Arabic, English, and French

By : Jadaliyya Reports

Alkarama is pleased to present you with its 2013 annual report which is available here: 

English: http://en.alkarama.org/documents/AnnualReport2013_EN_WEB.pdf 
French: http://fr.alkarama.org/documents/AnnualReport2013_FR_WEB.pdf 
Arabic: http://ar.alkarama.org/documents/AnnualReport2013_AR_WEB.pdf 

The year 2013 reminded us that the struggle for human rights is a lengthy one: the ‘Arab spring’, despite the great progress it has brought to some parts of the Arab world, has not achieved one of its fundamental goals which is the promotion and protection of human rights. 

The Arab world continued to experience major conflicts, implicating governments of the region, non state actors and foreign powers. These situations have led to grave human rights violations. The coup in Egypt on 3 July 2013 brought back practices that have thought to be eradicated: massacres, torture, arbitrary arrests and a dramatic restriction of public freedoms. In Syria, human rights continued to be violated in a systematic and massive manner by a regime that seems to accommodate excessive violence and foreign interference. Iraq continues to experience a chaotic situation in which major human rights violations are unfortunately omnipresent. Furthermore, the lack of respect for the rights set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights remain a key problem for the majority of Gulf states. In Yemen, the tense internal situation is exasperated by US-led targeted killings. For more than a decade now, the US has waged a war against terrorism, violating international human rights law. Alkarama’s thorough investigations into American airstrikes in Yemen have demonstrated this very clearly.

As 2014 marks Alkarama’s tenth anniversary, we find that its mission to combat gross human rights violations in the Arab world, that is to say, violations of the right to life, to physical and moral integrity and personal freedoms, remains a priority. 

Alkarama wishes to express its gratitude and support to the men and women who, despite the very real dangers and the daily pressures they face, work tirelessly to raise awareness of these violations and to make the voice of the oppressed heard. It is in large part because of their courage, effort and trust that Alkarama has become what it is today.  

Alkarama also wishes to thank our NGO colleagues and our partners from the international human rights protection mechanisms for their trust and collaboration.  We look forward to continuing working with them to ensure that the rights of every individual in the Arab world are respected and protected. 
We are also grateful for the support of a number of Swiss communes, the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands and the Norwegian Human Rights Fund, which together with the funds from the members of the Foundation`s Council as well as private donations, have guaranteed our ability to continue our activities over this past year.  

If you would like any further information about our activities or if you have any other queries, please do not hesitate to contact us at +41 22 734 10 06 / info@alkarama.org or consult our website, www.alkarama.org
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Setting New Precedents: Israel Boycotts Human Rights Session

The Universal Periodic Review (UPR) is a unique mechanism that intends to review the behavior of states without distinction. The UN General Assembly established it in 2006 as part of the functions of the Human Rights Council. It is a state-driven process to comprehensively assess a state`s compliance with human rights law. The Human Rights Council is to hold three two-week sessions each year during which time they review the files of sixteen member states. Accordingly each state will undergo the review every three years. As of 2011, all 193 UN member states had undergone a review.

The Human Rights Council conducted Israel`s UPR in 2009.  In response to the findings, Israel`s ambassador to the UN explained that it took the Review process "very seriously" because it is "an opportunity for genuine introspection, and frank discussion within the Israeli system" 

Israel`s second UPR is scheduled to take place in 2013. A coalition of Palestinian human rights organizations submitted their concise report on Israel`s violations between 2009 and 2012.  This document will not be read, however, because Israel is boycotting the UPR, citing bias.  In May 2012, Israel described the Human Rights Council as “a political tool and convenient platform, cynically used to advance certain political aims, to bash and demonize Israel.”

Israel`s condemnation of the Human Rights Council followed the body`s initiation of a fact-finding mission to investigate the impact of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Today, the Council released its report at a press conference in Geneva. It states that Isreal must cease all of its settlement activity  "without preconditions" and  "must immediately initiate a process of withdrawal of all settlers", or face prosecution before the International Criminal Court. Sources in Geneva tell me that Israel`s threats of boycott aimed to derail the Council`s fact-finding mission`s report. Failing to do that, Israel unilaterally withdrew from its Universal Periodic Review all together.

This is not Israel`s first attack on the UN. It has cited bias in the past in response to the UN`s critique of its human rights violations, specifically after the World Conference Against Racism (2001); the International Court of Justice proceedings on the route of the Separation Barrier (2004); denial of entry to Special Rapporteur to the OPT, Richard Falk (2008); and its refusal to cooperate with the Human Rights Council`s fact-finding delegation to Gaza in the aftermath of Operation Cast Lead (2009). 

Israel is unique for its boycott, which evidences the tenuous nature of the voluntary compliance process. In fact, human rights advocates and governement officials worry that Israel will open the door to non-cooperation by other states. The battle for accountability continues even in the UN. Despite its acceptance of international law & human rights norms, even within the multilateral human rights body, the last word on human rights matters is political.