Right to Education Campaign Bulletin
July - August 2008: Over the past few months the R2E Campaign at all three universities has been offering students a number of workshops under the heading of 'Know your Rights'. The aim of these workshops is to raise students' awareness of human rights, especially those related to them as students, and to encourage information sharing about human rights violations. More information provided below. In July 2008, the Campaign also submitted a report to the United Nations Human Rights Council's Universal Periodic Review of the State of Israel. A full copy of the submission is available via the following link: http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/downloads/pdfs/Right_to_Education_-_UPR_submission[1].pdf
To stay up-to-date on all the latest facts and figures related to education under occupation, please visit the R2E Campaign's fact sheet: http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article495
News from the Campaign at Birzeit University
Urgent Appeal for students held under administrative detention
In July, the R2E Campaign launched an urgent appeal for Omar Qassis, a student who was arrested and given an administrative detention order for a period of six months. The Campaign encouraged supporters to write letters demanding for Omar Qassis to be released on 31st July when his Administrative Detention order was due for expiry, and for it not to be renewed, and also to demand for the other nine administrative detainees from Birzeit University to be released and for students not to be subjected to such arbitrary forms of arrest, torture and punishment, by the Israeli military. For the full text of the appeal please go to: http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article546
The Campaign would like to thank all its supporters for the letters written demanding the Israeli authorities for Omar's release. A number of the letters have been published on the R2E website:
A fax sent to the Israeli authorities from 8 French academics, demanding for the release of students in administrative detention:
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article562
Letter to the International Bar Association from Philip Leech, a former PAS student and friend of Omar's, asking for intervention in his case:
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article550
Unfortunately, on the 31st of July, the Israeli military court renewed Omar Qassis' administrative detention order for another three months. The Right to Education Campaign requests all supporters to continue writing to Israeli authorities, the International Bar Association and the European Union, demanding that they intervene in this case (details of who to write to are available on the appeal).
Urgent appeal calling for the release of prisoners of conscience
The R2E Campaign also launched an urgent appeal in July demanding the release of student prisoners of conscience. Fadi Hamad and Abdullah Owais were heads of the BZU student council last year, and were arrested during that time. The R2E Campaign believes that they are Human Rights Defenders, who were defending the welfare and rights of students at the time of their arrest, and are incarcerated simply because of these activities and their political views. They have never been involved with, or charged with any security-related offenses. The Campaign calls for their immediate release:
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article543
Know Your Rights (KYR) Training
The KYR training took off at BZU in July when Mahmood Hassan, a lawyer from Addameer, the prisoners' support and human rights association, came to BZU to give training sessions to student activists in order to increase their knowledge of prisoners' rights. A number of topics were covered, including the mechanisms of the Israeli military court system, the rules of arrest and imprisonment and the stages of arrest, from interrogation to prison. The Campaign intends to continue holding such sessions as part of a larger programme to raise awareness of student rights and encouraging them to report all violations of their rights.
News from the Campaign at An-Najah National University
Ambassadors' Toastmasters Club
The Campaign has continued its Ambassador's Programme for students at An-Najah. After a series of workshops in the first half of the year on topics such as human rights, critical thinking, the history and culture of Palestine and education in Palestine, sessions to improve students' public speaking skills have been held throughout the summer semester. Saturday workshops have been led by an experienced public speaker from Toastmasters International. Due to the sessions' popularity, it is envisioned that this will develop into a student led club at the university in the coming semester.
Research on students' travel to and from university
The Campaign at An-Najah cooperated with Bethlehem University in designing a survey on students' experiences of travelling to and from university. It is hoped that the survey can be distributed to students at several Palestinian universities. The Campaign plans to collect data at An-Najah in the coming year. This larger scale project follows previous initiatives by the Campaign to document violations against the right to movement, and hence the right to education for Palestinian students.
Human Rights Fieldworkers
13 human rights fieldworkers have now received training from human rights organisation Al-Haq and the Campaign's Documentation Officer, as part of the Know Your Rights programme. These students will work for the protection of the right to education by collecting affidavits to document violations against students and staff and by gathering information about the difficulties students, staff and educational institutions are facing in pursuing education activities.
An-Najah student killed
Iyad Khanfar, a student at An-Najah was killed by Israeli military forces on 24 July as military forces entered the student accommodation building he was living in. The Right to Education Campaign is particularly concerned about this as it falls in line with the Israeli practice of extra-judicial killings which has been repeatedly repudiated by Palestinian NGOs such as Al-Haq and by the UN Special Rapporteurs on the occupied Palestinian territories in his last two reports.
Student's arm broken on his way home
In an attempt to avoid the busy and overcrowded Beit Iba checkpoint on his way home from university, Ahmad, a 4th year accounting student at An-Najah, attempted to take an alternative route. On his way he was attacked by a patrolling soldier, who eventually broke his arm. Read his story, as reported to the R2E Campaign's documentation officer at An-Najah: http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article576
News from the Campaign at Bethlehem University
The Bethlehem University R2E Campaign had a busy month preparing for the new school year – its first as part of the Bethlehem community. This is a very important year for the university, and on Monday, August 25th, it opened its 35th academic year. Over the past 35 years Bethlehem University has provided quality higher education to more than 12,000 Palestinian students despite numerous and frequent violations perpetrated by the Israeli military occupation, including curfews, travel restrictions, checkpoint harassment, student imprisonment and university closures. Because of these ongoing challenges, the university is proud to be the newest host of the R2E Campaign in Palestine.
During the Fall registration process, about 15 student volunteers helped survey more than 1600 Bethlehem University students on issues around travel restrictions and checkpoints. The same team will spend the next several weeks sorting through the responses in order to better understand some of the current violations to the students’ right to education.
As well, the Bethlehem University Ambassador and Media Teams have begun training courses in human rights, media myths, education issues and many other relevant areas. Through these workshops the students will become better-equipped to discuss relevant issues with visiting delegations and to volunteer with the Right to Education campaign.
International Activism News
In July Action Palestine facilitated a visit to Palestine for twelve students from UK universities. The trip's aim was to strengthen links with Palestinian educational institutions and student groups. The delegation visited a number of places in the West Bank, including meeting with the R2E Campaign and students at both Birzeit and An-Najah Universities. Action Palestine is currently preparing for the new academic year by putting together packs of information on education under occupation for freshers at UK Universities. One of their focus campaigns for the next year is the right to education for Palestinians.
Friends of Birzeit University (FoBZU) held a social gathering on the 10th of July at Mohamed Zomlot's, (an ex-Birzeit student) family's Palestinian Maramia Café – an important centre in London for Palestinian supporters. Amongst other issues, The Right to Education Campaign was introduced to those who attended, and information was distributed on the case of Omar Qassis, a Birzeit student held in administrative detention.
Two Canadian groups have recently affiliated to the R2E Campaign – Educators for Justice and Peace and Teachers for Palestine both affiliated in the month of July. The affiliation started with a visit to Palestine from a representative of each organization in order to interview teachers from schools and universities in order to produce a documentary film on problems that teachers and schools face under occupation. This will be used to promote the academic boycott in Canada.
Another recent affiliate to the R2E Campaign, Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights at Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada will be periodically featuring various Palestinian political prisoners at their information table on campus at the beginning of the academic year. The idea is for students in the same phase of their lives to be able to connect directly with those who have had their right to education arbitrarily taken away by the occupying Israeli forces.
The Peterborough Coalition for Palestinian Solidarity at Trent University in Canada is gearing up for a series of fall on-campus events. The first is a joint fundraiser for PCPS and the Right to Education Campaign, featuring music, beats, and spoken word from a number of anti-apartheid artists and activists. PCPS has also scheduled a meeting with Trent's student union, with the ultimate goal of affiliating to the Right to Education Campaign, and they plan to hold a debate on the academic boycott of Israel in November.
Over the summer a number of other groups visited the R2E Campaign, including Generation Palestine and a group of 40 young students from all over the world who visited with YMCA.
As the academic year begins in campuses all over the world, student solidarity groups are working to put together educational packages on the right to education and obstacles faced by Palestinian students in exercising this right, to distribute to new students. If you wish to do the same in your campus, please do not hesitate to contact us for further information we can provide you with.
If you belong to a university, trade union or any other movement or organization, please join us and help build an international coalition of organizations to collectively campaign in support of Palestinian students, teachers and the right to education in Palestine.
This bulletin is divided into 3 sections: 'News and Updates', 'International Activism News' and 'How you Can Support the Right to Education Campaign'. It includes links to recent key articles on the Right to Education website http://right2edu.birzeit.edu and ideas for action. We want to hear from you so please get in touch and let us know about your activities. Email us at right2edu@birzeit.edu.
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1. News and Updates
PACBI: Academic Freedom – Not supported in Israel
PACBI, Column in Bricup Newsletter, 30 August 2008
In July 2008 four Israeli academics launched an intiative to secure the endorsement of senior academics at institutions of higher education in Israel on a petition in favour of academic freedom for Palestinian faculty and students. Read PACBI's comment on this initiative.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article580
Israeli troops arrest six university students in Nablus
Rula Shahwan, IMEMC News, 28 August 2008
Six Palestinian students of An-Najah National University were arrested in Nablus on Thursday at dawn, after their dorms were arrested by Israeli troops.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article579
Message from Fulbright Scholar to Free Gaza Boats
Zohair Abu Shaban, Free Gaza Movement, 25 August 2008
Read the letter written from one of the three Fulbright scholars to the 'Free Gaza Boats' supporting their attempt to break the siege on Gaza and their promise to take back a number of students who have been denied access to take up their places at universities abroad.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article572
Palestinians Return to School in spite of Hardships
IRIN, Humanitarian News Service, 21 August 2008
As one million Palestinian children in the West Bank and Gaza Strip prepare to return to school, UN agencies and the Palestinian Ministry of Education have been stressing the problems school children face in the oPt.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article573
Gazan recipient of a Fulbright scholarship writes op-ed
Fidaa Abed, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 August 2008
Last week, I landed in Washington, D.C., brimming with optimism. Upon arrival, I was whisked into a separate room. An American official informed me that he had just received information about me that he could not reveal. However, it required him to put me on the next plane home. I was shocked. And I was taken aback at the cruelty of snatching away my educational dreams at the last possible moment.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article571
Amnesty International's Call to Action on Students Trapped in Gaza
Urgent Action, Amnesty International, 14 August 2008
Some 400 Palestinian students may lose their university places and scholarships unless the Israeli authorities allow them to leave the Gaza Strip before the new academic year, which starts in the next few weeks. Read Amnesty International's Call to Action which gives information on who you can write to in order to pressure the Israeli authorities to immediately allow the hundreds of students to leave Gaza to pursue their studies in universities abroad, and to guarantee that they will be able to return to Gaza.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article574
Give students in Gaza a chance to study!
Website, Gisha, 11 August 2008
Click here to support Gisha's campaign for the hundreds of students who are unable to take up their places in universities abroad due to being trapped in Gaza. Since June 2007, Israel has imposed a nearly total closure on the Gaza Strip, violating the right to freedom of movement for 1.5 million Palestinian residents - including hundreds of students in danger of losing their chance to access study programs not available in Gaza.
http://www.trappedingaza.org
At-Tuwani Children's March to Tuba a Success
Press Release, CPT, Operation Dove, 3 August 2008
On the 2nd of August, 2008 over one hundred school children and their parents from the South Hebron Hills marched from the village of At-Tuwani to Tuba, to draw attention to the violence faced by school children, the failure of the Israeli army to protect them and the effects of Israeli settlement expansion.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article567
Several Settler Attacks on Children in South Hebron Hills in July
R2E Campaign, Operation Dove and CPT, 31 July 2008
During the month of July there have been a series of settler attacks on the school children's daily route to summer camp in At-Tuwani. Read about these attacks here, and support the children's right to education by attending the events arranged to raise awareness of their plight.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article560
Academics Protest at army bar on Palestinians
Donald Macintyre, The Independent, 30 July 2008
The heads of six Israeli universities have written to Israeli Defence Minister, taking issue with a limit on Palestinian students to 70 a year in Israel and requiring them to justify to the military the exceptional academic grounds for admission. Five Israeli professors have also sought to joint a Supreme Court petition against the restrictions. Gisha, the Legal Center for the Freedom of Movement, has stated that they no of no Palestinian students from the West Bank who have been given permission to study in Israeli universities.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article566
Birzeit PAS student denied entry
Rose Espinola, Student, University of Jordan, 29 July 2008
Rose Espinola, an Australian citizen of Palestinian origin, was planning to attend the PAS programme at Birzeit University this summer. Unfortunately she was denied entry by the Israeli immigration controls, and is now studying at the University of Jordan. Read her account of her experience at Ben Gurion airport, where she was detained for ten hours and deported on a flight back to London at her own expense.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article565
Gaza Students still waiting and losing hope
Rami Almeghari, Electronic Intifada, 28 July 2008
Rami Abdo is one of the almost 670 students trapped and being denied his right to pursue a higher education, due to the ongoing Israeli siege of the Gaza strip.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article564
Academic Freedom: For Whom?
Academics, Tel Aviv University, The Hebrew University, 26 July 2008
In view of the severe lack of academic freedom and the rapidly deteriorating situation for education in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, a group of four Israeli academics approached all the senior faculty members in the major higher education and scientific research institutions in Israel, with a petition calling for the academic freedom of their Palestinian colleagues. Read the text of the petition they initiated, and the responses of Israeli academics to the petition here.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article563
PACBI Press Release on Israeli-British Academic Project
Website, PACBI, 22 July 2008
During the UK Prime Minister, Gordon Brown's recent visit to the region, the Britain-Israel Research and Academic Exchange Partnership (BIRAX) was established - read PACBI's statement which criticizes the partnership as being politically motivated, and calls for institutions to press on with a boycott of Israeli academia.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article559
Trapped Gaza Student appeal to British PM
Website, Ma'an news, 20 July 2008
Palestinian students trapped in Gaza asked British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Sunday to press Israel to allow Gaza students that have been accepted at foreign universities to leave to be able to take up their places in September.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article558
Students STILL trapped in Gaza
Gisha, Legal Center for Freedom of Movement, 19 July 2008
In May Israel refused to allow seven Fulbright scholars to leave Gaza in order to reach their studies. After international protest and pressure from world leaders including the U.S. Secretary of State, the decision was reversed and the Fulbright grants were re-instated. The Israeli military promised to reconsider their policy of closure which has left hundreds of students trapped in Gaza. Six weeks later, very little has changed - only a handful of students have been given permission to reach their universities abroad. Gisha has created a power point presentation which provides information, statements of support for access to education from world leaders and major newspapers, and an updated statement of the Israeli policy - that the ban continues.
http://www.gisha.org/UserFiles/File/presentation_Students_STILL_trapped_in_Gaza_16-07-08.pdf
Children are paying the price of injustice
Seth Freedman, The Guardian UK, 17 July 2008
Muhammad, a 14 year old student, was arrested in February while playing near the separation wall near his home. He was subjected to torture by the Israeli soldiers. Since September 2000 Israel has arrested and detained almost 6000 children, with 700 under-18s arrested in 2007 alone. All these children not only undergo mental and physical distress, but they are also denied their right to education while in prison. Muhammad lost an academic year of his studies due to his arrest, and also suffered greatly psychologically.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article553
Denying Gaza's Students Visas smacks of "Collective Punishment"
John Kelly, The Irish Times, 16 July 2008
Israel's refusal to give permission to seven Fulbright scholars to leave Gaza was met with global protest. The ban on Palestinians, including hundreds of university students who have been accepted in institutions abroad, leaving the Gaza region amounts to collective punishment.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article554
Gaza Student Leaves to study at UK University, but hundreds still trapped
Donald Macintyre, The Independent, 16 July 2008
Wissam Abuajwa has finally been able to leave Gaza after eight years of waiting, in order to take up his place at Nottingham University in the UK. Wissam was one of the lucky ones - he had British government officials helping with his case; in spite of this it still took eight years to get him out of the Gaza strip. There are still approximately 700 students trapped inside Gaza, who have places in foreign universities but are unable to pursue their education as Israel is refusing to give them permission to leave.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article552
Held Back: Students Trapped in Gaza
Report, Gisha 10 June 2008
The new report by Gisha, entitled "Held Back: Students Trapped in Gaza", documents how the year-long closure of Gaza is preventing hundreds of Palestinian students from leaving Gaza in order to pursue academic studies abroad, in violation of their right to freedom of movement and to access education.
http://www.gisha.org/UserFiles/File/Students%20report%20Eng%20-%20Online%20Version.pdf
Institutions raided and shut down in Nablus, including a girls' school
R2E Campaign, Various Sources, 7 July 2008
Early on Monday morning, Israeli troops raided a number of institutions in the West Bank town of Nablus, including a girls' school. 160 girls are being denied their right to education due to the closure of their school.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article548
Israeli settlers attack Palestinian Teacher
Hebron, Ma'an News Agency, 5 July 2008
A mob of Israeli settlers attacked 30-year-old Midhat Abu Karsh, a Palestinian teacher from the southern West Bank village of As-Samu' south of Hebron on Saturday.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article545
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2. International Activism News
A Call to Palestinian Students in the United States
Popular National Palestinian Conference, USA, 30 June 2008
This is a call to Palestinian students in the U.S to partake in the Popular National Palestinian Conference, scheduled to take place in Chicago August 8th to 10th, 2008.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article544
Pacbi Letter of Appreciation to AUC Faculty, Administrators, and Students
Website, PACBI, 1 June 2008
On May 14th, 2008 members of the American University of Cairo Senate voted for a resolution in solidarity with the Palestinian people. The Resolution calls on "AUC faculty, staff, and students to refrain from dealings with Israeli academia within the AUC environment." Read the letter of appreciation written to AUC senate from PACBI.
http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article557
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3. How You Can Support the Right to Education Campaign
1. Affiliate to the Right to Education Campaign through your union or organization.
2. Raise awareness within your constituency about the issues facing Palestinian education, students and teachers under Israeli military occupation:
· Screen the Campaign film, "A Caged Bird's Song" (copies available online www.PalestineOnlineStore.com).
· Organize the "Students Under Occupation Take a Stand" photo exhibition and give a presentation on the Right to Education in Palestine
· Organize an action on campus. For example, set up a 'checkpoint', stopping students and faculty on their way to classes, demanding to see their student and staff IDs and raising awareness about the issues facing Palestinian students under occupation.
· If you are a student group, set up a correspondence with university students, through email, instant messenger and video conferences.
3. Support the Right to Education Campaign’s calls for international action against violations of the human right to education in occupied Palestine.
4. Lobby your government to pressure the government of Israel to adhere to its legal obligations to end attacks on civilian infrastructure and to allow unimpeded access for all Palestinians to their educational institutions.
5. Establish connections with Palestinian universities, students and faculty, through solidarity links or academic exchange.
6. Start or join divestment campaigns at your university.
7. Organize a delegation to visit universities in Palestine, or help to organize a delegation of Palestinian students and faculty to come on a speaking tour to universities and organizations in your country.
8. Support students affected by the economic blockade, through the "Break the Siege Campaign" http://right2edu.birzeit.edu/news/article469
The Right to Education Campaign started in Birzeit University as a response to the closure and criminalization of higher education during the first intifada. In 2007, it started at An-Najah National University and in 2008, in Bethlehem University. The Campaign is situated in the Public Relations Department of all three host universities.
The Campaign's main goal is to guarantee article 13 (2)(c) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,1966;
“Higher education shall be made equally accessible to all, on the basis of capacity, by every appropriate means, and in particular by the progressive introduction of free education”
And to defend the human rights of students and staff as set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948.
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