Palestinians in general, face attempts by the Israeli occupation to “Israelize” the curriculum in Jerusalem and to stifle the Palestinian national identity, through various measures. This is amid scarce financial resources, substandard buildings, and largely unsuitable educational facilities, in addition to the multitude of references associated with education in Jerusalem.

This factsheet focuses on the status of education in the city in terms of student and school distribution and approved curriculum, with a focus on the right of girls to education.

Facts and figures:

• Based on findings by the Jerusalem Affairs Unit for 2018-2019, 59.2% of all schools are overseen by the Palestinian Ministry of Education in East Jerusalem and suburbs under Israeli jurisdiction. In contrast, 40.8% of schools are overseen by the Israeli Ministry of Education and the [Israeli] Jerusalem municipality.

• There is a shortage of 3,794 classrooms in Jerusalem (Palestinian and Israeli schools) including 2,100 in Palestinian schools alone, or 55.3%.

• The distribution of schools under the supervision of the Palestinian Ministry of Education is as follows: 35.3% private schools, 21.4% Islamic Waqf schools, and 2.5% UNRWA- run schools. Meanwhile, 9.7% of schools are run by the Israeli Education Ministry and municipality, recognized as contacted ‘semi-government” schools and 31.1% are directly under the jurisdiction of the Israeli Education Ministry and municipality, according to 2020-2021 data.

Students in occupied Jerusalem in general, suffer from repeated attacks by occupation authorities, resulting in lost classes, especially in the morning.

Interviews with students, experts and parents:

Interviews were individually conducted with 20 students and 10 students in a focus group. The individual interviews were intentional in that the researcher approached students who were subjected to one form of harassment. However, during the interviews, it became apparent that most of the girls had been subjected to more than one form of harassment. The interviews also included 17 involved individuals: six school principals, two counselors, three experts (one male and two female) and six parents (two men and four women).

Interview results:

• Unfriendly-environment schools for students…the role of the racist, separation wall in hampering and disrupting the educational process in Jerusalem

  Subject	Students	Percentage	Experts and parents	Percentage
  Unfriendly-environment schools for students	22	73.33%	13	76.47%
  Racist separation wall hampering and disrupting the educational process	29	96.66%	17	100%

• Harassment of Jerusalemite students on their way to school

  Subject	Students	Percentage	Experts and parents	Percentage
  Harassment at military checkpoints	16	53.33%	12	70.58%
  Harassment on crowded public transportation	20	66.66%	11	64.70%
  Harassment by soldiers in the Old City streets	7	23.33%	5	29.41%
  Various forms of harassment at military checkpoints or in streets by soldiers or settlers	15	50.00%	14	82.35%

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The content of this document does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Responsibility for the information and views expressed in the study lies entirely with MIFTAH

Background:

Since the beginning of its illegal occupation in 1967, Israel has detained over 1 million Palestinians. This policy of mass arbitrary arrest is one of the tools that aim at maintaining Israel's illegal occupation and apartheid regime. Every year, Israeli occupation forces detain thousands of Palestinians, including women and hundreds of children. As of today, there are 4,700 political prisoners in Israeli jails, including 640 administrative detainees, 32 women and 170 children.

Every year, June 26 marks the International Day in Support of the Victims of Torture. Despite the absolute prohibition of torture and ill-treatment under international law, Israeli occupation forces and prison authorities employ various torture and ill-treatment techniques against almost all Palestinian political prisoners and detainees, including women and children, leaving grave physical and psychological damage.

Israeli prison authorities, occupation forces and interrogators feel emboldened to commit such acts of torture with full impunity knowing that neither the complicit Israeli legal system nor the international community will hold them accountable.

Recommendations:

MIFTAH calls on the international community to:

• to meet its obligations under international law and universal jurisdiction to hold Israel accountable through effective measures for its persistent crimes and human rights violations

• support the investigation by the International Criminal Court into the Situation in Palestine, including the crime of torture

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Introduction:

Israeli occupation authorities in Jerusalem continue to enforce punitive and discriminatory measures against Palestinians and to violate their human rights. These include: house arrest of minors, restrictions on the freedom of movement, ID revocation, forced displacement, home demolitions and rejection of family reunification applications, all of which have disproportionate impact on women, who endure the most responsibility in caring for the family.

Women with Palestinian IDs who are married to Jerusalemite ID holders are faced with numerous measures that restrict their movement, thus preventing them from exercising normal lives. Palestinian women, holding Palestinian IDs, in Jerusalem are prevented from living with their Jerusalemite husbands who have “blue IDs’ and, in the case of divorce, are also prevented from remaining in Jerusalem, putting them at risk of losing custody over their children, not living in the same city or even being able to visit them. This is because entry into occupied Jerusalem requires permits that can only be obtained with approval from Israeli authorities, particularly residency permits for women with Palestinian IDs. These require renewal by their husbands, which is not feasible in the case of divorce.

These discriminatory Israeli measures towards Palestinian women based on their IDs, which in any case, is determined by Israeli authorities, is one reason for domestic violence. The accumulated hardships on women pose risks for them and oftentimes forces them to endure marital relations rife with violence. What makes matters worse is that they do not always report this violence for fear they will be deported from Jerusalem, lose custody of their children in the case of divorce, or have their residency revoked.

Statistics:

• According to 2021 statistics from the Women’s Center for Legal Aid and Counseling (WCLAC), 70% of women who requested legal and social services in Jerusalem, have different IDs than their husbands, which resulted in increased violence against them – neither are they able to secure court orders in their favor nor are they able to leave their husbands since they risk losing their children, which leaves them with only one option: to remain in a violent cycle.

• Over 40,000 family reunifications in Jerusalem have been rejected since the ratification of the ‘Citizenship Law” of 2003, which is a racist discriminatory law in violation of Article 9 (1) of CEDAW. This law is aimed at preventing residency or granting citizenship to any person from the Palestinian territories occupied in 1967 who is married to a Palestinian citizen with a Jerusalem ID or Israeli citizenship, thereby barring Palestinians from entering Jerusalem or areas inside the Green Line. This hinders women from living with their Jerusalem-ID husbands. If the woman is the Jerusalem ID holder and she moves to the West Bank to live with her Palestinian ID-holder husband, she is then at risk of losing her ID and being stripped of her rights, health insurance and social and educational security.

• According to information from the Israeli interior ministry, only five family reunification applications were not considered in 2014; in 2015 the number of pending cases rose to seven and in 2016, they dropped again to four. In 2017, the number of pending cases was also four and in 2018 there was a spike in this number, to 56, consistently rising in 2019 to 79. In 2020, the number of pending cases jumped to 574.

“Citizenship” Law:

• Israel passed a new Citizenship Law on March 10, 2022, meant to reinforce its apartheid system, with a majority of 45 to 15 votes and to restore most of the previous legislation from the 2003 Citizenship Law, which expired on July 6, 2021. At the time, the government coalition failed to secure the necessary majority for its renewal. (Jerusalem Legal and Human Rights Center, March 22, 2022)

• The law, in both its forms, stipulates the prevention of Palestinians in occupied Jerusalem or inside the Green Line from applying for family reunification for their spouses from the West Bank or Gaza Strip unless the husband is over 35 and the wife over 25. The ban includes residents and citizens from Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Iran as well, which Israel classifies as ‘hostile states.”

• In the case a woman without a Jerusalem ID marries, any family reunification application submitted by her family (if they also hold Jerusalem IDs) is halted and her husband must reapply.

• Women who hold West Bank ID’s do not have the right to apply for family reunification. Only the husband who holds a Jerusalem ID or Israeli citizenship can apply, even if she meets all of the necessary requirements for the application and is capable of proving her place of residence.

• In the case of domestic problems, which result in divorce, the wife must reapply for family reunification via her family once again as long as the Israeli interior ministry does not hinder this application given that she is an adult of legal age.

Polygamy:

• Men who hold Jerusalem IDs or Israeli citizenship and who seek multiple wives, circumvent the law by divorcing the first wife in Israeli courts and then remarry her in Jordanian [Sharia] courts. This usually results in the wives being stripped of their right to citizenship and all other civil, social and economic rights.

• If either the first or second wife has a Palestinian ID, Israeli law grants the right to register the children in the father’s ID if he who holds the Jerusalem ID, and not with the mother, which is often not in the child’s best interests.

Custody:

• If the mother is not granted family reunification, this makes it difficult for her to move around the city and follow up on her children’s affairs in official institutions in Jerusalem. If she does have family reunification, in most cases, the husband stops the application and deprives her of obtaining a residency permit.

Alimony:

• If the wife or divorcee has a Jerusalem ID and the husband a Palestinian ID, the provisions for alimony are not applicable, which forces women to file alimony cases in Palestinian courts, the ceiling for which is much lower than in Israeli courts.

Problems in implementing court orders:

• If the husband or divorcee has a West Bank ID and resides in an area behind the separation wall, even if these areas are under Israeli control, Israeli police do not enforce court orders. Instead, the Jerusalemite wife is referred to the liaison office. Oftentimes, Palestinian parties refuse to implement any orders issued by Israeli courts on the premise that they are foreign verdicts, which do not adopt the principle of reciprocity.

Testimonies and documentations:

Eighteen testimonies were collected, documented and approved after a selection and review process, documenting women’s issues from various areas in Jerusalem and its suburbs. Fifteen of the women live in Jerusalem neighborhoods and towns, including Ras Al Amoud, Jabal Mukabber, Beit Hanina, Silwan, Sur Baher, Wadi Joz and Sawahra Sharqiya. There were also two women from Beersheba and one woman who lives in Jordan who is barred entry into Palestine.

The age group of women victims of racist policies, discriminatory laws and domestic violence was between 22-60 years of age. Their social status was as follows: nine married, two widowed, one pending divorce, one separated and five divorcees.

In 2021, WCLAC documented 120 cases on the impact of Israeli violations of human rights and international humanitarian law against women, with a focus on women in Jerusalem pertaining to home demolitions, settler violence, access to services, ID revocation and forced displacement, in particular.

The center classified all of these issues as complex violations in that they entail domestic violence and Israeli discriminatory practices and law pertaining to women’s domestic rights and family reunification. Moreover, domestic violence usually entails husbands forcing women to forfeit their rights guaranteed in the marriage, including custody of the children, which is in contravention with CEDAW and national laws.

Domestic violence includes physical and economic violence by the husband or any other family member such as a brother or father. It also includes forcing a woman into an early marriage and depriving her of the right to education. In this study, there were two cases of polygamy, one of which resulted in the wife being stripped of her right to citizenship and all other civil, social and economic rights. As for discriminatory laws and policies, these are represented in, but not exclusive to the “proof of residency” law and related policies, such as revocation of insurance, refusal to renew ID cards, ban on entry to Palestine and demolition orders (currently two cases).

*This paper was prepared in cooperation between WCLAC and MIFTAH

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Background: On June 5, 1967, Israel took control of the rest of historical Palestine by occupying the West Bank, including Jerusalem, and the Gaza Strip. The United Nations Security Council adopted several resolutions calling for the end of Israel's occupation (including Resolution 242 which called for full Israeli withdrawal) which remain unimplemented. Israel’s illegal occupation has transformed into de facto annexation (de jure in Jerusalem since 1980) and is part of its apartheid regime applied across historical Palestine.

The brutal Israeli occupation is characterized by perpetual unchecked crimes and human rights violations and is maintained by various means, such as killings, mass arbitrary detention, home demolitions, forced displacement, construction of illegal settlements, a network of military checkpoints, theft of land and resources, and state-sanctioned settler terrorism. As recently stated by an Israeli army commander: "the army and the settlements are one and the same".

For 55 long years, the Israeli occupation continues with full impunity and no accountability, due to international inaction and double standards. Despite decades-long calls by Palestinians and reports by the most reputable human rights organizations, the world remains silent on the longest military occupation in modern history.

Recommendations:

MIFTAH urges the international community to:

• Hold Israel to the same standard as other states and end its exceptionalism
• Hold Israel accountable for its persistent crimes and human rights violations through effective and concrete measures
• End the Israeli occupation and lift the land, air and sea blockade of the besieged Gaza Strip
• Support the investigation of the International Criminal Court into the situation in Palestine
• Stop trade and all relations with illegal Israeli settlements
• Hold Israeli settlers with dual citizenship accountable in their respective states

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This factsheet is based on a report documenting Israeli violations and discriminatory policies against Jerusalemite women’s political rights, particularly those pertaining to Articles 7 and 8 of CEDAW (The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women). The report was prepared by the General Union of Palestinian Women, MIFTAH and the CEDAW Coalition. Based on this report and interviews conducted with Jerusalemite activists for the purpose of monitoring and documenting these violations, four focal points were cited:

First: Participation in political and public life through monitoring Palestinian legislative elections and the right of women to run, vote and participate in elections in general.

Second: Analysis of women’s participation in Palestinian associations and organizations in Jerusalem.

Third: Analysis of women’s participation in popular activities in the Jerusalem area and violations in this regard.

Fourth: Representation of Jerusalemite women within their Palestinian context at the international level and their participation in events by international organizations.

Twenty interviews were conducted with Jerusalemite women activists for the purpose of documenting violations, within the scope of the aforementioned points. Following is a summary of the findings:

• In 100% of the interviews conducted, the women were subjected to interrogation and questioning; psychological and physical torture; threats of ID and residency revocation and separation from their families; bans on their participation in Palestinian elections in Jerusalem; prevention from participating in election campaign activities; raids on events pertaining to election rights for Jerusalemite women; bans on these events and the arrest of participants.

• 95% of the women interviewed have been detained, been given high fines and prevented from participating in community events in Jerusalem; also, their rights and role in public space, including their right to establish and participate in associations as Palestinian women in Jerusalem, have been hindered.

• 93% of the women interviewed have experienced house arrest and been deported from Jerusalem due to Israeli policies in the city such as expulsion and Judaization, arrest, ID revocation and others.

• 20% of the women were banned from travel and subjected to restrictions, searches and interrogation in order to impede their participation in regional and international events.

• 100% of the interviewed women are members or presidents of the board of directors of Jerusalem women centers and institutions; all of them have been detained and their institutions closed; activities supporting Palestinian women and Jerusalemite families were hindered, aimed at empowerment, awareness and education on women’s and family rights, the revival of Palestinian heritage and the provision of counseling, psychological and social support for girls.

• 275 Jerusalemite women activists have been detained between the years 2019-2021, including mothers, the elderly and sick women, as a means utilized by occupation authorities to violate the political rights of Jerusalemite women in order to deter and restrict their freedoms, silence and intimidate them and prevent them from participating in any activities opposed to Israeli occupation policies in Jerusalem.

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The content of this document does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Responsibility for the information and views expressed in the study lies entirely with MIFTAH

Introduction:

This factsheet focuses on challenges, obstacles and the monitoring of health violations pertaining to Palestinian women and girls in East Jerusalem and in areas under Israeli occupation, within the context of Article 12, Provisions 1 and 2 of The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). Data was retroactively collected from July-August, 2021 for the period between 2017 and September 2021.

The lengthy duration of the Israeli occupation has stripped and deprived the Palestinian people, women and girls in particular, of their humanity and rights. Moreover, the occupation of East Jerusalem and the restrictions imposed on Palestinians further compounds this situation. This includes the Israeli separation wall, which has isolated Jerusalem and its 335,000 Palestinian residents from the rest of the West Bank. Of this number, 140,000 Jerusalemites live in areas under illegitimate Israeli municipal jurisdiction, but on the other side of the wall, which means they can only enter the city through Israeli military checkpoints. There are many of these areas in and around Jerusalem, including the Abu Mgheira/Jabal Mukkaber, Kufr Aqab, Shufat Camp, Anata and others.

Report sample:

Jerusalemite women and girls within the following age groups:

Through field reports, focus group discussions and individual testimonies from women and girls, several violations and challenges to health rights were evident, in addition to the obstacles Palestinian Jerusalemite women and girls face while receiving Israeli health care services. These violations and obstacles can be divided into three categories:

1. Challenges to accessing health services, including having to cross military checkpoints to reach them, in addition to economic challenges.

2. Obstacles to accessing specialized health services and to medical referrals and information, in addition to overcoming the language barrier and discrimination while receiving health services.

3. Shortage of and negligence in the provision of health services, including maternal and childcare and adolescent and mental health services.

Challenges and violations according to testimonies from the targeted sample

This report is part of a project on the implementation of CEDAW in Jerusalem, conducted by MIFTAH in cooperation with Juzoor for Health & Social Development and the CEDAW Coalition member institutions working in Jerusalem. It will be part of the shadow report for this project.

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The content of this document does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Responsibility for the information and views expressed in the study lies entirely with MIFTAH

Introduction:

Jerusalemite women and girls face specific economic challenges that render their ability to participate in the Palestinian economic development process nearly impossible. They also make their simple life a nightmarish series of difficulties, especially in the absence of international monitoring parties and ongoing Israeli occupation violations and attacks. Jerusalemite women live a concerning economic reality that is reflected on all aspects of their lives, drains their potentials and undermines their aspirations.

This paper reflects the most prominent outcomes of a research developed by the “Abad Al Shams” Institute in conjunction with MIFTAH on the economic reality of Palestinian women in Israeli-occupied Jerusalem. The research documented violations and analyzed the impacts of these violations vis-à-vis hindering Jerusalemite women’s contributions to promoting sustainable development for the Palestinian economy on par with other Palestinian women.

Statistics and indicators on the fragile economic condition of women and girls in Jerusalem

• A drop in the percentage of women’s participation in the work force in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, at 16%.
• Unemployment rate among women stood at 40% while it was 69% among young women with diplomas or higher degrees.
• Females in Jerusalem suffer from a high level of education against salary gaps. The rate of their participation in the workforce, according to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics was 10.5% in 2020, which is low and resulting from 89.5% who left it.
• The rate of Arab women who participate in the workforce in Jerusalem, according to Israeli sources, was 23% as opposed to 81% of Jewish women, in 2019.
• The number of female merchants registered with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jerusalem in 2020/2021 was around 90 women only out of 1,220 merchants
• The participation of Jerusalemite women in the workforce (15 years or more) in 2020 was 35.9%, which is lower than their Palestinian counterparts.
• Jerusalemite society is young, whereby 64% of the population is below 30.
• Israel deals with Jerusalemites as ‘residents and not citizens”.
• The percentage of Jerusalemite families who are residents of the (J1) area and who live under the poverty line is approximately four times as many as Israeli families.

Israeli measures distort and destroy the economic reality of women

First: discrimination because of the Palestinian ID

Israel imposes many measures to pressure Jerusalemite women in order to alter their Palestinian identity to meld with Israeli society, including imposing Hebrew, whereby job opportunities and official documents, economic, financial and bank transactions are all in Hebrew.

Discrimination in employment and securing a suitable job: the percentage of Jerusalemite women between the ages of 25 and 64 and who are part of the labor force in Jerusalem is only 22%, while high quality jobs are confined to West Jerusalem institutions. Jerusalemites suffer from racial discrimination within Israeli institutions and companies.

Second: Economic burdens linked to housing, the racist, separation wall and the siege imposed on the city

Israeli taxes adversely and clearly affect housing and women’s ability to secure housing. The average price of a 100 square-meter apartment in East Jerusalem ranges between $400,000 and $800,000, while rent for a flat of the same size costs around $800 to $1500 or more.

Women lost a large part of their properties, lands and natural wealth to Israeli confiscation when it occupied around 26,300 dunams of land for Israeli settlement construction. Hence, they lost their natural right to transfer this wealth or benefit from it.

• Palestinians are only allowed construction on 13% of the land in East Jerusalem and are only granted 7% of building permits.
• Families who are forced to build their homes without a license are made to pay high fines and later to demolish their homes…any wealth women saved to secure their home is lost and they drown in debt and fines.
• The demolition policy strips women of their homes and puts their children out in the streets, yet another push towards poverty
• 39% of houses built without a permit in East Jerusalem have received demolition orders. Women are forced to endure hefty financial burdens pertaining to residency and family reunification expenses.

Third: Women entrepreneurs…shocking challenges

Women entrepreneurs in the city suffer from several challenges including: lack of expertise, the absence of the necessary competitive skills, the absence of specialization according to development needs, the lack of appropriate capital for the development and management of projects and marketing and the incessant tracking of occupation authorities.

Mrs. Ola Boujih says: I suffered from cancer for over 16 years and the painkillers kept me from my family. I saw it crumbling in front of me…so I decided to pull myself together and start my project. I created “Istabrak” but Israeli occupation authorities confiscated my merchandise four times during raids on exhibits in which I was participating.

Even though the Israeli National Insurance categorized me as disabled, the Israeli municipality froze my assets, citing high property tax (Arnona) dues. In the winter, my house leaks and there is always the danger of an electrical short circuit. My family has debts of over ILS200,000 and I hoped that my project would improve our economic conditions but Israeli measures have made that impossible.

Outcomes of the study:

The factsheet focused on a study sample of low-income individuals within poverty line perimeters in Israel (ILS2,811 per/individual and ILS10,542 per a two- parent, three children household). The percentage of women who hail from rural areas of the city was 23.2%, of which 71.4% were subjected to violations of their rights as rural women and girls.

• 43.4% of the sample has an income ranging between ILS3000-ILS5000 and 37.1% was below ILS3000.
• The spending rate for 40.3% of the sample was between ILS3000-5000, while 37% spent between ILS5000- 7000. Furthermore, 59.7% of the sample does not receive appropriate social security services.
• 76.3% do not enjoy the same rights and privileges as Israeli women, which means Jerusalemite workers are discriminated against because of their national identity.
• The most striking cases of discrimination against women pertained to work conditions: 18.8% cited working hours; 10.4% the type and nature of the work; 29.2% said discrimination in treatment; and 14.6% cited discrimination in wages.
• 70.0% of the sample were subjected to violence
• 35.2% of the sample do not have a written contract
• For 46.7%, the contract was in Hebrew
• 70.6% of the sample never receive bonuses or promotions
• 46.9% do not have maternal and childcare rights
• 60.8% of women and girls cross Israeli checkpoints every day to get to work
• 55.8% of the sample believe the internal atmosphere of their workplace is unsafe
• 13.6% of the sample recently had their properties confiscated
• 30.5% had their homes demolished or have received demolition orders
• 44.1% of Jerusalemites do not have the right to choose their residence

Economic rights and international treaties

International treaties guaranteed the economic rights of Jerusalemite women as basic rights, confirming the right of self-determination for peoples. By virtue of this right, people are free to seek achievement of their economic growth and to freely utilize their wealth and natural resources. Under no circumstance should any people be deprived of their specific reasons for life.

The question remains: is Israel committed to promoting the economic reality of Jerusalemite women in accordance with international agreements?

• Israel has blatantly violated all of the economic rights of Jerusalemite women and girls through exercising racial discrimination.
• In its reports to international committees, Israel completely ignores the harsh economic reality of Jerusalemite women.
• Palestinian women are subjected to violence, discrimination and exclusion and their economic reality is threatened with collapse from every aspect.
• Israel has infringed on Jerusalemite women’s right to self-determination and isolated them from their natural economic surroundings, which is the Palestinian economy, by isolating the city and imposing an economic blockade on it.
• Jerusalemite women have been deprived of their right to freely utilize their wealth and natural resources through the confiscation of their land and properties and control over tourist sites and water resources, which has had a direct impact on the economic reality of rural women.

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The content of this document does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Responsibility for the information and views expressed in the study lies entirely with MIFTAH

Introduction:

The second phase of local elections was held on March 26, 2022 in 50 local councils in the West Bank. According to data provided by the Central Elections Commission (CEC), candidates vied over a total of 632 local council seats, while 23 local councils won by acclamation where only one electoral list ran. Furthermore, elections were not held in 29 councils in either phase. Voter turnout was 53.69% of the total number of 715,413 eligible voters. Phase Two of the elections saw a low voter turnout in the main governorates such as Ramallah, 38.4%, Nablus, 41% and Jerusalem, 38.6% while Tubas saw the highest turnout at 86.8%, followed by Salfeet, at 77.5%.

The first and second phases of local elections were held under unstable political circumstances and in the absence of any political prospects, especially since neither phase was held in the Gaza Strip after the democratic process there being brought to a halt with the inception of the political division. The Cabinet decision, made on 6/9/2021 to hold local elections in two stages was met with criticism and pushback from civil society institutions, which refused the decision to fragment the elections.

The second phase of elections was held in councils categorized as “A and B” and in areas categorized as “C and village councils” where elections were not held in the first phase. The first phase of elections was held in 154 local councils, where votes were cast, and 163 by acclamation. Meanwhile, 62 local councils were transferred to the second phase.

Women and youth presence in electoral lists

Youth representation in electoral lists:

The percentage of youth who won in Phase Two of local council elections was 16% among the 25-35 age bracket, in comparison to 21.7% in the first phase, 27% in the 36-45 year age bracket compared to 27.4% in the first phase, 30% in the 46-55 age bracket in comparison to 28.6% in the first phase and 27% in the above-55 age bracket in comparison to 22.3% in the first phase. This indicates a decline in the presence of youth in the second phase even though the candidacy rate for youth between 25-45 was higher than 59% of overall candidates but who only won 43% of the seats.

Women’s presence in electoral lists:

Upon comparison between the two phases of local elections, there was a noticeably higher presence of women in competing lists, especially in the larger districts, totaling 27% of the overall number of candidates. Moreover, there was a decline in the percentage of women candidates who won through the ballot boxes. In the second phase, only 19% of women runners won by acclamation and voting: 18% by votes and 21% by acclamation. This was a decline from the first phase, where women won 20.5% through voting and 21.8% overall by voting and acclamation, meaning that these percentages confirm that women’s presence in local councils was only maintained because of the women’s quota. Abiding by this quota was the only guarantee that women would have a place in electoral lists in general.

Women ranking fifth and beyond

In the second phase of local council elections, there were eight lists headed by women, two in Ramallah, two in Bethlehem and one each in Nablus, Tulkarm and the town of Yaabad, in the Jenin district. There was also a women-only list in the town of Beit Ummar in the Hebron district. Still, none of these lists won the highest number of votes among competing lists in their local councils. However, the “Manarat Ramallah” list won second place in ranking after the “Abna Al Balad’ list.

According to data collected by MIFTAH from lists competing in the second stage of local elections, the results showed similar numbers regarding women’s presence in the two phases with a focus on fifth place and beyond in ranking.

• The percentages showed that 26.67% were in the fifth ranking in competing lists, followed by 13.25% in the seventh ranking and 11.74% in the eighth.
• The data showed that the appearance 68.93% of women candidates in lists were between rank 5 and 9, which is the required number according to the women’s quota.
• 1.34% of women were in the primary seats in only eight lists, 1.84% were in the second seat and 6.2% in the third.

Presence of women in electoral campaigns

The second phase of local elections saw a considerable increase in the visibility of women on the lists’ promotional posters and flyers. Women’s presence throughout the campaigning period reached 83.3% of the lists, compared to only 28% of these lists during the first phase.

• The Bethlehem, Jericho, Salfeet, Qalqilya and Tulkarm districts witnessed 100% visibility of women
• Tubas had the lowest percentage of women’s presence in competing lists, with their visibility at only 39.5%, followed by Jenin, at 46.1% and Jerusalem at 51.5%.
• The Hebron, Ramallah/Al Bireh and Nablus districts saw 100% visibility of women on their lists in major cities, while they were absent from campaigns in some other local councils in the districts. In these councils, the second phase of the elections was considered a continuation of their elections after they failed to form lists in the first phase.

Findings:

• The data indicated that women’s percentages did not change in electoral lists overall, comprising 20% of seats in both phases. This confirms that the presence of women in electoral lists was due to the application of the quota system, thus pointing to a lack of social and political support for women’s political participation.

• Women’s visibility during campaigning saw a noticeable increase, sometimes even higher than men in major cities. This increase in women’s percentages on lists and their visibility in the campaigns was a crucial part of the civilized image competing lists wanted to put forth. The main cities particularly saw women participate in all campaign events, visits and debates. They were also present in “family diwans”/gatherings and other events in which women were mostly not present for in previous local elections, especially in the Hebron district. This could be attributed to the fact that the second phase of elections was held in areas with large population diversity in addition to the presence of relative civic discourse, which helped women to be part of election campaigns, especially in lists headed by women such as in the following cities: Ramallah: 2; Bethlehem:2; Tulkarm 1; Nablus 1. Their visibility as the head of lists was front and center on the posters. Calculation of percentages without the areas transferred from the first to second phase puts women’s presence at nearly 100%, except in Jenin and Tubas.

• During the second phase of elections, youth in the 25-35 age bracket won by only 16%, compared to 21.7% in the first phase. The results from Phase Two show that the older the candidate were the more chances they had, with statistics indicating a correlation between age and opportunity to win local council seats.

• Data on the order of women in lists points to the lack of any major differences in their order in the first phase of the elections. In most lists, their order coincided with the women’s quota. Results showed that 26.67% of women ranked fifth on lists and 68.93% in the central region between fifth and ninth place, while first, second and third places were held in communities where female candidates did not exceed 9.38%.

• Data showed that in only one local council did women exceed the quota, which was in the city of Ramallah where women won five out of 15 seats. This can be attributed to the quantity and order of their presence on lists, which was higher than in other regions.

Recommendations:

• Not to allow a repeat of fragmented elections and to hold them on one election day in all Palestinian districts

• Ratifying binding legal texts for electoral lists pertaining to women’s presence in campaigns and not to limit their presence to codes such as the code against infringement on women’s rights in local elections and the code of conduct signed by Palestinian factions.

• Starting a community dialogue on required and priority legal amendments to guarantee a democratic process supportive of the presence of women and youth in local councils. Most importantly, this includes raising candidacy age, increasing the women’s quota to 30% in order to attain full equality, lowering the threshold for lists to 5% instead of the current 8% and reviewing legal material pertaining to the number of candidates on lists, which would increase the chances for women and youth representation.

• Renewal of the dialogue on amending the electoral system, which would promote freedom of choice for candidates within lists and modify it in a way that would not affect the representation of women in local councils.

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On April 17 of each year, Palestinian Prisoner's Day is marked to highlight the plight of Palestinian political prisoners and detainees in Israeli prisons and call for their freedom.

Since the beginning of the Israeli occupation in 1967, Israel has imprisoned over 1 million Palestinians and continues to employ its policy of mass arbitrary detention through daily military raids and incursions.

Administrative Detention is widely used to imprison Palestinians with no charge or trial for indefinite periods of time. Since 1967, Israeli occupation authorities have issued over 60,000 administrative detention orders.

Most Palestinian prisoners are held in prison facilities located inside Israel and not in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, a grave violation of the 4th Geneva Convention amounting to forcible transfer.

All Palestinians are tried in military courts which have a conviction rate of 99%.

Palestinian prisoners and detainees, including women and children, are also subject to various forms of torture and ill-treatment.

Palestinian Prisoner's Day 2022 Factsheet

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Background:

The illegal Israeli settlement enterprise, including settler-only bypass roads, military checkpoints, and the annexation wall, continues to expand and steal more Palestinian land and resources.

As of today, the number of illegal Israeli settlements and settlement outposts in the occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, is around 300, while the number of Jewish Israeli settlers residing in them is close to 700,000.

The settlers are a primary and direct source of danger that targets Palestinian lives and property on a daily basis. The violence manifests in various forms, including shootings, night raids, burning of farmland, cutting down trees, and damaging property. Israeli settler terrorism is backed by the state, as these attacks take place in the presence of Israeli occupation forces who often join the settlers.

The Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH) and the Women’s Center for Legal and Counseling (WCLAC) collected testimonies from women and documented acts of violence, focusing on isolated agricultural and Bedouin areas and communities while highlighting the suffering of Palestinians, particularly women and children.

Israeli state-sanctioned settler terrorism continues unabated across occupied Palestine. Such violence is systematic and affects all aspects of Palestinian life, with a particular impact on women and children. The international community's failure to intervene and put an end to Israeli crimes and human rights violations fuels this culture of impunity.

Recommendations:

To help protect Palestinians, MIFTAH urges the international community to:

• Hold Israel accountable for its persistent war crimes and human rights violations through effective and concrete measures
• Stop all relations and trade with illegal Israeli settlements including international companies that profiteer from them
• Support the investigation of the International Criminal Court in occupied Palestine
• Implement UNSC Resolution 1325 which calls for ending violence against women and Israel's impunity
• Criminalize and blacklist Israeli settler groups that engage in terrorist activities and hold those with dual citizenship accountable in their respective states

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