MIFTAH recently held a special session in which it discussed CSO priorities and interventions regarding the proposed legal amendments to the Local Elections Law No. 10 of 2005 and the General Elections law No. 1 of 2007.
The session began with a rundown of the most significant proposed legal amendments to the elections law, which CSOs have been discussing since 2013, in a bid to improve the efficiency of the electoral system. This entails guaranteeing the right of political participation for women and youth and reviving democratic principles to increase participation of the various social sectors. Most importantly, these include: amendment of the electoral system (proportional election system), lowering of candidacy age, threshold and women’s quota percentages, ban on first and second-degree relatives on the same list, direct election of local council president and setting a limit of two terms only for local council heads.
Furthermore, the participants said CSOs must form a civil front that includes national and factional figures who can demand general elections. This front would be based on an agreed vision among institutions, the foundation of which would be a social contract (Basic Law and its stipulated principles). They maintained that this would lay the groundwork for partnership between the various civil components to demand elections and find a way out of the Palestinians’ political crisis, due to the failure to hold elections, the erosion of the system’s legitimacy, the rise in corruption within this system and the continued political division.
Meanwhile, the topic of laws by decree and the positions of CSOs was discussed. Some organizations said they believed the thwarted election process had created a legislative vacuum, which has obstructed and impacted citizens’ everyday lives. Institutions, however, were forced to deal with these laws by decree, given the need for updated laws that address pressing issues.
However, other CSOs believed the executive authority took advantage of the absence of the PLC to boost its dominance. They said these laws by decree serve the interests of the political system without any serious action to revive the legislative council through holding elections and ensuring the political right of citizens to choose their representatives.
The participants capped off the session with a number of conclusions, including: agreement to form a broad-based national coalition to demand elections, through developing a civic vision based on the fundamental principles of the Basic Law; agreement on the proposed legal amendments and on broadening the circle of public and social debate until these amendments are adopted; promoting the legitimacy of this demand and the need to include the CEC vision for Local Council Elections, which is based on its actual experience during the 2021 local elections.
Hassan Mahareeq, officer in MIFTAH’s policy and dialogue unit, said the session was part of MIFTAH’s efforts to promote active political participation for all components of Palestinian society, particularly youth and women, by reviving mechanisms for democratic dialogue to ensure a legal and encompassing environment for this participation, which safeguards citizens’ rights, public freedoms and values of equality.
مفتاح تعقد جلسة لمناقشة التعديلات المقترحة على قوانين الانتخابات المحلية والعامة
تاريخ النشر: 27/07/2022
بقلم:
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MIFTAH holds open dialogue entitled 'Challenges facing the Palestinian political system'
Date posted: November 27, 2024
By MIFTAH
- The institutional relationship between the PA and the PLO
- The relationship between the political system and international organizations, with a focus on UNRWA as a case study
On November 20, 2024, the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy (MIFTAH) held a hybrid-style open dialogue entitled “Challenges facing the Palestinian political system” at the Red Crescent Headquarters in Al Bireh. The conference shed light on the challenges facing the Palestinian political system and the escalating political and humanitarian situation after the 37th Israeli government under Benjamin Netanyahu took office at the end of 2022.
The conference brought together several experts, scholars, analysts and political and national figures, in addition to official institutions, diplomatic missions, NGOs, INGOs and university students. Its focus was on pressing issues within the Palestinian political system, especially in light of the genocide against the Palestinian people and its subsequent political repercussions.
MIFTAH’s objective was to hold a discussion on political courses of action and proposals that could help develop a joint Palestinian vision for confronting challenges to the internal Palestinian relationship between the PLO and PA and relationships with international organizations, including the inflammatory Israeli assault on UNRWA.
The conference’s interventions focused on two major points: the first session discussed the institutional relationship between the PA and PLO, while the second session focused on the political system’s relationship with international organizations, with UNRWA as a case study.
In her opening address, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, Chair of MIFTAH’s Board of Directors, stated that the PA was created as one arm of the PLO and that the relationship between the PLO and PA must be clear and integral. She stressed how the PLO is the entity that shouldered the responsibility of protecting the Palestinian people’s rights and cemented their national identity. Ashrawi called for finding ways to revive the PLO and revitalize its institutions and to discipline the relationship between it and the PA in order to achieve its national goals. She maintained this should be far-removed from slogans but rather, focused on practical steps to galvanize its role in local and international arenas.
Dr. Azmi Shuaibi, member of MIFTAH’s BoD highlighted the historical roots of the problematic relationship between the PA and the PLO, tracing the political transformations since the Palestinian declaration of independence in 1988 to today. Shuaibi indicated that the PA was created by a decision from the PLO Executive Committee, but then branched off without a clear framework to determine the institutional relationship between the two parties. He maintained that the only solution lies in a reassessment of the shape and form of the PA and the reinforcement and independence of the PLO’s role.
Opening the session, MIFTAH Executive Director, Dr. Taheer Araj, said the procedures adopted by the current Israeli government fall within a clear plan to permanently eliminate the Palestinian cause. Araj ascertained that the Israeli occupation is very clear on its intentions to continue its genocide of the Palestinians to forcibly displace them, not only as a future step but one applicable in the near future.
The conference coincided with the ongoing escalation of Israeli violations against the Palestinian people, including increasing violence, settlement expansion and settler attacks in addition to the genocide on the Gaza Strip, which began on October, 2023. The Israeli government is also continuing to undermine the PA through attempts to destroy it financially and politically and by classifying PLO factions and Palestinian national movements as “terrorist” all of which threaten the stability of the Palestinian political system. The participants also discussed the ongoing Israeli assault on official and international Palestinian institutions, including UNRWA.
The final segment of the conference was a discussion of Palestinian options for facing these challenges, with a focus on the need to develop a joint Palestinian vision at the internal and international levels, to guide Palestinians in their struggle for freedom and independence and to end the genocide on occupied Palestinian land.
MIFTAH releases 2021-2022 comparative actual spending reports for the social and security sectors, including social justice and gender indicators
Date posted: April 04, 2023
By MIFTAH
MIFTAH recently released 2021-2022 comparative actual spending reports for the social sector (health, education, higher education and scientific research, social development and labor), and for the first time, the security sector (Ministry of Interior and National Security). The reports were based on annual financial data released by the Ministry of Finance in Palestine for 2021-2022 and on an accrual basis.
The data showed that the Ministry of Interior and National Security had the highest percentage of actual spending in 2022, accounting for 22.8% of overall public expenditures, or ILS3.68 billion. This was a slight increase from the Ministry’s share in 2021. Meanwhile, actual spending on the education sector (Ministry of Education, Higher Education and Scientific Research) stood at 21.5% of overall public expenditures, or ILS3.48 billion. This was also an increase from the education sector’s share in 2021, which was 20.6% of public expenditures.
Moreover, actual spending on the Ministry of Health also increased in 2022, comprising 15% of overall public expenditures, at a sum of ILS2.4 billion. This was higher than in 2021, where its share was 14.4%. As for the Ministry of Social Development, actual spending was still low, amounting for 6.2% of overall public expenditures in 2022, compared to 5.8% in 2021. The Ministry of Social Development’s actual spending in 2022 was approximately ILS1 billion. As for the labor sector, actual spending on this sector in 2022 was 0.31% of overall public expenditures, while in 2021 it was 0.28%. Actual spending on the labor sector in 2022 was ILS50.1 million.
Upon review of actual spending reports of the targeted ministries from a gender and social justice perspective, it is clear that actual spending on the Ministry of Social Development does not coincide with the scope of its responsibilities as the forerunner of the social sector in Palestine, including its programs for combatting poverty and the protection of poor and marginalized social sectors. Moreover, non-compliance to the disbursement of payments for poor families within the CTP continued according to estimates, whereby only two of four installments for 2022 were disbursed, one at minimum value. This adversely affected the financial security of the most underprivileged and marginalized sectors of society, in addition to the insufficient estimated budget and actual spending on the social protection program, in spite of its importance in providing protection and social services to battered women, children, special-needs persons and the elderly.
The data also pointed to the low percentage of women working in the security sector, which stood at 6% of the total number of workers in this sector, while they comprised 46% of the civil sector. This shows a gap in actual spending on the security sector from a gender perspective, given that the lion’s share of actual spending in 2022 was on salaries and wages. Hence, women only benefited very little from these allocations, which were nearly ILS2.9 billion in 2022.
The data also indicated that the development expenditures for the Ministry of Labor were only ILS4.5 million in 2022, even though planned development expenditures were ILS32 million, which is much higher. This casts a shadow on gender-related programs and projects, which were allotted sizeable budgets within development expenditures, such as creating sustainable opportunities as alternatives for Palestinian men and women working in settlements, for which ILS10 million were earmarked.
Even though there was an increase in actual spending in 2022 at the targeted ministries in general, this increase was mainly concentrated on salaries and wages. In spite of the importance of providing a decent life for employees, there is still a need to increase spending on development expenditures, since they are at the forefront of developing government services, including the nationalization and institutionalization of various social services.
MIFTAH concludes town hall meetings on political participation and citizens’ rights for women and youth
Date posted: January 09, 2023
By MIFTAH
Ramallah – 29/12/2022 – Within its efforts to promote democratic values and the peaceful transfer of power within the Palestinian government system, MIFTAH’s field advisory team completed over 100 town hall meetings in the second half of 2022. The meetings were held in coordination and cooperation with CSOs, LGUs and grassroots organizations and targeted women and youth in several West Bank and Gaza Strip districts. The objective of these meetings was to raise awareness among the electorate on the electoral system in Palestine and on civil society demands to increase women and youth participation in local and general elections as candidates and voters, on the premise that this boosts their presence in decision-making levels and involves them in public affairs.
The town hall meetings included several exchange visits between LGU members in the various districts. The women shared the experiences and challenges they faced after becoming council members. The meetings focused on the concept of citizenship within a broader definition of the various forms of political participation and the importance of involvement from youth and women in public life. They also pointed to the different forms of democracy and the main pillars of the democratic society Palestinians seek to create. The participants furthermore discussed the various forms of electoral systems and shed light on the gaps in electoral laws regarding the presence of women and youth.
The participants pointed to the importance of periodic legislative and presidential elections and the danger of the ongoing absence of the PLC on matters pertaining to civic peace. They also warned against the absence of oversight and accountability, maintaining that the defunct PLC has contributed to shrinking civic space and public freedoms and therefore, the ability or desire to become involved in political life, especially for women and youth. In most of the meetings, the participants also indicated that the absence of a regular democratic process in Palestine contributed to the overall exclusion of youth from participation and to the marginalization of the role of women in Palestinian political decision-making.
The town hall meetings stressed on the importance of pressing for legislative, presidential and local elections in all West Bank, Jerusalem and Gaza Strip districts. They also endorsed the demand for equality in electoral laws, starting with raising the women’s quota to a minimum of 30%, raising the candidacy age and lowering the threshold. They urged Palestinian factions to assume a key role in the process of inclusion for women and youth in the public sphere and to prevent the progression of tribalism in the democratic process. The attendees emphasized the importance of monitoring the performance of LGUs in their interaction with local communities and the consistency of their meetings. Finally, they said female council members must be given the opportunity to exercise their role in their respective councils as equals to their male counterparts.
MIFTAH holds town hall meetings on an annual basis as part of its awareness campaign on citizens’ rights and the promotion of the democratic approach for a peaceful transfer of power, in addition to the involvement of women and youth in elections as both candidates and voters. Each year, through these town hall meetings, MIFTAH aims to reach the widest possible segment of the electorate and the different social sectors in all parts of Palestine.
