UN Torture Committee goes out of its way to avoid dealing with Palestinian torture

Last July, the UN Committee Against Torture issued a press release that praised the Palestinian Authority for being immensely humane and wonderful. It only had a couple of questions to clear up. But in order to ensure that those questions were not too prominent, they framed the release in terms of praise for how Palestinians are dealing with domestic violence (which is in itself not true.)

The statement looks like it was dictated by the Palestinians themselves. 

Reading between the lines, the committee clearly knows that Palestinians torture prisoners and also do not do much to protect women victims of violence. But the statement is organized in a way to sweep those concerns under the rug, just asking for clarification so the PA can lie its way out of any embarrassing situation.

It would be comical if it wasn't real:

The Committee against Torture today concluded its consideration of the initial report of the State of Palestine, with Committee Experts praising the State of Palestine’s support for female victims of violence and raising questions about conditions in detention centres and the lack of legislation defining and prohibiting torture.

Naoko Maeda, Committee Expert and Country Co-Rapporteur, said that a special unit and support network had been established to provide support services and shelter for female victims of violence. These were commendable developments. Ms. Maeda noted, however, that gender-based violence and discrimination remained prevalent. What legal frameworks were in place to combat gender-based violence, and what efforts had the State made to raise awareness about the issue?

Sébastien Touze, Country Co-Rapporteur for the State of Palestine and Committee Expert, said that conditions of detention for detainees were of grave concern. Up to 12 persons were housed in small cells; there were concerns related to ventilation and hygiene in cells; and there was a lack of medical care provided for persons with serious illnesses. What measures did the State party intend to implement to improve conditions in detention centres?

Mr. Touze also noted that torture was not specifically defined within national legislation and called for torture to be generally criminalised. Definitions of torture within legislation were varied and too narrow, he said. Would it be possible to harmonise legislation on torture?

As for conditions in detention centres, the delegation explained that the State had earmarked resources to create a new detention facility in Hebron to address prison overcrowding in the region, with the support of funding from the United States. Funding, however, had been stopped by the United States in 2017. Another high security detention facility had been constructed in Jericho that met with the highest international standards, with the support of funding from the International Committee of the Red Cross. There were toilets in each cell of this facility, appropriate sunlight, and high-quality food and medical services.

The delegation also explained that there were several specialised legal committees working toward harmonising national legislation. A draft law had been created that defined and banned torture even when ordered by a superior. There were plans to revise national legislation to reflect the recommendations of treaty bodies.

In closing remarks, Claude Heller, Committee Chair, highlighted the quality of the responses provided by the delegation. Mr. Heller expressed hope that the State of Palestine would submit its second report in more favourable domestic circumstances. He wished the State party every success in fulfilling its responsibilities under the Convention.

It is impossible to read this without realizing what a whitewash it is. And the reason is because they want the world to think that Israel is the worst human rights violator, and no one wants to compare Palestinian prison conditions with Israel's.

Naturally, the UN's "experts" are not nearly as fawning when they talk about Israel's alleged torture.

I found this while looking for statistics on deaths in Palestinian prisons, or indeed any statistics on Palestinian prisons - how many prisoners, their conditions, anything. The PA simply doesn't publish any such information and as far as I can tell, no NGO bothers to compile this information themselves.

Because without the information, no one knows how bad things sre.

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