from the Public Relations Office
Ramallah--Today (Wednesday, June 26) a committee of Palestinian lawyers, in conjunction with Birzeit University's Human Rights Action Project, are submitting a petition to the Palestinian High Court in Ramallah on behalf of ten Birzeit University stude nts, detained for more than 100 days in the Ramallah prison without charge or legal proceedings. The petition calls on the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) to declare the legal basis of the detentions or to release the students immediately.
Believed to be the first petition of its kind in the West Bank since the transfer of power to the PNA and the opening of the High Court of Justice, it represents a signal opportunity for the independent Palestinian Judiciary and the PNA as a whole to e xercise its responsibilities in safeguarding the rule of law and due process in Palestine.
The Palestinian High Court, an independent Palestinian court, has the authority to review the legality of detentions. The PNA has extended the jurisdiction of the High Court to the West Bank; the High Court now sits in Ramallah as well as Gaza.
The advocates--including Ahmad Sayyad, Akram Samara, Ali Ghuzian, Elia Theodory, Khadir Shkeirat, and Manyan al-Khatib--argue that their clients are being held illegally without charge or legal proceedings and, therefore, should be released without delay. The detainees have been held since March 1996 in the Ramallah District Prison. The detentions have been marked by an absence of judicial revie w. No warrants were issued for the arrests. The detainees have not been charged with any offense, nor hav e they appeared before a judge to have the period of their detentions or the basis of the investigations against them reviewed. Both the civilian and the military prosecutors have asserted that the detentions do not fall under their authority.
The basic standard enshrined in all laws guarantees to every person the right to liberty and security of person. No person should be subjected to arbitrary arrest or detention, nor deprived of his or her liberty except on such grounds and in accordanc e with such procedures as are established by law. Any person arrested or detained has the right to be informed promptly of the cause thereof, and to be informed in detail the nature and cause of the charge against him or her. Likewise, any detainee has the right to be brought before a person authorized to exercise judicial power within 48 hours of his or her arrest. These standards have been upheld in the applicable laws in Palestine.
The independent Palestinian Judiciary is being called on to exercise its mandated responsibilities by reviewing these protracted detentions on the basis of the rule of law، and the PNA is being urged to uphold the principles or due process and human ri ghts that the Authority has affirmed. The decision taken and its implementation will influence the development of the rule of law in Palestine, as such it should be of special interest to all persons concerned with the emerging situation.
The lawyers will be filing the petition at approximately 11:00 am at the Ramallah High Court (near the city center) and are willing to provide more details to the press.
[ENDS]