Palestinians: PA exploiting coronavirus measures to silence critics

The organizers of the protest accused the PA leadership of using the state of emergency as an excuse to silence its critics and suppress freedom of speech in the West Bank.

By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
FILE PHOTO: Palestinian workers make their way to disinfect religious sites as preventive measures against the coronavirus, in Ramallah in the in the West Bank March 7, 2020 (photo credit: REUTERS/MOHAMAD TOROKMAN/FILE PHOTO)
FILE PHOTO: Palestinian workers make their way to disinfect religious sites as preventive measures against the coronavirus, in Ramallah in the in the West Bank March 7, 2020
(photo credit: REUTERS/MOHAMAD TOROKMAN/FILE PHOTO)
Palestinian politicians, academics and human rights advocates on Thursday called on the Palestinian Authority to immediately release several activists who were arrested in the past few days for protesting administrative and financial corruption in Palestinian institutions.
A PA court in Ramallah on Wednesday ordered nine activists remanded into custody for 15 days on charges of holding an illegal gathering and violating the state of emergency announced by PA President Mahmoud Abbas to stem the spread of the coronavirus in the West Bank.
The organizers of the protest accused the PA leadership of using the state of emergency as an excuse to silence its critics and suppress freedom of speech in the West Bank.
The activists were arrested earlier this week after holding an anti-corruption sit-in strike in the center of Ramallah under the slogan “Enough is Enough.”
Some of the activists have reportedly gone on hunger strike to protest their arrest. One of them, Jihad Abdo, was transferred on Wednesday to a hospital in Ramallah after complaining of pain in the chest.
More than 100 Palestinians, including politicians, writers, academics and journalists, signed a petition calling for the immediate release of the anti-corruption activists.
“We affirm our rejection of the arrest and persecution of the anti-corruption youth activists,” they wrote. “We also emphasize that freedom of expression and protest is guaranteed by Palestinian law, even during a state of emergency.”
The Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights (ICHR) noted that the activists had requested permission from the Palestinian police to hold a protest in the center of Ramallah against corruption in some PA public institutions. “However, the police informed them that they would not be allowed to hold the protest due to the health conditions,” ICHR said. “The security forces set up checkpoints to stop the activists from holding the protest. When some of them arrived at the center of Ramallah, they were arrested by the security forces. At least 19 activists were arrested.”
ICHR said that while it understands the need for full commitment to safety measures and social distancing due to the coronavirus outbreak, “we consider that the arrest of the activists is a punishment for their community activities and their criticism of some institutions and public figures.”
Some anti-corruption activists posted videos on Facebook in which they condemned the PA for its security crackdown on their colleagues.
Nizar Banat, a Hebron-based political activist, said that the PA security forces raided his home in an attempt to arrest him. “I’m not going to hand myself over,” Banat said. “I’m not afraid because we are carrying out our activities in public. I’m carrying out my natural duty to speak out against corruption. The security forces raided my home at 2.30 a.m., even though they knew I wasn’t there.”