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Volume 21

September 2010
 


For the new year, we wish us all a year:

Without the suppression of voices
Without denial of free speech
Without persecution of left-wing activists
Without police brutality
Without ill-treatment
And without torture
May we all have a year of meaningful social action filled with successes in our constant struggle for the preservation of human rights in Israel

Best Regards,
Dr. Ishai Menuchin on behalf of the staff, Public Committee Against Torture in Israel staff

  PCATI, DCI, Adalah issue a joint letter to the Prime Minister
out of our deep concern at persistent and disturbing reports we are receiving of the continuing ill-treatment and abuse of children held in Israeli custody and detention...We specifically draw your attention to a number of concerns and recommendations raised by the [Human Rights] Committee in relation to Palestinian children held in Israeli custody. We wish to enquire whether the appropriate Israeli authorities intend to implement the recommendations designed to limit the abuse of children held in custody, and if so, when, and if not, we would welcome receiving reasons why not?" (to read the letter click here)

  UN Human Rights Committee harshly criticizes Israel in new report
The conclusions of the UN Human Rights Committee, published on 30.7.2010, levy tough criticism on Israel. The committee expressed deep concern for the consistent complaints regarding the use of torture and ill-treatment against Palestinians suspected of security violations. The committee expressed its further concern that complaints about the use of torture did not result in the opening of criminal investigations or were justified by means of the “necessity defense”. An additional criticism was of the bias and ineffectiveness of investigations by the Police Investigations Unit, the Officer in Charge of GSS Interrogee Complaints and the Investigative Military Police regarding complaints of torture and ill-treatment. Likewise, the committee expressed concern at evidence of the (passive and active) involvement of doctors and medical staff in GSS interrogations. Read more...

  Round Up - Dehumanization Through Facebook: PCATI Speaks out on the Soldier's Pictures with detainee



The Facebook pictures publicized last week reflect something very disturbing. The way that Israeli soldiers relate to detainees and the all too often instances in which detainees are subjected to physical abuse and humiliation, amounting to ill treatment and even torture is unacceptable, whether the soldiers pose for pictures with the victims or not. The tendency in Israel is to write off these episodes as "isolated" while we know that they are not Isolated and that what is all to isolated is a soldier being held accountable. PCATI's swift and reasoned reaction drew on our years of experience of handling complaints of soldier abuse from detainees. Read more..

Events
  To a happy new year, without torture and without police brutality

In honor of the "Hosha'ana Raba" holiday, we will go with Rabbis for Human Rights for a series of encirclements of the walls of the Russian Compound under the slogan “A new year without torture and without police brutality”.

The past year, in which we experienced much brutality by the security forces, shows that we must come out and struggle against the violence of the security authorities, to condemn it and eject it from our society.

On 29.9.2010 we will gather across from the Russian Compound in protest of the conduct of GSS interrogators, who torture and ill-treat detainees during their interrogations. From there, we will begin circling around the Russian Compound.

  Soon PCATI's Events


The World Day Against the Death Penalty

On 10.10.2010 PCATI along with Amnesty International will hold an event in honor of the World Day Against the Death Penalty.

For more information about the event follow our web page

Cinema and Human Rights

To mark the opening of the fourth year of the “Cinema and Human Rights” project, a series of meetings will be held, the first in Tel Aviv, in cooperation with Hagada Hasmalit (Left Bank).

As every year, PCATI runs a series of meetings, open to the public, in which we invite participants to discuss different rights following the viewing of films discussing those rights. The meetings include the participation of expert speakers who enrich the dialog on human rights.

For more information follow our web page

Soon to be published

When the Exception Becomes the Rule – Incommunicado Detention of Palestinian Detainees

In the coming weeks the Public Committee Against Torture in Israel in cooperation with “Nadi al-Asir” (Palestinian Prisoner’s Club). will release a new report dealing with one of the routine injustices in GSS interrogations: the prevention of detainees from meeting their attorneys. The report describes in detail how this basic right is systematically denied to Palestinian security prisoners under interrogation. The prevention from meeting with an attorney made headlines recently, in the context of two recent arrests which received wide media coverage:  the interrogations of Haim Perlman and Amir Makhoul. Both the public and the media were shocked and even furious over the fact of GSS’ prevention of these prisoners from meeting an attorney during their interrogation. Yet this report shows that the phenomenon, criticized by legal scholars and public figures when applied to Israeli citizens, is in fact the routine practice in the interrogations of Palestinian detainees. Read more...

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  • Joining Friends of PCATI expresses your public support for PCATI’s activities and allows you to take part in the struggle for the eradication of torture and ill treatment by the authorities responsible for interrogation and law enforcement.
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