Saturday, September 21FROM THE RIVER TO THE SEA, PALESTINE WILL BE FREE
Contact your MP for Palestinian Child Prisoners to be Released
NOVANEWS
FOA ended its 24 hour hunger strike at 6pm on the 20th of October whilst distributing leaflets about Palestinian Prisoners outside University College Union. A stall was held directly afterwards at an event entitled ‘Why we should Boycott Israel on Campus’ organised by various London Palestine Societies where FOA had the opportunity to engage with many students aboutits campaigns.
Shamiul Joarder, Head of Public Affairs said ‘The 24 hour hunger strike was the start of our campaign and we plan to draw attention specifically to the 164 child prisoners who are still being held by Israel. The crime of the majority of these children was throwing stones at Israeli armoured personnel carriers, which carries an inexplicable sentence of between 6 months and a year.’
As part of the prisoner exchange deal, the Israeli authorities released 477 prisoners, including 27 women but no children were released. FOA have joined the call along with UNICEF and the President of the European Parliament’s Palestine Delegation for the release of all the Palestinian child prisoners.
Take Action
To continue to raise awareness about Palestinian child prisoners FOA are asking for you to contact your MP to ask them to sign Early Day Motion 2274.
As your constituent I would like to request for you to sign EDM 2274. Would this be possible?
Kind Regards,
Text for EDM 2274
That this House welcomes the prisoner exchange which has led to the release of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit and 477 Palestinian prisoners with a further 550 to be released in the next two months; notes, however, that the list of prisoners released in the first stage on 18 October 2011 does not include any children; further notes that according to figures released by the Israeli Prison Service and Defence of Children International-Palestine, at the end of September 2011 there were 164 Palestinian children (12 to 17 years) detained by Israel, including 35 between the ages of 12and 15 years; and that Israel’s treatment of Palestinian child prisoners has raised serious concerns under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child; and therefore calls on the Government and the international community to support the appeal by UNICEF for the Israeli government to release all Palestinian child detainees so that they can be reunited with their families.
Early Day Motions (EDMs) are formal motions submitted for debate in the House of Commons, although very few are actually debated. However EDMs allow MPs to draw attention and raise awareness of a cause. Please contact your MP and ask them to sign EDM 2274.
Further information
UNICEF Appeals for Child Prisoners to be Released
“UNICEF calls on the Israeli Government to release Palestinian child detainees so that they can be reunited with their families”, said Jean Gough, UNICEF Special Representative in the occupied Palestinian territory.
President of the European Parliament’s Palestine Delegation Calls for Release of All Palestinian Child Prisoners
The detention and trial of children by military courts and their mistreatment is directly contrary to the Geneva Conventions on the treatment of children by an occupying power.
Gilad Shalit is free – now release the 164 jailed Palestinian children
But what of the Palestinian children who continue to languish in Israeli prison cells? Does our Prime Minister have a view on their ongoing incarceration? Will he condemn the transfer of children from the occupied West Bank to prisons inside Israel, in contravention of Article 76 of the Fourth Geneva Convention? Or the interrogation of Palestinian children in the absence of lawyers and their parents?
