The Palestinian parliament is in jail!
In the elections of January 2006, the Reform and Change List that is is the political branch of Hamas, won over 50 percent of the votes, obtained 70 out of 132 seats in the parliament as well as the right to form a majority government. Although the Palestinian side has declared cease-fire for one and a half years, acted in accordance with political responsibility within this period by keeping negotiation doors open, Israel and its supporters chose to punish Palestine by imposing a comprehensive embargo instead of giving a chance for the new government. The embargo, executed before the eyes of world with the purpose of pulling down the government, turned out to be a massive punishment which is wearing out the public and Palestinians feel condemned because of not electing the people “whom Israel wants". As if this was not enough, seeds of civil war are spread by using the uneasiness of Palestinians..
After economic and political embargoes, Israel carried out operations in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, that killed many civilians, arrested twenty seven members of parliament along with eight ministers. Since then members of parliament, one of whom is the Chairman of the Assembly, were kept in prison due to being “threat to safety". Total politicians numbers who are currently in prison including ten politicians who were arrested in the previous years and elected while in prison has exceeded the number forty.
Thus, one third of the Palestinian parliament and one fourth of the board of ministers are serving time in Israel jails and maintanence of a government is hindered.
Almost a year has passed since the over detainments of members of parliament, and there are still nine thousand four hundred Palestinian political detainees in Israel. However, there seems to be no slight movement sign in the world public opinion, neither among colleagues in other countries nor in the UN, of disaproval.
After all, whatever their life visions are, it is the Palestinian public that has elected the mentioned politicians and thus the treatment meted out to them is actually an insult to the public. It is time for sensitivity in order to free the members of parliament and ministers, and show respect to the election of the Palestinian public. None of the parliaments of any country or the representatives of any nation have ever been insulted like this. The Palestinian public does not deserve it.
We, as civil society organizations in Turkey, repeat our call to free the legal representatives of Palestine while reminding the general public one more time that the way to peace in the Middle East depends on the Palestine issue.
By this means, we announce that we established a platform with wide participation from within civil society with the purpose of supporting Palestinian representatives and we invite all responsive politicians, civil society organizations and community representatives to support this campain.
