UN Independent Expert on Minority Issues Criticizes Israel’s Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law
On 12 March 2008, Ms. Gay McDougall, the UN Independent Expert on Minority Issues, presented her report to the seventh session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva. In preparation for the report, Ms. McDougall convened an expert consultation at the United Nations headquarters in Geneva on “Issues Related to Minorities and the Denial or Deprivation of Citizenship”, in which Adalah’s General Director Attorney Hassan Jabareen participated. The consultation was held on 6 and 7 December 2007 with the support of the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) for the presentation of expert testimonies on how states deal with the rights of non-citizens, including refugees, migrant workers and indigenous persons not granted citizenship by the state in which they reside.
In her report to the seventh session of the Human Rights Council, released on 28 February 2008, Ms. McDougall cited the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law as an example of the denial or deprivation of citizenship in the Middle East region, stating that, “the effect of this discriminatory law is that thousands of Palestinian families must separate, emigrate or live illegally in Israel under constant risk of arrest and deportation” (para. 62). In the conclusion of her report, Ms. McDougall recommended that, “While States have a prerogative to establish laws governing the acquisition, renunciation or loss of nationality, they must do so within the framework of international human rights law” (para. 79), and that, “Fundamental fairness, including the right to appeal, must be guaranteed in all immigration and citizenship procedures” (para. 80).
Attorney Jabareen was among 32 academics and experts in the field of minority rights and citizenship at the consultation. Ms. McDougall convened the meeting to assist her work in revealing the extent of denials or deprivations of the citizenship of minorities and developing practical solutions to these problems.
Attorney Jabareen spoke on a wide range of issue concerning Palestinians and the denial or deprivation of citizenship. Attorney Jabareen discussed the problem of citizenship for Palestinians, including Palestinian refugees, Palestinian citizens of Israel and Palestinians living in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT). He spoke of the ways in which Palestinians in the OPT are deprived of freedom of movement in their homeland, including for purposes of education, visiting relatives and receiving medical treatment.
Attorney Jabareen highlighted Israel’s Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law, which prohibits the granting of any residency or citizenship status to Palestinians from the OPT – and since an amendment made in March 2007 Lebanon, Syria, Iran or Iraq – who are married to Israeli citizens, solely on the basis of their national belonging. Since the law was originally enacted in 2003, it has forced thousands of affected families to separate, live outside of Israel, or live illegally within Israel under constant risk of arrest and deportation. The law allows individuals to apply at most for temporary visit permits in Israel, and bars individuals from submitting applications for residency and citizenship, leaving them ineligible for work permits, social benefits, etc.
Adalah is challenging the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law before the Supreme Court of Israel. In a petition filed to the court on 31 May 2007 (H.C. 830/07, Adalah v. The Minister of the Interior, et al.), Adalah demanded the cancellation of the law, and that the graduated procedure for obtaining residency or citizenship status in Israel be used for deciding on family unification applications in an equitable and non-discriminatory manner. A hearing on the petition will be held on 5 May 2005.
