Who is hosting the delegation?

The South African Human Rights Delegation will be hosted by the Joint Struggle Coalition, a coalition of organizations, activists and local popular committees dedicated to the joint Palestinian-Israeli non-violent struggle against the Occupation.

During the tour, the delegation will hear from a  wide varitey of groups and organizations including OCHA (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs), the Popular Committee of Bidu, the Popular Committee of Budrus, the Popular Committee of Bil’in, , Peace Now, ACRI (Association for Civil Rights in Israel), Yesh Din, Combatants for Peace, Breaking the Silence , Bereaved Families Forum, Ta’ayush, Children of Abraham, local leadership in Nablus, Hebron and Anatah.

 

Where will the delegation be and what will it be doing?

Based in East Jerusalem, the delegation will hear lectures by leading scholars, on Israel and Palestine, and the history and effects of the post-1967 occupation. Each day will be devoted to studying different aspects of the occupation, and its context. These will range from the construction of the Fence/Wall and the struggles against it, political violence and its costs, the "policy of separation" implemented in Hebron, the continued expansion of settlements in and splintering of East Jerusalem, the issue of Palestinian political prisoners and its effects on Palestinian society, and restrictions on movement, livelihood and rights. Meetings will also take place in cities such as Nablus and East Jerusalem, as well as the refugee camps in the area. Significant time will also be spent in Israel to better understand the complexities and sentiments bearing on the political situation. Thus the delegation will visit the Holocaust memorial museum Yad Vashem, guided by an expert historian of the Holocaust, will visit the Supreme Court to engage with the Chief Justice, and will hear from both Israelis and Palestinians who have lost family members in the conflict. There will be a strong focus on the legal issues, and thus top Palestinian and Israeli human rights lawyers will accompany the group.

Itinerary Highlights

• Tour of the Wall/Fence and stops at the villages Bidu, Bil'in and Budrus (All are centers of local struggles against the fence/wall. The tours will be conducted by the Palestinian popular committees of the villages, lead by Mohamed Khatib.)
• Half-day tour of Israel’s Holocaust Museum Yad Va’shem including lectures and discussion.
• Dinner and meeting in Budrus with Palestinian activist leadership from the West Bank. The meeting will be an open discussion between the South Africans and Palestinian activists.
• Meeting with Dorit Beinisch, Chief Justice of Israel at Supreme Court in Jerusalem.
• Nablus - tour of old city and Ballata refugee camp conducted by Palestinian political leaders from Nablus (tour conducted by Naser Jum'a).
• Focus on Palestinian prisoners – the group will split into three. Some will visit a military court. Others will hold discussions with former Palestinian political prisoners in Anatah.
• Lectures from scholars and lawyers including Dr. Meron Benvenisti (former Deputy Mayor of Jerusalem), Dr. Hillel Cohen (Hebrew University), Michael Sfard (human rights lawyer with Yesh Din), Talya Sasson (human rights lawyers with Association for Civil Rights in Israel), Hagit Ofran (Peace Now Settlement Monitoring Division), Amos Goldberg (Ben Gurion University of the Negev), OCHA (UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs).
• Tour of Jerusalem areas: Ein Karem, Old City, Jabel Mukaber and Silwan. This will be led by Bassam Armin (a founding member of Combatants for Peace), Jawad Siyam (community leader in Silwan) and Dr. Hillel Cohen.
• Tour of Hebron with Issa Amru & Hani Abu Heikel (Tel Reumeida Committee) and Breaking the Silence (IDF veterans promoting awareness of the reality in the Occupied Palestinian Territories).
• Joint discussions with Jewish family who lost a member in a suicide attack and a Palestinian family who had a member killed by the army (Bereaved Families Forum).
• Meeting ordinary Palestinians at community meetings and discussions. Meeting ordinary Israelis at meals inside Israel.