Lawyers Working for Justice
As the humanitarian crisis in Gaza deepens, lawyers representing Islamic charities in Europe are meeting on a regular basis to compare information and co-ordinate activities in the face of legal obstacles that block the transferring of funds into Palestine for relief and rehabilitation efforts.
But the situation is changing, particularly in Nordic countries, and a growing weariness by some countries to take further draconian action against the charities while Israeli human rights abuses continue unabated. For example, a Danish court has recently refused to take evidence from an Israeli intelligence officer who, under Israeli government orders, refused to give his name.
The lawyers first met informally at the conference, organised by Interpal last October in London, entitled “Confronting the Continuing Palestinian Humanitarian Crisis”. This conference recommended the setting up of a new organisation, Partners for Peace and Development for Palestinians (PPDP), to “co-ordinate and consolidate, as far as possible, aid and relief efforts for the Palestinian people.” The meeting of lawyers is part of this process.
The lawyers then met on 26 January in Brussels and are due to meet again at the end of February.
The lawyers are in touch with the Montreux Initiative, established by the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs early in 2005. The objective of the initiative, which was welcomed by Islamic organisations and some western governments, is to increase co-operation between Western humanitarian and Islamic charities “in order to jointly work out practical ways to lift unjustified obstacles faced by Islamic charities and thus enable them to operate normally”.
Even in the US encouragement can be taken from the hung jury in the case of the Holy Land Foundation which represents (at least in that country) a defeat for the prosecution. A retrial is scheduled for this August.
As the lawyers are now working together, so too are other key advocacy groups. The momentum is gathering.