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GCAP Open Letter

October 16-17, 2007

To:
President of the Palestinian National Authority
Prime Minister
Minister of Labor, Minister of Planning
Minister of Social Affairs, Minister of Agriculture
Minister of Sport & Youth

The situation of impoverishment facing the Palestinian people represents an undeclared war to drain Palestinians from their worldwide recognized capacity for steadfastness, creating a situation of unprecedented pessimism among the population.  The loss of confidence by the Palestinian people in others is due to the delayed action at the political, economic and social levels, which has lead to jeopardizing a favorable solution to the Palestinian question.

The absence of a minimum level of social protection and the absence of a social protection discourse among officials has amounted to a disconnection between the citizen’s social needs and the orientations of the Palestinian National Authority. Nowadays Palestinian citizens are socially exposed and do not even enjoy the minimum level of social protection guaranteed by international and Palestinian law.

Mr. President, Prime Minister, your Excellencies;

Nowadays our poor citizens form more than two thirds of the Palestinian people, most of them in Gaza Strip.  In addition, a large number of citizens, who were able to overcome poverty, are now at risk of impoverishment. Workers in the private sector are exposed to daily violations against their basic rights, with no social insurance in case of job loss, injury or death. As for those retired from the public sector, they consistently do not obtain their full compensation rights. In regards to the unemployed, there is neither an existing law that protects their rights nor an institutionalized unemployed allowance. Families who lack sufficient income or have no source of income (including the elderly and poor families headed by women) also lack appropriate protection. Ill workers with no health insurance are exposed to death, while those who have public health insurance do not obtain the appropriate health care. The categories included in special programs (the detainees and the families of martyrs for example) face frequent difficulties in obtaining allocations. Many male and female students are also deprived from a higher education for being poor, and free education in public educational institutions is not yet implemented.

Mr. President, Prime Minister, your Excellencies;

There are a large number of institutions that provide material and in-kind aid for the citizens.  Statistics indicate that some families are receiving aid from various sides, while others are deprived from receiving any kind of aid. To ensure the delivery of aid to the eligible sides in a just way, there must be sufficient coordination between the providers of social protection. In addition, we request that social protection is not used for partisan or narrow factional purposes.

GCAP-Palestine presents the following demands to the President, the appointed Prime Minister and Ministers:

• The review of the tax system in favor of the lower-income, the criminalization of tax evasion and activating the National Authority in this regard.
• An end to the misuse of public money meant for the aid of the Palestinian people and call for activating the laws relating to this issue, and public announcement of the investigation's results of the abuser's use of this money. 
• Ensure the citizen’s complaints process instituted in 2005 is fully activated.
• Guarantee the right of retired workers to allocations and benefits due to them.
• The repeal of the decision to cancel the social insurance law, which has left private sector workers exposed to violations of their rights.
• The adoption of the law for protection against unemployment and the establishment of an unemployment fund, because the unemployed, and especially the youth, are in need for protection .
• Implementation of a national system of health care, the improvement of health services and compulsory health insurance premiums accessible for the majority of the population, while those under the poverty line would obtain free health insurance.
• Free basic education for all and ensuring access to higher education for the poor.
• Activate a national committee to ensure the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals.

We commend your prompt intervention to meet these demands, and ask that you kindly inform us -the National Coalition for the Global Call to Action against Poverty- of any possible progress that may be made towards meeting these demands as a result of your direct intervention. 

Sincerely,
The members of the GCAP Coalition in Palestine

• Read the GCAP press release concerning this open letter.

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