Friday, 17 April
7 am Pacific/10 am Eastern/3 pm UTC/5 pm Europe/6 pm Palestine
Online over Zoom
Register at Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/5000-prisoners-israeli-racism-and-medical-negligence-amidst-covid-19-tickets-101540586628
Meeting ID to be provided to registered participants 2 days before the seminar
When: 15:00-17:00 GMT; 17:00-19:00 EEST; 10:00-12:00 EST
Background:
There are currently 5000 Palestinians languishing in Israeli Prison Service (IPS) facilities; 43 are women, 180 are children, and 430 are administrative detainees held without any form of due process.
Since 1967, a total of 222 Palestinian prisoners have died in Israeli custody; 67 of the 222 due to medical negligence. Current estimates note that there are 700 prisoners in urgent need of medical treatment, with 60% of all prisoners having a history of chronic diseases.
In January last year Israel’s Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan announced plans to ‘worsen’ the condition for prisoners, and to set ‘clear limits’ on a number of areas including water consumption and the capacity for prisoners to shower. Over the last month, and with the onset of the coronavirus, these measures have been accelerated and prisoners are now prohibited from accessing vital sanitation and hygiene products, from receiving family visits and visits from legal representatives, and key food supplies such as bread and water are being severely restricted. These developments, as well as many more aggressive measures enacted by the Israeli prisons’ administration, are not new – they represent a continuation of a policy of medical neglect and health care denial commonplace within the prison system since 1967 and the onset of Israel’s military occupation.
However, as the deadly covid-19 virus evidently threatens to exacerbate the situation in prisons to levels hitherto unseen, it is vital that awareness is raised as a matter of urgency.
It is in this context that EuroPal Forum brings you this online seminar, which seeks to raise awareness about the plight of Palestinian prisoners and the specific challenges they are facing during this global pandemic. To foster this seminar, EuroPal is bringing together those at the forefront of discourse and understanding on the condition of Palestinian prisoners for a 2-hour discussion on the dynamics of the situation in Israeli jails.
Speakers:
Charlotte Kates – Charlotte is the international coordinator of Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network and the coordinator of the International Committee of the National Lawyers Guild. She is also a member of the Organizing Collective of the US Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel and Al-Awda, the Palestine Right to Return Coalition.
Lana Ramadan – Lana is the international advocacy officer at Addameer. Lana previously worked with Badil Refugee Resource Centre where she worked as a researcher, specifically focusing on forced displacement and the creation of coercive environments by Israeli policies. In December 2017, she began at Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association as the International Advocacy Officer.
Motasem A Dalloul – Motasem Dalloul is a journalist based in Gaza and a specialist on Middle Eastern affairs. He is Middle East Monitor’s correspondent in the Gaza Strip. He holds an MA in international journalism from the University of Westminster.
Akram Satari – Akram is a news reporter and a translator for a number of international NGOs and cooperation agencies. He was shot by the Israeli occupation forces at the age of 13 and arrested at the age of 16.
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As this is an online webinar, please register to ensure that the meeting ID will be sent to your email 2 days prior to the start of the event.
