Ashrawi Condemns the Suppression of Peaceful Protests
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- Published on Monday, 02 July 2012 16:53
PNN
Hanan Ashrawi: "Our responsibility is to listen to the young people and take their message very seriously"
On Monday, 2nd July, Member of the Executive Committee of the Palestine Liberation Organization, Hanan Ashrawi, today condemned the suppression of peaceful protests by young activists, during demonstrations which took place on Saturday and Sunday in the city of Ramallah, resulting in the hospitalization of a number of protesters.
Ashrawi stressed the right to peaceful protest and demonstration, and freedom of expression guaranteed by the basic principles of Palestinian Basic Law, Palestinian institutions and international covenants. She said: "We condemn the attack on public freedoms, which affect the fundamental rights of the Palestinians, harm the image of our people and our state institutions, and, moreover, jeopardize our democratic future which preserves and protects human rights and the rule of law."
Dr. Ashrawi, The head of the PLO Department of Culture and Information, called for the formation of an independent commission of inquiry in order to hold accountable those responsible for these events, also emphasizing the need to provide protection to journalists and the media, and to take the necessary measures to enable them to work freely.
Ashrawi said: "The Palestinian youth are the leaders of our future, and it is our responsibility to engage them in public life, to listen to their, and to take the message of their protest very seriously."
She added: "At this difficult time, we need to ensure that we are working to strengthen the system of human rights; to support such demonstrations of the steadfastness of our people in the face of the power of the occupation and its repressive practices; and to realize their legitimate and inalienable rights, in order to bring us closer to the establishment of a democratic state."
