'Palestine to the ICC' campaign gathers momentum

Following the Israeli massacre during Operation Pillar of Defence and Palestine’s accession as a non-member state of the UN, many in Palestine have been clamouring for the right to indict Israeli officials for war crimes at the International Criminal Court. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PHCR) launched its campaign, ‘Palestine to the ICC’, on December 10, coinciding with International Human Rights Day.

The denial of self-determination for Palestinians has been detrimental, unleashing the worst manifestations of colonialism in the form of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and continuous, collective punishment in Gaza. The atrocities committed are beyond any international outrage, as Western governments strive to stress the necessity of Israel protecting itself from ‘terrorists’. The governments who had previously declared the UN Declaration of Human Rights a foundation for international human rights law have long since lapsed into discriminative policies. Article 2 of the declaration determines that ‘no distinction shall be made on the basis of the political, jurisdictional or international status of the country or territory to which a person belongs, whether it be independent, trust, non-self-governing or under any other limitation of sovereignty’.

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In the case of Palestine, discrimination has been camouflaged as the right to self-defence. Despite rampant apartheid practices, the use of white phosphorus in Operation Cast lead, the escalation of Palestinian civilian deaths, and severe deprivation resulting from denial of basic services and the right to employment; Western governments still acquiesce to Israeli rhetoric about security concerns while conveniently neglecting its oppressive practices.

In Gaza, Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh disclosed that Israeli crimes against Palestinians have been documented and legal access should be facilitated in order to achieve a proper investigation leading to the prosecution of officials responsible. Noting that other atrocities against civilians were entwined with Israeli oppression of Palestinians, Haniyeh expressed interest in Turkish legal proceedings against Israeli officials who were tried in absentia for the massacre on board the Mavi Marmara.

If the road to the International Criminal Court is to be a plausible option, the State of Palestine must ratify the Rome Statute. Article 5 of the Statue declares that the Court’s jurisdiction ‘shall be limited to the most serious crimes of concern to the international community as a whole. The Court has jurisdiction in accordance with this Statute with respect to the following crimes: (a) the crime of genocide; (b) crimes against humanity; (c) war crimes; (d) the crime of aggression.’ A deeper look at the Rome Statute indicates that many crimes warranting investigation by the ICC have been committed against Palestinians for decades.

Israel might declare that investigations into military aggression are being investigated by its own courts. However, the implications of impunity from justice for those stipulating or participating in torture are common knowledge. Israeli laws sanction torture and other forms of abuse under the pretext of security concerns. If a truly independent body were to investigate the Palestinian reality, the first step combating international alienation from this illegal occupation would be achieved.

The PHCR has stated that two thirds of those murdered and 97% of injured people during Operation Pillar of Defence were civilians. A matter of concern would be the Western definition of ‘a truly independent body’ investigating war crimes in Gaza, given the outcry against Palestinian self-defence in favour of strengthening an oppressive Israel.  If ‘independence’ can consolidate its own identity against Israeli impunity, this would enable justice to be served.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.