| Reprint from Amnesty Action |
Despite some progress over the years, this process has often been marked by tension and acrimony. But from a human rights standpoint, there is common ground, as Israeli and Palestinian activists share parallel concerns across the political and cultural divide. Unfortunately, their efforts have uncovered continued abuses by the authorities on both sides.Eitan Felner, the Executive Director of the Israeli human rights organization B'Tselem (In the Image), and Bassem Eid, the Executive Director of the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group, address many of the same issues as they investigate violations by the Israeli and Palestinian security forces, respectively.Originally from Argentina, Felner is a longtime member of Amnesty International's Israeli Section and once served as its chairperson. Eid was born in East Jerusalem and lives with his family, including eight children, in the Shuafat refugee camp.Both men trace their activism back to formative experiences in their early lives. Both have worked, at different times, for the same organization. Both risk being viewed as disloyal by their own people but remain committed to the cause of human rights.Violations in the territoriesEitan Felner says his decision to become a human rights activist was influenced by his upbringing in Argentina during the "dirty war" of the 1970s."I immigrated to Israel 18 years ago in part because of the military government that was in power in Argentina," he recalls. "But I never thought human rights would become a profession for me. When I first came to Israel, I intended to become a rabbi."Felner joined B'Tselem as a researcher in 1993, shortly after he had decided to focus his attention on Israel's own behavior."I realized that I wanted to concentrate on human rights violations that were being done in my name," he says. "As an Israeli, I can't help but feel that violations in the territories are urgent for us to address."For Bassem Eid, the decision to focus on Palestinian abuses was no less arduous. Born in Jerusalem's Old City, he was relocated to the nearby Shuafat camp by the Jordanian Government in 1966. He later studied journalism and public relations at Hebrew University and was hired by the Israeli newspaper Kol Ha-ir (Voice of the City) in 1983. He worked there for five years, covering human rights issues."I understood it was important to have these stories in the Hebrew press in order to generate pressure on the Israeli Government," says Eid.At the invitation of Dedi Zucker, currently a member of the Israeli parliament, Eid joined B'Tselem as a researcher in 1988. The work was not easy. "Israelis were killing Palestinians and here I was going on behalf of an Israeli organization to investigate," he notes. "So some Palestinians were suspicious of me."In order to introduce B'Tselem to the Palestinian community, Eid began to write in the Arabic newspaper Al-Quds (Jerusalem) about the organization's appeals to Israeli officials on specific cases. And then, in 1992, he was moved to begin covering abuses by Palestinians against other Palestinians."The issue of so-called collaborators being killed became widespread within the Palestinian community," says Eid, and for the first time, B'Tselem decided to take up the issue of Palestinian violations. "It took about two years to complete the research. We showed that at least some people who had been killed had no connections to the Israeli security services, the police or even the administration."Eid remains proud of that report but concedes that it made him no friends in either of the two major Palestinian political movements, Fatah and Hamas.Moving against the grainFor his part, Eitan Felner has moved against the grain of mainstream Israeli politics by investigating what he calls "our single most constant concern"-the interrogation and torture methods of the Israeli security forces."We are finalizing our eighth or ninth report on this issue," he says, "and B'Tselem is also very involved in the discussions that are being held in the Israeli Supreme Court." Those discussions are part of an ongoing debate in Israel about the use of mistreatment and torture to obtain information on possible acts of terrorism.In January, the Supreme Court sanctioned the use of interrogation methods that have been condemned by the U.N. Committee Against Torture. These methods include contorting the prisoner into painful positions, sleep deprivation, noise exposure, hooding and violent shaking. Several draft bills before the Israeli parliament would also officially sanction the use of torture. Amnesty, B'Tselem, the Palestinian Human Rights Monitoring Group and other advocates have actively opposed these bills."Unfortunately, we are in the minority," admits Felner. "The majority of Israelis consider that whatever is necessary for security reasons is okay, including the use of torture. Israelis often like to use euphemisms like `moderate physical pressure' to justify such practices."The government makes the claim that torture is both necessary and effective against certain types of political violence, such as suicide bombings. Felner is unmoved by this line of reasoning."Governments everywhere invoke security concerns to justify their practices," he argues. "Israel is no exception. Of course, there are genuine security risks in Israel. But we see again and again how Israeli officials manipulate information to justify what cannot be justified.''Felner points to the security forces' claim that they use violent methods of interrogation only when there is an urgent need to get information in order to save lives. He says the evidence shows this claim lacks credibility."Israel is not using such methods in a limited manner," Felner asserts. "Literally thousands of people go through these interrogation methods. Our late Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin said publicly that 8,000 Palestinians had been violently shaken. Violent shaking can cause severe cerebral damage. Prisoners have died from such treatment."Concern for prisoners' fateBassem Eid, too, expresses deep concern for the fate of Palestinian prisoners. But in his case, that concern now centers on the practices of the Palestinian Authority."On the very day the P.A. came into power, July 5, 1994, the first Palestinian prisoner died in a Palestinian prison," he says. "As a Palestinian, I had to get involved."Since the mandate of B'Tselem, Eid's employer at the time, was primarily to cover Israeli abuses, he went to Gaza on his own initiative to investigate cases of death in custody. He eventually formed his own organization in the summer of 1996."We have a very disturbing picture when it comes to human rights," laments Eid. "Just when you think things are getting better, you learn about a Palestinian professor at Al-Azhar University who is arrested for raising a question in class about corruption."In fact, hundreds of detainees are currently being held by the Palestinian Authority, many without charge or trial. Torture is also reportedly a common practice during interrogations by Palestinian police. AI has expressed its concern about these violations on numerous occasions.And Eid himself has faced arrest for raising discomforting questions about the powers that be. In January 1996, Palestinian security officers detained him for 24 hours. His offense: publishing a report on Yasir Arafat's manipulation of the media to favor Fatah candidates over others running in the Palestinian Authority elections, which were held that month.The police arrested Eid on January 3 at 11 p.m., holding him in an office and politely asking him to submit, in writing, to President Arafat's control. Eid flatly refused and remained as "a guest" for the rest of that night and the following day."The next night," he says, "one of Arafat's advisers came to my room along with six other guys in suits. They asked me if I had been treated well, if anyone had harassed or beaten me. I said no. But when I asked them why I had spent 24 hours in this room, they said it was a mistake, a misunderstanding. "You know why you were arrested, Bassem," they said.Eid replied: "For criticizing Arafat, of course. And do you think that because of my time here I will stop criticizing Arafat? My tongue will not become shorter. It will become longer after you release me."Since that time, Eid has not been arrested again.As the story of his arrest makes clear, Bassem Eid's tenacity has served him well. Along with his Israeli counterpart, Eitan Felner, he has been stubborn (and highly public) in his refusal to abandon the ideals of the global human rights movement.Perhaps that strength of character is the most important of the many traits shared by these two extraordinary activists. And perhaps their greatest common bond-unconditional respect for the inherent human rights of every person- will one day be recognized as the true basis for a lasting peace in the Holy Land.Locally, AI meets on first Mondays at 7:30 p.m. at Stony Run Friends Meetinghouse, 5116 N. Charles St. Call 410/235-8438.