Tuesday 7 July 2009

Ramahi: Jailed lawmakers are blackmailed by Israel to press Hamas


Ramahi: Jailed lawmakers are blackmailed by Israel to press Hamas

[ 07/07/2009 - 09:36 AM ]

RAMALLAH, (PIC)-- Dr. Mahmoud Al-Ramahi, the secretary-general of the Palestinian legislative council (PLC), stated that the Palestinian lawmakers imprisoned in Israeli jails are exposed to blackmail to pressure Hamas to make concessions regarding the prisoner swap deal and to accept a two-state solution.

In an interview with the PIC, Dr. Ramahi said that the Israeli occupation authority (IOA) tried to break the determination of the kidnapped lawmakers through maltreating them and practicing the policy of forced transfer from one prison to another, but it always failed to undermine their steadfastness.

Regarding the national dialog, he affirmed that some PA parties do not want reconciliation because they are associated with foreign agendas.

The lawmaker noted that the security leaders in the West Bank do not follow the orders issued by ex-PA chief Mahmoud Abbas, but they receive orders from others, stressing that the issue of political arrests is still a stumbling block to the achievement of national reconciliation.

In another context, the independent committee for human rights in Palestine (the ombudsman office) said Monday that PA ministry of education in Ramallah still fires employees and teachers from their jobs or ends their recruitment process because of their affiliation with Hamas.

In a report on the PA violations of human rights in the West Bank during last June, the committee said it received during the month complaints against the PA ministry of education in this regard confirming that dismissal decisions were issued by Lamees Al-Alami, the PA minister of education.

The committee underlined that taking such measures violates the civil service law and the Palestinian basic law as well as the right of citizens to hold public office in the government on an equal footing and without discrimination.

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