| Date: 04/06/2012 Time: 04:04:00 PM |
The situation of workers in the occupied Arab
territories is extremely worrying and remains precarious according to the
annual report of the International Labour Organization (ILO) submitted to the
101st Session of the International Labour Conference.
The realities of the occupation on the ground and unabated expansion of
Israeli settlements, leading to a shrinking space for Palestinian development,
says the report.
This is particularly true in what is called "Area C" of the West Bank,
which is to be an essential part of a future Palestinian State. This area
covers 60 per cent of the land mass of the West Bank but continues to be under
full Israeli control, with Palestinians denied access to their livelihoods and
to one another.
"The peace process is at a standstill more than at any time since the Oslo
Accords" of 1993, says ILO Director-General Juan Somavia in his preface to the
report. He considers that the evolving facts on the ground seriously diminish
the scope for a negotiated two-State solution.
"This is due to a particularly damaging combination of political
intransigence, the incapacity of outside actors to assist the parties or
effectively exercise influence on them, volatility in the region, and the
elusiveness of Palestinian reconciliation."
On the occasion of releasing the report, Director-General Somavia calls for
a development and peace logic which is based on a long-term vision of the
economic, employment and security interests of all workers in both the
occupied Arab territories and Israel. He further states that actions resulting
from the stalemate in the peace process also produce insecurity in Israeli
society.
The Director-General expressed his serious concern about the response by
international cooperation partners, which has been weaker than before. This
further undermines the task of ensuring a basic level of subsistence for a
large share of the people, let alone the capacity to support the few positive
indicators there are.
The report emphasizes that there is no viable or just alternative to ending
the occupation of the Arab territories. "The Palestinian economy has reached
limits which cannot be overcome without action on the two major constraints it
faces occupation and separation," states the report.
"The existence and viability of a fully functioning Palestinian State are
in jeopardy if no political solution is in sight, if the heavy military and
economic occupation becomes even more severe, and if the settlement economy
becomes further integrated into the Israeli economy," the report says. It also
expresses concern about the recent growth of violent acts undertaken by both
settlers and the Palestinians against one another.
The report recognizes some advances. The trend of higher economic growth
witnessed in the Occupied Palestinian Territory between 2008 and 2010
continued in 2011, as real GDP grew by 10.7 per cent. This overall figure was
significantly affected by a 26.6 per cent rise in GDP in Gaza.
The report cautions, however, the growth in Gaza "is far from indicative of
a healthier economy, as it resulted overwhelmingly from a boom in construction
activity fuelled by the tunnel economy, combined with an increase in building
materials allowed in through Israel for reconstruction projects of
international organizations."
The report says that unemployment in the Occupied Palestinian Territory
declined by 4.1 percent in 2011 to 222,000 people, resulting in an overall
unemployment rate of 21 percent, compared to 23.7 percent in 2010. This is
primarily due to a reduction in the unemployment rate in Gaza by more than 9
percent, but overall unemployment is still higher than what it was in 2000
when opportunities to work in Israel were significantly curtailed.
Future employment is clearly one of the biggest concerns facing Palestinian
youth, the report says. Last year 53.5 percent of young women and 32.2 percent
of young men aged 15 to 24 were unemployed. Given that 71 percent of
Palestinians are under 30 years of age, the report calls for urgent action to
address the education crisis in East Jerusalem, to cease the demolition of
schools in the West Bank, and to stop the erosion of skills in Gaza.
Despite the difficulties on the ground, the report notes that the process
of building a Palestinian State continues. This process requires "Palestinian
reconciliation on a democratic basis and respecting the desire of people." The
report also underlines the need for this process to "encompass institutions
and policies for job creation, social dialogue, gender equality, social
security and fair incomes."
One of the conclusions of the report is that gender equality needs to be
pursued with determination and young women and men need to be empowered,
particularly through the establishment and effective functioning of youth
councils.
Besides the advance in Palestinian State building the report also notes the
changes towards democracy and greater openness in the Arab world as elements
of hope.
Meanwhile, findings of the report are based on a mission sent earlier this
year to the occupied Arab territories and Israel to assess the situation of
workers of the occupied Arab territories, including the occupied Syrian Golan.
Since 1980, the Director-General has had the mandate to present an annual
report on this topic to the International Labour Conference. |