Palestinian teachers win appeal against discriminatory sacking
Teachers protest outside the Supreme Court in Ramallah on June 14. Photo by MaanImages/HO
Supreme Court delays verdict over sacking of teachers
By Ma’an news
June 17, 2012
RAMALLAH — The Supreme Court in Ramallah on Thursday [June 14, 2012] delayed its verdict on teachers who say they were fired for their political affiliations.
Ghandi al-Rabai, a lawyer for the Palestinian Independent Commission for Human Rights, said the court delayed the verdict because several judges were absent.
PICR says around 500 teachers were fired by the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority over their political affiliation.
The delay in issuing a verdict provoked protests from the teachers, their lawyers and several legal rights groups, who said the judges’ absence was an attempt to avoid compensating teachers for their dismissal and lost earnings.
“These are teachers who have been victims of a clear injustice for four years” al-Rabai told Ma’an. “They were illegally fired from their jobs.”
Al-Rabai said the Education Minister had ceded her legal power to hire teachers in a submission to the security apparatus.
The lawyer also said the Palestinian justice system needed specialized courts for urgent cases. “Why don’t we have such courts in our system?” he asked.
PLC member Ibrahim Abu Salem accused the court of bias. “The court’s decision (to delay the verdict) is politically motivated and it is unfair.”
The dismissed teachers held a sit-in protest in front of the court.
Islamic MPS call for implementing Supreme Court resolution on dismissed teachers
By Palestine Information Centre
September 05, 2012
RAMALLAH– Change and Reform Bloc MPs called for implementing the Palestinian Supreme Court’s ruling against the arbitrary dismissal of hundreds of teachers for political reasons.
MP Samira Halaiqa stated that the PA security services has to implement the verdict as soon as possible otherwise it will be neglected like hundreds of resolutions against political and dismissed detainees.
She added that the resolution will never change the dismissed teachers’ condition if it is not implemented, calling on the PA to stop its systematic policy in dismissing the employees for their political views.
Halaiqa stressed that a number of the dismissed teachers have received official promises to return to their jobs but until now nothing has happened, insisting on the seriousness of not implementing the Supreme Court’s resolution.
For his part, the Jerusalemite MP Ahmed Attoun welcomed the Palestinian court’s decision, while MP Ramahi called on the PA not to procrastinate as it had happened with the Supreme Court’s decisions concerning political prisoners.
The MP Mona Mansour confirmed that this decision proves the dismissed teachers’ just issue, hoping that the political arrests and dismiss atmosphere will end soon.
For her part, the MP Mariam Saleh thanked the Palestinian judiciary for its” belated” resolution “belated” and all the teachers’ issue supporters.
Furthermore, MP for the district of Tulkarem Fathi Qaraawi called to accelerate the implementation of the court’s decision.
He considered the resolution as a victory to the Palestinian working class who have suffered a lot because of political reasons.
Palestinian Legislative Council MPs in the West Bank have attended the Supreme Court session in Ramallah concerning the arbitrary dismissal of hundreds of teachers since four years.
[NOTES
The Supreme Court is composed of a High Constitutional Court; a Court of Cassation to hear civil, criminal, and commercial matters; and a High Court of Justice to hear administrative disputes.
The Change and Reform bloc is largely, but not exclusiveely, made up of Hamas or Islamist affiliated people. It is regarded with suspicion by the security services of both the PA/Fatah and Israel.]