PALESTINE: OTHER ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF CONFLICT RESOLUTION

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PALESTINE: OTHER ALTERNATIVE MEANS OF CONFLICT

RESOLUTION

Khaled Abou-Elyousr

Sudan - 2006

What are Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)?

Non-Governmental organizations, or NGOs, are generally accepted to be organizations

which have not been established by governments or agreements among governments.

According to Harold Jacobson, author of one of the established texts in international

organization, NGOs, like intergovernmental organizations (IGOs), have regularly

scheduled meetings of their members’ representatives, specified decision-making

procedures, and a permanent staff.1 Their members are usually individuals and private

associations, rather than states, and they may be formally established Networks of other

organizations. A wide variety of NGOs function in intractable conflicts. These include

conflict resolution NGOs, as well as those in humanitarian assistance, development,

human rights, peacebuilding, and other areas.

While the term “NGOs” is sometimes used interchangeably with “grassroots

organizations”, “social movements”, “major groups”, and “civil society” NGOs are not

the same as any of these. Grassroots organizations are generally locally organized

groups of individuals which have spring up to empower their members and take action

on particular issues of concern to them. Some NGOs are grassroots organizations. But

many are not. Social movements are broader and more diffuse than organizations; a

social movement encompasses a broad segment of society which is interested in

fomenting or resisting social change in some particular issue/area, such as disarmament,

environmental, civil rights, or women's movements.2 A social movement may include

NGOs and grassroots organizations. “Major groups” is a term coined at the time of the

UN1992 Rio “Earth Summit” as a part of Agenda 21 to encompass the societal sectors

1 Harold K. Jacobson, Networks of Interdependence: International Organizations and the Global

Political System, Second edition. (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1984), pp 4-10.

2 For definition and discussion of these and other social movements see Roger S. Powers and William B.

Vogele (eds.), Protest, Power and Change: An Encyclopedia of Nonviolent Action from ACT-UP to

Women's Suffrage, New York, Garland Publishing Inc, 1997.

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which were expected to play roles, in addition to nation-states and intergovernmental

organizations, in environment and development. NGOs are identified as one of these

sectors, but NGOs overlap with many of the other sectors; there are women’s NGOs,

farmers' NGOs, labor NGOs, and business NGOs, among others.3

“Civil society” is a term that became popularized at the end of the Cold War to describe

what appeared to have been missing in state-dominated societies, broad societal

participation in and concern for governance, but not necessarily government. Civil

society is thought to be the necessary ingredient for democratic governance to arise.

NGOs are one part of civil society.

While it is often argued that NGOs are the voice of the people, representing grassroots

democracy, a counter argument is made that NGOs have tended to reinforce, rather than

counter, existing power structures, having members and headquarters that are primarily

in the rich northern countries.4 Some also believe that NGO decision-making does not

provide for responsible, democratic representation or accountability.

NGOs themselves can be local, national, or international. Sometimes international

NGOs are referred to as INGOs. Historically, most NGOs accredited to the UN

Economic and Social Council have been international, but contrary to the popular

wisdom, even the first group of NGOs accredited to ECOSOC in the 1940s included

some national NGOs.5

People speak of NGOs, INGOs (international NGOs), BINGOs (business international

NGOs), RINGOs (religious international NGOs), ENGOs (environmental NGOs),

GONGOs (government-operated NGOs – which may have been set up by governments

to look like NGOs in order to qualify for outside aid), QUANGOs (quasi-NGOs –i.e.

3 See United Nations Department of Public Information, ‘Strengthening the Role of Major Groups’,

Earth Summit Agenda 21: the United Nations Programme of Action from Rio, New York, UN DPI/1344,

April 1993, pp 219-245.

4 See for example Elise Boulding, ‘for the argument that NGOs represent the voice of the people in a

landscape of money and power’, Women in the Twentieth Century World. New York: John Wiley, 1977,

pp 165-218.

5 Forty-one NGOs were first granted consultative status with ECOSOC in 1948, by 1968 377 had that

status and by 2002 the number was over 2000. Additionally, there were about 1400 NGOs accredited to

the Department of Public Information in 2002.

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those that are at least partially created or supported by states), and many others. While

some other groups are non-governmental, they are not usually included under the term

NGO. The term usually explicitly excludes for-profit corporations, and private

contractors, and multinational corporations (MNCs), although associations formed by

MNCs –such as the International Chamber of Commerce– are considered NGnOs.

Similarly, political parties, liberation movements, and terrorist organizations are not

usually considered NGOs. Recently, however, some from outside the field of

international organization, especially military writers, have begun to refer to terrorist

movements as NGOs, some would say in order to discredit NGOs. Peter Willetts, an

authority on NGOs, argues in defining NGOs that “a commitment to non-violence is the

best respected of the principles defining an NGO”.6

The Palestinian NGOs Development Perspectives

The NGOs movement in Palestine is deeply rooted within Palestinian society. Charities

started their activities at the turn of the 20th century and operated within the legal

framework applicable to NGOs as stipulated in Ottoman law. Many of these early

organizations are still functioning and actively involved in civil work up to this day.

They are currently estimated to constitute around % 10 of the total number of NGOs in

Palestine.

The 1960s and 1970s witnessed a substantial proliferation of NGOs, most of which

were charitable organizations operating regionally. The legal framework applicable to

these organizations was based on Jordanian law, itself more or less an extension of

Ottoman law. With the Israeli occupation in 1967 of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip,

the demand by the Palestinian population for the provision of services increased;

charities assumed the very important role of providing these services in social,

educational and medical fields. They did so independently of the existing Israeli

service-provision system. However, the Israeli military authorities placed many

restrictions on the establishment and registration of new organizations by imposing

additional requirements to the already existing legal codes. These military orders had

6 Peter Willetts. "Non-Governmental Organizations," Article 1.44.3.7, in UNESCO Encyclopedia of Life

Sciences.

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impacted negatively on the process of registration, as well as the functioning of NGOs,

which in turn led to severe disruption in their activities.

During the late 1970s and early 1980s, a new phenomenon took place on the NGO

scene - the emergence of voluntary grass-roots organizations. The new movement

started to function in different fields on the ground, without obtaining the permission of

the Israeli civil administration. This fact placed them, according to Israeli legal terms,

outside the law. These new organizations, which basically aimed at building an

infrastructure of resistance, influenced the NGOs and Civil Society movements in

Palestine, leading them to revise their outlook and readjust their mission.

The Palestinian NGOs have always played a vital role in Palestinian society. Since its

inception, the NGO sector has been an integral part of the Palestinian national

movement and its aspiration for a free and sovereign Palestine. Its vitality and

dynamism are at the root of the evolution of Palestinian civil society, with all its aspects

of plurality and diversity.

The Palestinian NGO sector currently includes charitable societies, cooperatives,

associations, development organizations and some other social interest groups, e.g.,

unions representing the disabled, women’s organizations and youth movements.

Religious associations and other related bodies are registered as NGOs although they

differ from them insofar as their concern extends beyond the purely charitable or

benevolent aspects.

The responsibility of the NGO sector in the provision of services, as well as in the

overall development process, has been steadily growing since the onset of the first

intifada in 1987. With the establishment of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) in

1994, substantial changes occurred in the political and socioeconomic context in which

the Palestinian NGOs had been operating, leading them to revise their strategies and

redefine their role. Since then, the relationship between the NGO sector and the

government has been volatile and unstable, and NGOs have had to operate within an

ambiguous legal framework which left them vulnerable to political pressure.

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Nevertheless, the NGOs have been performing a much-needed job filling the gaps left

by the government’s service delivery system. According to the available data, it is

believed that the share of the NGO sector in service provision covers over % 60 of all

health-care services, % 80 of all rehabilitation services, and almost % 100 of all

preschool education. The same is true of other sectors, such as agriculture and water. It

is worth noting that the NGO sector employs more than 20,000 people working in the

different areas, whereas around 150,000 people are employed by the government.7

The crucial role of the NGOs became particularly evident in recent times –since the

second intifada in September of 2000—especially with regard to the emergency and

relief work they have been carrying out. Thanks to their ability to function in very

difficult circumstances, their flexibility and their high level of performance, NGOs have

been invaluable in assuring the provision of essential services to the Palestinian

population living under the strict siege, closures and curfews imposed by the Israeli

occupation forces.

The UN SG Kofi Annan, in his address to the GA on the opening of the 52nd session,

22 Sep 1997, said;

“We aspire to a United Nations that recognizes, and joins in partnership

with, an ever more robust global civil society, while helping to eliminate

uncivil elements like drug traffickers, criminals, and terrorists….”

In his January 1998 address to the World Economic Forum, Kofi Annan went on to say

“…peace and prosperity cannot be achieved without partnerships involving

governments, international organizations, the business community, and civil society.”

He also noted that “…the UN is at present inadequately equipped to engage civil society

and make it a true partner in its work.” As we begin our discussion, we will converse

the increasing focus on issues pertaining to ‘human security’, and the emerging role of

NGOs in the development of multidimensional peace-building activities.8 In the

7 Appendix Chapter 8 "The List of NGOs in Palestine".

8 Oliver Richmond is a lecturer in the Department of IR, University of St. Andrews, UK. His book

Mediating in Cyprus, was published by Frank Cass in 1998 and he has published several articles on ethnic

conflict, the UN, the Cyprus problem, and on approaches to peacemaking. A co-edited book entitled, The

Work of the UN in Cyprus: Promoting Peace and Development (Macmillan: with James Kerlindsay) was

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changing international environment in which local, regional, and global level actors and

norms have accrued enhanced legitimacy, a new generation of multi-dimensional peace-

building activities has developed aiding in the development of ethical norms, utilizing

peacekeeping, traditional mediation, conflict resolution/ transformation, increasingly

through transnational organizations and NGOs. These are emerging in the context of

low intensity conflicts, the re-emergence of ethno-nationalist and identity based

conflicts, and to respond to urgent humanitarian crises. It is in this context that the

peace-building role of NGOs in conflict and complex emergencies may be usefully

located and assessed as part of a socio-political fabric engaged in sustainable

approaches to ending conflict.

Conflict resolution/transformation and peace-building approaches to understanding

conflict, and methodologies for addressing it, are being utilized by NGOs. This is in

conjunction with more formally constituted methods and actors, in order to stabilize

local environments in a local, regional and global normative context, as well as in the

context of an emerging global civil society. This may enhance the legitimacy of NGOs

(and their regulation) and may also increase the effectiveness of peace-building in the

international system.

Why do Non-Governmental Organizations Matter?

In the early 1990s there began to be a recognition of the importance of NGOs. NGOs

were found to have closer ties to on-the-ground realities in developing countries and,

perhaps more important, to be able to deliver development aid considerably more

cheaply than states or intergovernmental organizations.

As the UN SG’s 1998 report stated, “In terms of net transfers, NGOs collectively

constitute the second largest source of development assistance”.9 An article in the New

York Times, just before the UN Conference on Environment and Development in 1992,

cited development successes by NGOs such as the Trickle-Up Program, and stressed

published in 2001, and another one called, Beyond Peacekeeping? The United Nations and Human

Security in Post-Westphalian International Relations (Macmillan: with Edward Newman).

9 Report of the Secretary-General: Arrangements and practices for the interaction of non-governmental

organizations in all activities of the United Nations system. A/53/170 (10 July 1998).

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their low costs and high impact.10 NGOs also began to play a role in humanitarian

assistance in conjunction with peacekeeping missions. They began to be referred to

increasingly in UN resolutions, and some even began to meet informally with members

of the UN SC to coordinate actions in emergency situations.

Both the number of NGOs and their involvement in national and international policy-

making have increased tremendously over the last half century and especially the last

several decades. At the time of the foundation of the UN in 1945, there were 2865

International Non-Governmental Organizations (INGOs); by 1990, that number had

increased to 13,591.11 This compared to 3443 international intergovernmental

organizations and roughly 200 nation-states. But, more important, in the 1990s there

began to be a recognition of the import of the NGO role. In human rights, development,

environment, and even disarmament, NGOs had begun to be recognized for their role in

influencing public policy at the UN and on the ground in nation-states.12

Increasingly, peacemaking, humanitarian and peacebuilding tasks are being delegated

by states and intergovernmental organizations to NGOs that have humanitarian,

developmental, human rights, educational, and conflict resolution orientations.13 These

actors are forming a vital role in the development of new approaches to ending conflict,

particularly in the context of their growing links with transnational organizations and

their professed interests in human security issues. These interests appear to be

constituted by their civic nature both at the local and international levels; and though

they may express partisan interests the amelioration of the root causes of conflict

appears to be their over-riding objective.

There has been an increasingly normative reaction in the conduct of both local and

international politics, relating to the wider existence of political communities, an

10 Paul Lewis, ‘Fixing World Crises Isn’t Just a Job for Diplomats’, New York Times, April 5, 1992,

section 4, p 4.

11 Yearbook of International Organizations, 1990-91. Table 4, pp 1665-68.

12 One of the first major news articles on NGOs at the UN which looked at NGOs in the context of the

UNCED PrepCom, was Paul Lewis, ‘Fixing World Crises Isn’t Just a Job for Diplomats’, New York

Times, April 5, 1992, section 4, p 4.

13 Mary Anderson, Do No Harm: How Aid Can Support Peace - or War. Boulder, Colorado: Lynne

Rienner Publishers, 1999, pp 53-61.

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‘international society’, and a ‘global civil society’. This means that the development of

the international system in the contemporary environment can be seen as the

development from a pre-Cold War states system in which it is assumed that states have

access to all the tools required to manage all aspects of security, to a somewhat

idealized view of a post-Cold War model in which a multiplicity of actors, private and

public, are involved in addressing the many different aspects of international-social

conflict.14 In this ‘post-Cold War’ system, however, identity, representation, and human

security issues are priorities, displacing, though not replacing, the hegemony of the state

as sole authority and actor. Currently, it can be argued that the international system is in

a phase in which the understanding of the multiple nature of conflict and the need to

address its many issues, actors and levels directly, has become very apparent. This has

necessitated a move towards multidimensional approaches to ending conflict.

Humanitarian intervention of an unofficial and official nature is clearly increasing. This

chapter argues that it is in this post-Cold War context, via their focus on human security

derived from a world view provided by conflict resolution approaches, that NGOs

derive increasing levels of legitimacy, at both the local and global levels. This

legitimacy is also the basis on which they gain access to areas in conflict zones that

would normally be marginalized or denied to formally constituted peacemaking actors.

As the UN SG Kofi Annan has pointed out, NGOs promote and provide access to a

global civil society. Understanding in particular the role of NGOs in constituting global

civil society may enable peacebuilding approaches to tap into the relative success that

NGOs have had in micro-political environments, and the macro-political changes which

are also occurring.

Beginning in the 1990s, several trends led towards greater NGO involvement with the

SC. Firstly, in this period, the Council assumed a much more active program of work

and began to meet on an almost continuous basis. In the six years from 1988 to 1993,

the Council’s total number of meetings and consultations grew nearly fourfold while its

total resolutions and presidential statements increased more than six fold. As the

14 Hugh Miall, Oliver Ramsbotham, & Tom Woodhouse, Contemporary Conflict Resolution, Polity

Press, 1999, p 77.

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Council took unprecedented action in the area of sanctions, peacekeeping, election

monitoring, policing, and post-conflict peacebuilding, NGOs with international policy

mandates decided that they must follow the Council’s work much more closely.15

Secondly, Council delegations –and especially those of the ten Elected members, the (E-

10)—faced a large and growing policy burden as the Council took on responsibilities in

dozens of active crisis areas. The smaller delegations could not keep up with this pace.

They urgently sought information, expertise and policy ideas from NGOs that could

help them fulfill their responsibilities in the Council and act as a counter-weight to the

large mission staffs and vast intelligence capabilities of the Permanent Members in the

Council (P-5). Even larger and richer (E-10) missions were grateful for assistance in

policy formulation and support for their national positions with international public

opinion.16

Thirdly, in this period, NGOs were assuming a larger role in international affairs and a

greater influence in shaping public opinion on international policy issues. Council

members found it much more difficult to brush them off as insignificant or irrelevant to

the Council’s deliberations, since in many crisis areas NGOs remained active on the

ground after the UN and government aid agencies had left the scene. Further, NGO

public advocacy and media campaigns often shaped public understanding of the crises

and created public pressure on governments to act. NGOs, then, increasingly appeared

as actors in the policy process that could not be ignored and whose goodwill and

support was useful, and at times even essential, to the success of government policies

and Council initiatives.

Fourthly, because the Council’s work increasingly addressed civil wars, the collapse of

government authority, and internal strife –not interstate wars as had been largely the

case previously– its work entered an arena where the expertise and action of NGOs was

especially critical. In every crisis, NGOs were present, struggling to feed the hungry,

15 Data from UN Secretariat, The Global Policy Forum Online, (www.globalpolicy.org), “Table on

Meetings” and “Table on Resolutions”. During this period, the number of Council meetings grew from 55

to 171 and consultations from 62 to 253. The number of resolutions grew from 20 to 93 and presidential

statements from 8 to 88.

16 Ibid.

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care for the sick, shelter the homeless and protect the vulnerable. If the Council was to

end such conflicts, it obviously had to seek more than formal peace agreements between

belligerents. Rather, Council-built peace depended on economic and social

development, respect for human rights, disarmament, and other areas of NGO expertise.

Member states did not always have such benign goals in these crises, of course, but

formally and publicly, the Council was in the business of seeking and promoting such

goals and no state could be seen to oppose them.

And fifthly, as awareness of globalization emerged, the international public began to

recognize the “democratic deficit” in the global decision making process. Such a

democratic deficit was especially evident in the SC, with its Permanent members and

vetoes. Indeed, after 1990, the Council’s deliberations had become more secretive and

unaccountable than ever, with meetings largely held behind closed doors in private

“consultations of the whole.”17 Critics of the Council, including many influential

government delegations, argued that the Council’s work lacked legitimacy because its

practices included so little transparency or public accountability.

Countries providing troops and other personnel for the Council’s increasing

peacekeeping missions grew irate that the Council was placing their nationals at risk

with scarcely any explanation or accountability. The Nordic countries and Canada urged

better Council consultation with “Troop Contributing Countries” while the Non-Aligned

Movement called for a full-scale reform of the membership and procedures of the

Council itself. On 3 Dec 1993, reflecting these pressures, the GA passed Resolution

48/26, setting up an Open-Ended Working Group on SC reform.18 As criticism of the

Council grew, a number of delegations came to see increased Council interaction with

NGOs as an essential step towards a more legitimate and effective international political

and legal order. As we shall see, they felt that NGOs could join with states to produce

better policy results. Some also felt that NGO partnerships could help counterbalance

the power of the Council P-5, especially the US superpower. Powerful states, they

17 The Council during this period rarely met in public sessions except to pass resolutions and conduct

other official business. Almost no debate took place in such sessions. These practices began to change

significantly in 2000 and after.

18 The issue and proposals of the SC reform will be examined in chapter nine.

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believed, often had a nefarious self-interest in conflicts, hobbling the Council with a

“foxes guarding the chicken coop” system of power. NGOs, they hoped, could expose

these practices to public scrutiny and give pause to the worst abuses, yielding a more

lawful, legitimate and peace-promoting Council.19

The setting, then, proved far more advantageous than in the past for NGOs. However, it

still remained quite unwelcoming. Permanent Members of the Council sternly resisted

NGOs scrutiny of their special terrain. Many elected members also had doubts, because

their governments had faced negative comments from human rights organizations and

other critics from the NGO community. NGOs nonetheless began to make sporadic

contacts with the Council as an institution, or with individual Council members. And,

conversely, Council members reached out to NGOs.

The new contacts arose mainly from urgent international crises such as Palestine, the

Gulf War in 1991/2003 and the Somalia crisis in 1993. The 1994 genocide in Rwanda,

during which the Council had remained shockingly inactive, alerted human rights and

humanitarian NGOs to the need for regular communication and advocacy. The Balkan

wars, the conflict in Chechnya, the deepening Palestine crisis, and conflicts in central

and western Africa had a similar effect: the post-Cold War world was obviously not

going to be an era of peace, and NGOs could not count on states to solve these

problems. NGOs with such concerns, however, had little or no regular representation at

UN headquarters in the early 1990s. Nor were they familiar with the Council, its arcane

traditions or its secretive working methods.

NGOs Action and Interaction with the UN

With this increase in interest in consultative status, in 1993 ECOSOC requested a

general review of NGO consultative arrangements in order to improve the coherency of

rules for NGO participation in UN conferences, as well as the practical arrangements of

both the Committee on NGOs and the NGO Section of the Secretariat.20 On July 25,

1996 the 49th plenary meeting of ECOSOC approved a Resolution 1996/31, updating

19 Some of these perspectives are to be found in the speeches at the NGO conference on Security Council

reform (1994 Conference), The Global Policy Forum Online, Op. cit.

20 ECOSOC, Resolution 1993/80, 30 July 1993.

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the arrangements for consultation with NGOs. Similar to the two previous resolutions, it

provided for general consultative status (organizations concerned with most of the

activities of the Council and broadly representative of populations in a large number of

countries), special consultative status (internationally known organizations with special

competence in a few of the fields of activity of the Council), and roster status (other

useful organizations), and allocated different rights to them in attending meetings,

speaking, and receiving documents, among others.21

ECOSOC, along with the GA and the SG, struggled with the question of NGO

involvement in the UN system throughout the 90s and early 2000s. Finally, in June

2004, the SG’s Panel of Eminent Persons on Civil Society and UN Relationships issued

its report, arguing that the UN should;

- Invest more in partnerships,

- Focus on the country level,

- Deepen the NGOs-SC dialogue, and

- Engage more with elected representatives.

It also suggested a single accreditation process under the GA and a new Under-SG in

charge of a new Office of Constituency Engagement and Partnerships. This office

would include not only NGOs and civil society, but elected representatives, business,

and the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.22 NGO reactions to these proposals

varied greatly, from interest in the possibility of more GA access, to fear that this was

simply a move to increase the role of business in the UN system.

NGOs have used their consultative status at the UN to affect intractable conflict in many

ways. They have organized to get the GA and other UN organs to pass resolutions on

disarmament, on development, on human rights, and on other subjects related to the

underlying sources of conflicts. They have helped to develop new UN institutions and

treaties. They have been the instigators of putting new issues on the UN agenda –issues

21 Ibid, Resolution 1996/31, 25 July 1996.

22 Report of the Secretary-General’s Panel, of ‘Eminent Persons on Civil Society and UN

Relationships’, June 21, 2004.

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like environment, women’s rights, and child soldiers. They have gotten UN bodies to

put questions of armament and disarmament before the World Court, and have been

important in the development of the International Criminal Court. They have delivered

humanitarian assistance and aided refugees, and have worked on development in

societies that have recently experienced violent conflict.

Informal dialogues have also become an important mechanism linking NGOs with the

UN. Beginning early in 1995 Jim Paul of the Global Policy Forum and others began to

organize the NGO Working Group on the SC. This intensified as coordination of

humanitarian aid and security questions in complex emergencies led to discussion

between SC members and certain humanitarian organizations, especially focusing on

Africa in 1997. The roughly 30 NGOs representatives form a closed group including six

religious NGOs, six human rights NGOs, and a number of humanitarian assistance and

development NGOs, as well as two women's groups and others such as a representative

of the International Peace Academy, Lawyer's Committee for Nuclear Policy, the

Coalition for the International Criminal Court, the UN Foundation, World Federalist

Movement, and the Hague Appeal for Peace. They have met increasingly, privately and

off-the-record, with members of the SC, providing field information to members of the

Council from crisis areas, as well as providing a link to the public.23 Until recently, the

elected head of the group was the representative of the Quaker UN Office, a very small

but effective NGO which facilitates delegates' work at the UN and often holds off-the-

record dialogues of its own on topics ranging from environmental negotiations to

conflicts between divided states. Quakers and Mennonites, both members of the NGO

working group, have also done mediation work for a very long time in intractable

conflict areas around the world.

The International Crisis Group has monitored for signs of genocide, among its other

activities. Search for Common Ground has run dialogues, supported women's peace

groups in Burundi, funded radio stations to provide a peace voice.24 International Alert

23 ‘NGOs Working Group on the Security Council Information Statement’, July 2003, The Global Policy

Forum Online, Op. cit.

24 Terje. Skavdal, The International Conference on Total Disaster Risk Management (2-4 December

2003), NGO Networking and Cooperation Towards Total Disaster Risk Management in Asia, pp 191-

193.

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and the Forum on Early Warning and Early Response (FEWER) and many other NGOs

worked to develop early warning of conflicts turning violent. Women's groups have also

been significant, with the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom

working on disarmament issues at the UN in Geneva for decades, and in New York

being one of the primary groups to work with the SC on the development of Resolution

1325 in 2000, on the involvement of women in armed conflict and in peace

negotiations.

The roles of NGOs in intractable conflict are multiple, from direct conflict resolution,

Track Two diplomacy, and mediation in crisis and long-term conflict areas, to

assistance in monitoring elections, to delivery of humanitarian assistance and

development aid, to advocacy of human rights and justice, to lobbying governments to

develop the long-term conditions which promote international peace and security. Their

roles are often, but not always, positive, but they are not usually the primary players in

any of these arenas. But without these NGOs, many of the accomplishments of states

and international organizations would not have been possible.

Many organizations offered models for interaction with the Council, attracting the

interest of NGO newcomers. The Quaker UN Office, representing the worldwide

religious Society of Friends, had perhaps the longest-standing relations of an NGO with

Council members. For many decades, it had organized informal gatherings of delegates

and experts at nearby Quaker House to promote the peaceful settlement of disputes in a

low-key atmosphere. A more recent and effective player was the International

Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), a venerable body working to protect and assist

victims of armed conflicts and to defend international humanitarian law in Palestine.

The ICRC had set up an office in New York in the early 1980s and it had established

regular relations with Council members. Gaining UN Observer status in 1991, the ICRC

strengthened its access, including regular meetings with Council Presidents. Council

members turned to the ICRC because of its very high reputation, its legendary

neutrality, its quiet diplomacy, and its unique sources of information on field conditions

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in crisis areas.25 Though not an NGO, the ICRC was also not a state, so it bridged the

two worlds and helped to erode the “states only” thinking of Council members.

Amnesty International was one of the first NGOs of this new type to begin an active

advocacy. In 1991, in the aftermath of the Gulf War, Amnesty presented a major paper

to the Council advocating human rights monitors for Iraq. Amnesty’s SG came to New

York for meetings with Council ambassadors to argue for the monitors’ concept.

Thereafter, Amnesty sent periodic letters to the Council and Amnesty’s representative

regularly attended Council meetings as an observer. The representative also met

privately with Council Presidents and delegations. As Amnesty’s work progressed, it

gained increasingly effective access to key diplomats. Behind the crisp, lawyerly

positions of Amnesty lay an impressive research department and an aggressive press

section in London, not to mention tens of thousands of letter-writing members ready to

bombard foreign ministers and set in motion embarrassing parliamentary questions.

The NGOs as Informal Channels and Further Lobbying Tools

NGOs valued the increasing informal communication with Council delegations,

especially private meetings between representatives of a single NGO and delegates from

a single mission, often referred to in UN parlance as “bilateral” meetings. As we have

already seen, E-10 delegations urgently needed good information as the Council

expanded its scope and as the tempo of Council meetings increased. The E-10 could not

get adequate information from their ministries, nor could they trust the information

offered by the P-5. They found media sources often sketchy and unreliable. So they

welcomed NGO information, seeing it as trustworthy, timely and richly-detailed.

During 1987 and 2000 Palestinian Intifada, delegations were shocked at P-5 secrecy

(and Secretariat silence) as the Israelis atrocity against Palestinian civilians was

unfolding. NGOs were increasingly well-equipped to provide first-rate information. As

they got to know the Council and learned its program of work, they could intervene on

precisely the questions delegates were grappling with. Humanitarian organizations with

25 The ICRC sends Delegates to crisis areas and it is also able to draw on information resources of the

local Red Cross and Red Crescent societies. ICRC delegates have unique access to prisoners, prisoners of

war, concentration camps, and hospitals, as well as access to high-level government officials.

16 | P a g e

field operations were especially well-placed to produce strategic information. So were

the big human rights organizations like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty. By the

early 1990s (Oslo accords August 1993), NGO representatives received a steadily-rising

flow of daily emails bringing timely information from the field. About the same time, as

mobile phone service grew more common and came into operation via satellite, NGO

representatives could place calls to field representatives in crisis-ridden locations of

Middle East, Africa or Asia, garnering the latest information for a briefing with a

Council ambassador.

In addition to the large, international NGOs, other influential NGO players began to

take advantage of the new environment. In 2001, the Brussels-based International Crisis

Group (ICG), opened an office in New York and began to provide its own original

information briefings to delegations. With a large network of researchers deployed in

crisis areas, the ICG offered delegations valuable strategic information and frequent

reports.26

NGOs developed many more advocacy tools to sway the Council. They wrote letters to

the Council, at times as individual NGOs and at times as substantial international

coalitions. Well-drafted and carefully-timed letters could sometimes gain the Council’s

attention and bring subtle influence to bear. NGOs also caught the Council’s attention

through conferences and meetings on Council-related policy topics. Stanley, Save the

Children, the Quakers, the Mennonites, Hague Appeal for Peace and especially IPA

organized events that attracted participation and attendance from Council delegates,

nudging thinking at times in new directions.

NGOs lobbied Secretariat and other agency officials who viewed them as partners and

friends and invited them to participate in task forces and special consultation meetings.

NGOs especially tried to influence and improve the Council-mandated reports of the

SG, typically subject to intense P-5 pressure.

26 See The International Crisis Group (ICG), internet homepage, (http://www.crisisgroup.org).

17 | P a g e

To strengthen their effectiveness and coordinate their advocacy, NGOs created ad hoc

like-minded policy groupings. One such cluster brought together humanitarian agencies

for regular meetings. Other groups assembled organizations interested in “Iraq,”

“Israel/Palestine”, “Women and Peace and Security” and “Children and Armed

Conflict”. International contacts and Networks widened the circle of such ad hoc

advocacy and magnified the influence of these groups.

SC field missions to crisis areas in 2000 and after, attracted special NGO lobbying

action. Prior to the departure of the special missions, NGOs offered delegates fresh

information on the areas to be visited and they urged that the travel programs include

meetings with local NGOs. Ambassadors organizing the missions often saw NGO

involvement as favorable to their national policy goals and actively sought NGO

support.27

As NGOs gained experience in Council advocacy, many concluded that the most

effective strategy combined diplomacy in New York with world-wide public advocacy

campaigns. Amnesty had discovered this formula early on. Later, similar techniques

were adopted by other NGOs such as Save the Children, Oxfam, Human Rights Watch

and, of course, Global Witness. Campaigning NGOs would mobilize pressure on

parliamentarians, generate press exposure, garner statements by celebrities and

sometimes stir high-profile boycotts or mass meetings. Armed with email and the web,

NGOs could launch campaigns quickly, flexibly and inexpensively.

The Question of Palestine between the UN & NGOs

The contribution of NGOs to the shaping of the world in recent years has been

increasingly acknowledged by Governments and international organizations alike.

Today, many sectors and organizations of the UN prize the experience, expertise and

innovative thinking of NGOs and seek to involve them in their activities in a variety of

ways.

27 UK ambassador Sir Jeremy Greenstock invited NGOs to brief Council members at the UK mission on

28 Sep 2000, prior to the departure of the Council field mission to Sierra Leone. This marked the

beginning of regular NGO input into field missions.

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Consultative arrangements have been established with the Economic and Social Council

and its subsidiary bodies, the Department of Public Information of the Secretariat, and

various UN organs, agencies and programmes. Large numbers of NGOs have

participated in the global conferences on social and economic issues organized since the

early 1990s, as well as in their follow-up activities. Cooperation with NGOs is an

essential element in humanitarian relief missions and in development assistance

programmes.

NGO cooperation with the UN on the question of Palestine covers the entire spectrum

from advocacy and solidarity, on the one hand, to humanitarian relief and development

assistance, on the other. Some NGOs –particularly those providing aid to refugees—

have been active on this issue practically since the beginning of the conflict in 1948.

Following the occupation of the Gaza Strip, the West Bank and East Jerusalem in 1967

and the intensification of efforts to achieve a just settlement, many new NGOs were

established and became active in mobilizing public opinion in support of the Palestinian

cause at the international, national and local levels. During the 1990s, many NGOs

supported the peace process and provided assistance to the fledgling Palestinian

institutions in the self-rule areas. With the outbreak of the second intifada in September

2000, NGOs again are calling for confronting the root causes of the conflict, namely to

end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. NGOs are in the forefront of the providers

of emergency relief. They closely monitor the developments on the ground and

introduce ground-breaking –yet modest measures—of protection to the Palestinian

people.

The main UN forum where all NGOs interested in this issue can meet periodically to

exchange information and experiences and to make new contacts with like-minded

groups and individuals is that provided by the committee –The Committee on the

Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People. A subsidiary organ of the

GA, the Committee was established in 1975 to make recommendations for a solution of

the question of Palestine based on the exercise of the inalienable rights of the

Palestinian people. Subsequent to its inception, the Committee was requested to

promote the greatest possible dissemination of information on its recommendations

19 | P a g e

through NGOs. It was later mandated to establish closer cooperation with them and to

help expand the Network of NGOs active on the question of Palestine, particularly by

organizing symposia in all regions, as well as international meetings of NGOs.

Since the mutual recognition by Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization and the

signing of the Declaration of Principles on Interim Self-Government Arrangements in

September 1993, the Committee has expressed its support for the peace process, which

it considers a historical milestone in the long struggle of the Palestinian people to

achieve its inalienable rights and to reach a comprehensive, just and lasting settlement

of the Arab-Israeli conflict in the Middle East. The Committee has also undertaken

activities to promote the effective implementation of the agreements reached by the

parties and to mobilize international assistance for the social and economic development

of the Palestinian territory. At the same time, the Committee has expressed grave

concern at the many obstacles and delays in the negotiations, the acts of violence by

extremists, the expansion of settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and the

serious deterioration of the Palestinian economic situation due to prolonged military

closures, which have threatened the continuation of the peace process and caused the

outbreak of the second intifada.

Since September 2000, the Committee has been increasingly concerned over the

escalation of the crisis, the tragic loss of innocent lives, the wide-scale destruction of

Palestinian institutions and property in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including

Jerusalem, and the rapid deterioration of the Palestinian economy. In light of the

difficulties in the peace process, the international community has to intensify its

engagement with both sides, so as to bring about the resumption of negotiations which

would lead to a permanent settlement. Moreover, the Committee believes that the

international community has a moral duty towards achieving a comprehensive, just and

lasting peace in the region, based on SC resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973). The

role of civil society organizations in educating their respective constituencies about the

fundamental issues of the question of Palestine and in mobilizing public support for the

Palestinian cause remains very important.

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In view of these developments, the GA has reaffirmed that the UN has a permanent

responsibility towards the question of Palestine until it is resolved in all its aspects in a

satisfactory manner in accordance with international legitimacy, and has continued to

renew the Committee's mandate as the organ dealing with the question. The Committee

has intensified its efforts to promote wider international understanding and support for

the legitimate national rights of the Palestinian people which will have to be met in any

settlement to be just, comprehensive and lasting. Its programme of work has been

streamlined and refocused in order to enhance the Committee's contribution during the

difficult stages towards statehood faced by the Palestinian people.

Since the early 1980s, the GA and the Economic and Social Council have also taken

steps to expand existing UN activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and to

develop a comprehensive programme of assistance to the Palestinian people that would

reach beyond assistance already provided to refugees. This programme was greatly

increased following the signing of the Declaration of Principles in 1993 and the

establishment of the self-governing Palestinian Authority in 1994. Several UN agencies

and programmes are cooperating closely with NGOs active on the ground that have

long-standing experience in providing development assistance to Palestinians and have

played an important role in supporting the growth of Palestinian institutions.

The UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA)

has programmes in the areas of primary and preparatory education, vocational and

teacher training, primary health care, relief and social services, environmental

infrastructural development and income generation. The UNRWA-NGO partnership

dates back to the establishment of the Agency in 1950. NGOs have complemented

UNRWA's education, health, relief and social services to refugees by pioneering work

in assisting people with disabilities and launching community self-help and income-

generation programmes. They have given financial aid, assistance in elementary

schooling, staff training and maternal and child health care and have distributed food

and medical supplies. They run pilot projects in new domains and in emergency

situations. For its part UNRWA helps NGOs by giving direct financial aid or by sharing

expertise, technology and information and through joint training workshops. The agency

21 | P a g e

also participates in NGO meetings, assists with their fund-raising campaigns and

supports the development of community organizations.

The activities of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) concentrate on the

provision and improvement of basic infrastructure, enhancing Palestinian capacity in the

areas of governance and public administration, strengthening the economic base of the

West Bank and the Gaza Strip, particularly in agriculture, industry and trade, and

information exchange among donor Governments and international organizations. In

implementing its programme, the coordination with NGOs is essential. UNDP activities

are decided jointly with the Palestinian Authority, but in many instances they are

implemented by NGOs or in close cooperation with them, for they are often the only

actors on the ground.

The programme of the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) emphasizes strengthening

community-level structures, particularly among disadvantaged groups in areas such as

primary health care, basic education, physiotherapy and psychological trauma.

UNICEF's education programme is implemented through three main projects focusing

on formal and non-formal education: early childhood development/psychosocial health;

primary education; and youth and community development. To improve the quality of

life of Palestinian children and women, UNICEF supports maternal and child health

programmes and appropriate primary health care services. The implementation of these

programmes is coordinated with those NGOs whose activities are aimed at similar target

groups.

In 1994, the SG of the UN appointed a Special Coordinator in the Occupied Territories

(UNSCO) who serves as a focal point for all UN economic, social and other assistance

to the Palestinians in the Occupied Territory. In September 1999, the SG appointed

Terje Rod Larsen as the UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process and

his Personal Representative to the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Palestinian

Authority. He facilitates coordination among the respective UN programmes and

agencies that are operating in the Palestinian territory, so as to ensure an integrated and

unified approach towards economic and social development. In this connection the

22 | P a g e

Special Coordinator maintains constant contact with the UN programmes and agencies,

as well as NGOs and the donor community in general.

Through the years, the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the

Palestinian People has developed a Network of more than 1,000 NGOs from all regions

active on the question of Palestine. National and international NGOs, political and

humanitarian organizations, NGOs promoting human rights or economic and social

development, solidarity-, charitable- or action-oriented groups, churches, trade unions

and professional associations, organizations with special focus on women, children,

refugees and detainees, are part of the Network.

To join this Network of NGOs on the question of Palestine, organizations need to

become accredited to the Committee. In view of developments in the peace process and

in order to promote broader participation, revised criteria for accreditation were adopted

in 1994, as follows:

“The NGO should:

“(a) Be a recognized local, national or international non-profit organization;

“(b) Support the Charter of the UN, the principles of international law and

the achievement of the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, primarily

its right to self-determination;

“(c) Have demonstrated that it has concrete programmes or the serious

intent to establish such programmes in support of the achievement of the

inalienable rights of the Palestinian people.

“Organizations whose mandates preclude advocacy but whose work

encompasses humanitarian ends and programmes, including development,

benefiting the Palestinian people, are welcome to participate”.

Interested NGOs are requested to submit an application form to the Division for

Palestinian Rights of the Secretariat, which will submit it for approval to the Committee

on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People.

Accredited NGOs will be invited to all relevant international meetings held under the

auspices of the Committee, to participate in the discussion and to make statements.

They may submit reports, written statements and other relevant documents for

circulation among Committee members and observers. They will have the opportunity

to display, after prior screening by the Secretariat, their own publications at the site of

23 | P a g e

meetings organized under the auspices of the Committee. Accredited NGOs will be

invited to participate in the preparation and conduct of NGO meetings organized under

the auspices of the Committee, i.e. to make suggestions for the agenda, to participate in

steering and drafting groups, to nominate officers of the meeting, etc. Whenever

appropriate, members of the Committee, and/or staff members of the Division will

consult with these NGOs on issues related to the question of Palestine. They will

receive all publications issued by the Division and other relevant information distributed

by the Secretariat.

Accredited NGOs have the responsibility to support the work and objectives of the

Committee and to respect the Committee's mandate as defined by GA resolutions. They

shall respect the UN rules of procedure, as well as the guidelines, procedures and

practice established by the Committee. Finally, they shall report informally to the

Division/Committee on their planned and accomplished activities; and submit to the

Committee once every four years a formal report detailing their activities on the

question of Palestine.

Organizations that, for one reason or another, feel they cannot subscribe to the

accreditation criteria but have expressed interest in the activities of the Committee can

request to be recognized as observers. NGOs in observer status will be invited to attend

meetings held under the auspices of the Committee. They may speak in NGO meetings

held under the auspices of the Committee, and they will be part of the mailing list of the

Division. NGOs in observer status have the responsibility to respect the UN rules of

procedure, as well as the guidelines, procedures and practice established by the

Committee and to report informally to the Division/Committee on their planned and

accomplished activities.

What are the NGOs Related Activities to the Question of Palestine?

The Committee invites civil society organizations to all international meetings and

conferences organized under its auspices. It encourages them to use those events as a

platform for discussing their own initiatives and campaigns, and for bringing forward

their views and ideas on the issues at hand. The participation of Governments,

24 | P a g e

intergovernmental and NGOsin those events provides civil society with a unique

opportunity to support and strengthen, in particular, those positions and initiatives that

are geared towards the realization by the Palestinian people of its inalienable rights.

Moreover, specific NGO meetings in support of the Palestinian people are being

organized every year under the auspices of the Committee. In the 1980s and 1990s,

annual NGO symposia and international NGO meetings had been organized in New

York and Geneva or Vienna. More recently, NGO meetings in solidarity with the

Palestinian people have been organized in conjunction with international meetings in

Paris (2000), in Madrid (2001) and in Nicosia (2002). Regional meetings usually

include a one-day workshop of NGOs, in order to discuss the relevant issues and to

encourage participating organizations to adopt a plan of action for the foreseeable future

in support of the Palestinian cause. Such workshops have been held in 2000 in Hanoi, in

2001 in Havana and in 2002 in Rabat. An International Conference of Civil Society in

Support of the Palestinian People was held in September 2002 at the UN Headquarters

in New York.

NGO workshops, meetings and conferences bring together numerous organizations

active on the question of Palestine, including Palestinian and Israeli NGOs. Panel

discussions, usually held in plenary, serve to provide information and analysis on

current political developments, to focus on the needs of the Palestinian people and to

improve networking among NGOs. Where appropriate, part of the meetings is devoted

to action-oriented workshops, where NGOs working on specific issues and campaigns

have an opportunity, in a small group setting, to exchange experience and expertise with

kindred groups and elaborate common strategies and proposals. Speakers in panels and

workshops are drawn from the academic community, from among parliamentarians,

government representatives and the media and from within the NGO community. NGO

symposia and meetings may adopt a final document and a set of specific

recommendations for action by NGOs.

The reports of symposia and international meetings are issued as publications of the

Division for Palestinian Rights; a summary is included in the annual report of the

25 | P a g e

Committee to the GA. These documents are widely disseminated, not only to the

Network of accredited NGOs, but also to Governments, intergovernmental and UN

family organizations, experts who have participated in the meetings and others

interested in the issue.

The Committee encourages cooperation, coordination and networking among civil

society organizations. Through the Division it liaises with national, regional and

international coordinating mechanisms. It holds consultations periodically with various

organizations on ways and means to enhance its programme of cooperation with civil

society. Representatives of the Committee or staff members of the Division participate

in some of the conferences and meetings organized by NGOs that are of particular

relevance to the mandate of the Committee.

Each year, on 29 November, the international community observes the International

Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, in accordance with GA resolution 32/40B

of 2 December 1977. The Day commemorates the adoption in 1947 of Assembly

resolution 181 (II), known as the " Partition Plan for Palestine", which provided for the

establishment of a Jewish State and an Arab State, with a special international status for

the City of Jerusalem. The observance takes place at UN Headquarters in New York, at

the UN offices at Geneva and Vienna and elsewhere. It includes special meetings at

which statements are made by high-level personalities, the display of exhibits, film

showings and other activities, depending on the location. At the UN offices, NGO

representatives invited by the Bureau of the Committee address the meetings on behalf

of the international community of NGOs accredited to the Committee. Many NGOs

send messages of solidarity, which are then reflected in a bulletin containing the

proceedings of the event. In many countries, UN information offices have also assisted

NGOs in organizing their own commemoration by supplying posters, documentation

and information about the observance.

Why NGOs are integral part to the Palestinian Civil Society? Over 1,400 NGOs have

been providing the Palestinian population with social, industrial, agricultural, medical,

housing and public services; during times of political vacuum, they have also managed

26 | P a g e

to fill the role of a national government. However, NGOs have been heavily dependent

on outside financial support, both from Arab and international sources, a fact that has

affected their development and evolution in more than one way.

In the wake of the signing of the Oslo Accords and the establishment of the PNA, there

was a call for the regulation of the relationship between the NGOs and the PNA on the

one hand, and between the NGOs and the local community, on the other. The need also

arose for the redefinition of the nature of the relationship between the NGO and the

private sectors, and of the relationship among the individual NGOs. Intensive

discussions took place between the Palestinian government, civil society organizations,

and the NGO sector, with the Palestinian NGOs Network (PNGO), representing the

NGO sector. Since then, there has been an on-going policy dialogue between the NGOs

and the government, the first of which was facilitated by the World Bank.

In the past, the strategies of the Palestinian NGO sector had focused on resistance to the

Israeli occupation. The creation of structures ensuring long-term, sustainable and

democratic development, as well as the building of a vibrant civil society in preparation

for the emergence of an independent Palestinian state were also among the sector’s

main priorities. The advent of the PNA presented the NGOs with new political realities

and new challenges. An example is the creation of a legal framework within which

NGOs could operate while maintaining a regular and healthy relationship with the

relevant governmental structures, and concurrently helping to create a democratic

internal structure in accordance with the rule of law and good governance. NGOs began

concentrating on the strengthening of the legal system, the creation of institutional

capacity for the fair administering of justice, the promotion and protection of human

rights and fundamental freedoms, as well as the enhancement of the rule of law in the

West Bank and the Gaza Strip. These efforts, however, have met with various obstacles,

largely due to an absence of a clear separation of powers.

NGOs Relationship with the Government (A Legal Framework)

Resistance, steadfastness and the establishment of an independent Palestinian service-

delivery system were the main domains of the NGO movement under the Israeli

27 | P a g e

occupation. After the establishment of the PNA, the creation of a viable and intact civil

society and the democratization process became the new priorities of the Palestinian

NGO sector. At the time, the main concern of both the PNA and the NGOs was the

creation of a legal framework to regulate the relationship between both parties.

Four years had elapsed before the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) adopted the

existing version of the Palestinian NGO law - the Law of Charitable Associations and

Community Organizations. Additionally, a special ministry for NGO affairs was created

by presidential decree which defines the scope and role of the ministry. The NGO law

was endorsed by the president and then sent to the relevant legislative and executive

bodies to be translated into rules and regulations. Governance and the internal legal

frame of NGOs are supposed to be consistent with the articles of this law. However, the

coherence between the general articles of the law and the principles and rules contained

in the regulatory mandate adopted by the Ministry of the Interior is still up for

discussion.

With the adoption of the new law, the NGOs embarked on a process of drafting and

redrafting of their own internal constitutions or by-laws compliant with the NGO law.

This stipulated a clear definition of roles and division of responsibilities of the different

organs. Administrative and financial systems were either endorsed or developed while

others were changed to meet the required standards. In point of fact, many NGOs had

already been reviewing their by-laws and laws between 1998 and 2000. i.e., before the

new law was officially adopted.

Due to the uncertain nature of the political context in Palestine, one can observe that the

relationship between NGOs and the government has gone through different phases:

The first phase; took place directly after the creation of the PNA. It was mainly

characterized by uncertainty about the role of NGOs in the emerging political context

and the creation of governmental organs. The government was of two minds in this

respect: on the one hand, it recognized the need for the services provided by NGOs to

fill the gap which it was unable to do. On the other hand, NGOs were regarded as

competitors to the service-delivery system of the government.

28 | P a g e

The second phase; was defined by mutual acceptance. It marked the initiation of

dialogue between the NGOs and the government. As a matter of principle, the NGOs

started to formulate their own political discourse on civil society, democracy and the

rule of law. In this phase, the NGO movement witnessed a big shift in funding priorities

from service delivery to a program approach with its main emphasis on gender,

democracy and human rights. This led to a change in the activities and strategies of

some of the NGOs.

The third phase; was characterized by the emerging collaboration between the PLC and

the NGO sector related to the drafting and endorsement of the Palestinian NGO law. A

professional cooperation between the NGOs and the relevant ministries also took place.

The relationship among individual NGOs has also been undergoing an evolutionary

process ever since the inception of the first NGOs in Palestine. The establishment of the

Union of Charitable Societies in the West Bank and the Union of Charities in Gaza

represented a new development in the networking mechanisms. Political maturity, the

realization of the sector’s interest and the fact that the NGO movement as a whole was

part of the larger framework of civil society led some of the organizations to form the

first NGO Network in Palestine - the Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO) which was an

attempt to facilitate networking and coordination among member NGOs. During the

1990s, four additional NGO Networks were created: three in the Gaza Strip and one in

the West Bank.

Recently, a coalition of NGO bodies in the West Bank consisting of PNGO, the Union

of Charitable Societies and the League for National Institutions was formed and a

position paper outlining the envisaged cooperation was signed. The first structured

consultative mechanism among NGOs, involving both West Bank and Gaza NGOs was

facilitated by the World Bank NGO Trust Fund, where representatives of different

groups of NGOs have been active participants on the board of governors. Naturally, a

lot of work is needed in the area of cooperation, in spite of the many initiatives to

launch a process of sectoral cooperation among NGOs.

29 | P a g e

Observations to Enhance Partnership between UN and NGOs

NGOs have become true partners in service delivery of humanitarian and development

efforts in the field. The new challenge lies in bridging the gap between the UN and

NGOs at headquarters, and in developing the most constructive and appropriate UN and

NGO relationships within the global decision-making and policy-setting arenas. A

complex bureaucracy, differing agendas, and the diversity and number of NGOs around

the world make it difficult to find and forge new paths toward collaboration.

The UN faces tremendous complexities simply through changes in the role of nation-

states and their political and economic authority. The end of the Cold War redefined the

global geopolitical context and provided a vacuum into which a multitude of new non-

state actors have entered through political participation, economic production, trade, and

advocacy. The paradigm has changed and continues to do so. The global community

that shapes policy and wields influence no longer resides solely with nation-states and

intergovernmental bodies. The challenge for the UN and its members is to understand

the multiple interactions between the different spheres or domains and to seek

partnerships and practices which most effectively support achievement of common

humanitarian and development goals. The UN must change and adapt. It must learn to

operate in this new paradigm.

Some UN member states believe that the UN remains somewhat out of touch with the

new global reality. Therefore, there is an urgent need to continually reassess

relationships and address the ongoing effects of globalization. The UN is still structured

to function in a world of geopolitics and, consequently, is ill-equipped to address crises

taking place in this new world of geo-economics. As civil society continues to expand

and become more robust, the global citizenry has become increasingly voluble in

demands for governmental and intergovernmental accountability. NGOs bring many of

these voices to UN meetings and conferences in lobbying for greater access to

policymakers and the decision-making process itself. These voices were particularly

enhanced through the series of world conferences called by the UN in the 1990s.28

28 World Conferences: UN Conference on Environment and Development (Rio de Janeiro, 1992); World

Conference on Human Rights (Vienna, 1993); International Conference on Population and Development

30 | P a g e

There is an inevitable tension here. NGOs, diversified in who and what they represent

and flexible by nature, advocate for and bring a multitude of ideas to defining global

agendas. Member states, bound to formal political and geographic structures, are

expected to represent the peoples and interests of their nations. The institutional

mandate of member states is far more complex than that of NGOs. As such, they must

interact with a wide range of non-state actors, including transnational corporations,

governments, interest groups, nonprofit institutions, etc. These relationships are difficult

and not well defined. As of yet, there is no integration of the comparative advantages

and roles that each sphere can apply to the work of the UN. A complication within the

NGO community is that Northern NGOs continue to dominate agenda setting at the UN

with Southern NGOs underrepresented. This highlights the need to bridge the North-

South divisions that continue to hinder intergovernmental operations.

Some still believe to give strong support to developing good, complementary, and

mutually beneficial relationships between NGOs, the UN, and member states. The UN,

probably in a process led by the Secretariat, must clearly define what kind of

relationship it seeks with NGOs. Then, the terms of partnership, it was decided, must be

very clearly defined and understood throughout the UN system. The Conference of

NGOs in Consultative Relationship with the UN (CONGO) will be meeting over the

next several months to address partnerships and relationships between NGOs and

member states. It was hoped that practical, timely measures emerge from these meetings

along with efforts by the Secretariat, member states, and NGOs.

It is evident that NGOs have a consultative role. They are not the decision makers and

are not in a position to negotiate with the UN in decision-making and policy-setting

arenas. Several NGOs want greater access to the UN in a consultative capacity. They do

not seek to replace or assume the role of government. NGOs and member states, with

their comparative strengths and weaknesses, have different contributions to make to the

work of the UN. The relationship between NGOs and member states and UN

headquarters need not be adversarial, that is possible only through mutual understanding

of expectations, procedures, and comparative advantages.

(Cairo, 1994); World Summit for Social Development (Copenhagen, 1995); Fourth World Conference on

Women (Beijing, 1995); UN Conference on Human Settlements (Istanbul, 1996).

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In just fifteen years, NGOs developed a broad range of advocacy with SC members,

from private bilateral meetings to mass-based campaigns. The influence of NGOs

cannot be easily separated from the complex of pressures and influences on the Council

and NGO accomplishment always came through alliance with Council allies and other

international partners. In this light, there are several crucial elements involved in

structuring linkages between UN and NGOs e.g.

- Mutual recognition of participation

- Transparency

- Neutrality and integrity of actors

- Diversity

- Mutual respect amongst partners

- Flexibility that allows for initiative

- Accountability

As part of their role and function, NGOs hold governments accountable for preserving

the human rights of their peoples, but in many situations, can pursue collaborative, non-

adversarial efforts with governments to pursue common goals. The substantial resources

available to NGOs can be utilized to strategically support the work of UN headquarters

and agencies through collaborative efforts in information dissemination, service

delivery, and consultations.

- Identify ways in which NGOs can associate with the work of, and partner with, the UN

system on a daily basis.

- Identify the specific technical means (formal and informal mechanisms) by which the

UN headquarters and agencies can access NGO input and information and vice versa.

- Identify partnerships that can serve as potential models for enhancing NGO

effectiveness and contribution to the work of the UN.

- Strategize how experiences of NGOs in various countries can support the work of the

SC and other levels of the UN system.

- Suggest potential relationships that can be constructed to enhance UN efforts at

various levels with NGOs.

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The world conferences on the environment (Rio), on women (Beijing), and on the new

International Criminal Court are a few examples. UN agencies such as the UN

Population Fund (UNFPA) and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) partner extensively

with NGOs on an ongoing basis in developing and implementing field-level programs.

The UN should include determination of how appropriate NGOs can become involved

in sustained partnerships with UN entities.

The role of NGOs and comparative advantages and disadvantages they bring to a

potential partnership. NGOs have a long list of accomplishments in many areas,

including humanitarian relief, environmental preservation, nuclear disarmament, and

advocacy for the rights and welfare of disadvantaged groups. Next we identified key

strengths, limitations, and resources of NGOs.

- NGOs are diverse, often flexible in structure, skilled in lobbying, and are often

equipped with extensive analytical and research capabilities. They can provide access to

grassroots efforts and perspectives.

- Many NGOs function at the field level and provide service delivery to the tune of $8

billion per year, more than the entire UN system. Service delivery takes the form of

humanitarian aid, as well as development and technical assistance to disadvantaged

groups worldwide.

- NGOs can be very effective in raising visibility and consciousness concerning human

rights and other issues of global concern that governments have failed to address. At

international policy conferences, they have provided much needed information to

resource-strapped delegations, raised public awareness of global problems and

mobilized successful campaigns to address them.

- NGOs often serve as the conscience of governments and provide a marketplace of

ideas from which creative, effective strategies and solutions are devised.

- NGOs do not necessarily represent externally defined constituencies. They sometimes

represent particular interest groups whose motives are self-centered. Some are small

enough to be labeled “NGIs,” meaning non-governmental individuals.

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- NGOs are probably the best available proxy for civil society. Yet their strength is in

their information, ideas, and initiative rather than in their representativeness. NGOs

cannot and should not replace governments, but can certainly give voice to

underrepresented peoples in intergovernmental fora.

- NGOs are better developed in the North. Northern NGOs continue to be

overrepresented at UN headquarters.

- NGOs maintain an inordinate focus on particular issues such as environment and

human rights and, in the process, neglect others –such as development and political and

security issues.

The capacity of the NGO sector to deliver services and to provide a national alternative

to the existing Israeli-run service-delivery system have substantially enhanced the

sector’s role in developing Palestinian society and in strengthening civil society. The

NGO sector’s level of awareness and its maturity, albeit of varying degrees, are

apparent in its clear vision regarding the role it plays and has played in Palestinian

society. The democratization of Palestinian society remains one of the major challenges

confronting the NGOs. A challenge of equal importance continues to be the capacity of

the NGO sector to play an active and vital role in the development process in all its

dimensions, and to thus shape the future of Palestinian society. When, the P-5 have

strong positions, as they often do, NGOs encounter immoveable opposition. On

sanctions reform, Palestine, Iraq, Sudan and many other important issues, even the most

vigorous NGO advocacy runs into the brick wall of P-5 –and especially often United

States—opposition, as national interests block key NGO concerns.

There is a need for strong commitment to building constructive and mutually beneficial

relationships between NGOs and the UN.29 They characterized the goal as a sustainable

partnership. This concept is both constructive and appropriate. The UN and NGOs can

be of great mutual assistance to each other in their respective missions and work. The

core challenge is to find the best balance between NGO access and UN transparency, on

the one hand, while reserving actual decision making to the member states and avoiding

29 Report of the Thirtieth UN Issues Conference, The United Nations and Civil Society: The Role of

NGOs, February 19-21, 1999.

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NGO interference, on the other. NGO emphasizing that the NGO role is a consultative

one. NGOs are not the decision makers and are not in a position to negotiate with the

UN in decision-making and policy-setting arenas, even though some voices in the NGO

community may argue for this. In decision making and policy setting, the NGO

comparative advantage is in information, analysis, ideas, focusing public concerns, and

being a voice of conscience for the world community.

If NGOs are to be effective partners, they must be responsible and constructive in their

participation. They must be academically honest in providing accurate and objective

information and analysis. As a proxy for civil society, they must be civil in their

interactions. To the extent they are passionate, they must understand the reality of

differing passions. Their focus should be on constructive outcomes rather than self-

promotion. Most NGOs are responsible and constructive and their consultative counsel

is heard and often heeded.

For the long run, the UN needs to adjust its paradigm and practices toward conflict

resolution and peacebuilding, minimizing secrecy and the use of closed informal or

negotiating sessions. The latter are needed, but should be used only where there is clear

necessity. To the extent the UN paradigm is one of conflict resolution and

peacebuilding, the need for formally defined relationships between NGOs and the UN

will recede. The current formally defined relationships, including accreditation

procedures, result in access for some, with others being limited or excluded. In the short

run, while the paradigm is changing, the UN can and should take several constructive

actions. The ECOSOC rules and privileges for NGOs should be extended to the GA and

its related and subsidiary bodies, including working groups. NGOs should have access

to all meetings and bodies that are open to all member states. UN information

distribution channels should be improved and made more comprehensive and accessible

for the benefit of member states as well as others. Working documents should be added

to the Optical Disk System, and the access fees should be eliminated. The UN Web site

should be strengthened and upgraded. The NGO accreditation process should be

improved and streamlined to make it prompt, objective, and transparent. These and

other actions would go a long way toward encouraging and reinforcing sustainable

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partnerships in conflict resolution and peacebuilding between the UN and civil society.

Such partnerships will flourish in a climate of openness and transparency. The UN is

uniquely situated to create and maintain such a climate and should act promptly to do

so, otherwise the consequences will be so costly.30

30 Julius K. Nyerere, Reforming the United Nations, a View from the South. South Centre, March 1995,

pp 8-10.