CUSJ has added its voice to the No Way to Treat a Child – Canada campaign, coordinated by Defense for Children International – Palestine, which aims to influence Canadian voters and decision-makers in an effort to end Israeli military occupation and secure a just and viable future for Palestinian children living in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. Palestinian children, sadly, are being denied the rights that were accorded to all children under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and other international standards.
Did you know that Israel applies civilian criminal law to Palestinian children in East Jerusalem? By contrast, no Israeli child comes into contact with the military courts.
Israel has the dubious distinction of being the only country in the world that systematically prosecutes between 500 and 700 children in military courts each year. Ill-treatment in the Israeli military detention system remains “widespread, systematic, and institutionalized throughout the process,” according to the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) report Children in Israeli Military Detention Observations and Recommendations.
What you can do
To help with this campaign, please sign the petition, and join the campaign. You can also share the petition on social media.