Arpan Bhandari

November 15, 2013

POLS3137-Gabriela Tarazona-Sevillano

Migration of Palestinian labor into Israeli Territory

Man, from the beginning, has always searched for a form of livelihood and even today,
that has not changed. The international community has seen numerous forms of work related
migration and the topic has always been one of much dispute. Historically, be it in the United
States or Qatar, migrant workers have been mistreated. The case of Israel is no exception to this
conflict. In fact, Israeli treatment of migrant workers has been constantly criticized by the
international community. From the creation of Israel up until today, the nation has oppressed the
Palestinian people and those who migrate into its borders. Israel refrains from becoming a
member state of conventions issued by international organizations and ignores the criticism
published on behalf of states it is friends with. The Palestinian migrants, who enter the territory
of Israel are victims of an oppressive system, are stripped of their rights, and are the victims of
numerous civil rights violations on behalf of the Israeli government.
After the Second World War, the world was in shambles. Europe was hit the hardest by
the war and others such as the United States were working very hard to recuperate. European
nations had a very complicated issue on its hands: what is to be done with the displaced Jewish
people? Thus began the third and fourth mass migrations to the Promised Land. Drawn in 1948,
the borders of Israel have become one of the most widely acknowledged and discussed conflicts

concerning territory and citizenship. The creation of Israel was meant to provide the Jewish
victims of World War Two with a safe haven. However, this haven would become hell for the
people of Palestine.
The creation of Israel originally began late in the nineteenth century when the Jewish
people of Europe began to migrate to what was then Ottoman ruled Palestine. This was known as
the first Aliyah or migration to the Promised Land. After this, there were many instances of
migration. However, it was the Second Aliyah that was an official and political move. Arthur
Balfour, British Foreign Secretary during World War One, requested the Queen to make the land
of Palestine the new home for the Jewish People. However, contrary to what the world sees
today, Balfour originally wanted to create a cooperative existence between the Palestinian and
Israeli people. The Second Aliyah was essential in creating an official territory for the Jewish
People. It was after the Second World War that the League of Nations gave Britain permission to
rule over the territory of Palestine and thus began the Aliyah Bet. After this movement, the
creation of Israel was official and it was internationally recognized throughout the world just a
year later. During this time, the Palestinian people and the horrific crimes being committed
against them were conveniently ignored by international heads-of-state.
After the creation of Israel, there were numerous wars in the region. Arab nations such as
Jordan, Syria, and Egypt frequently tried to reclaim Palestine for their Arab-Muslim brothers and
sisters. These attempts are known as the wars of 1948, 1967, and 1973 (Johnson). The war of
1948 occurred right after the British Mandate came to an end. The British left Israel and right
after, violence between the Palestinians and Israelis rapidly escalated. Just a day after its creation
on May 15th, 1948, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia, attacked Israel and the
war raged on until February 24th of the next year. It wasnt until an armistice was issued with aid

from the U.N that the war carried on. The armistice was not an end to the war but only an
agreement to ceasefire until tensions occurred again. The borders after the war of 1949 were very
different from those of 1948. Vast expanses of land were claimed by Israel. The armistice caused
numerous difficulties and did not solve much. One of the biggest losses for the Arab armies was
that the final position of the troops was used as the determining factor for the new borders.
Although they were meant to be temporary, the borders stayed until the war of 1967.
The international community worked toward finding a solution to the problem however it
wasnt enough. Just nineteen years later another war erupted, this one even more significant than
the last. The war of 1967 was a landmark war that is still referred to because of its border
declarations. Only five days long, the war of 1967 was not only surprisingly short but worked
greatly in Israels favor. Israel acquired the Gaza Strip and Sinai region from Egypt and the
Golan heights from Syria. These acquired territories were returned during the eighties. Over one
point five million Palestinians were added to Israeli jurisdiction and roughly two-hundred
thousand fled to Jordan. A few weeks later, the United Nations General Assembly passed
resolution 242 that called for the forfeit of territories acquired in the recent conflict. (UN
resolution 242). One of the main conflicts that rose from this war was the increase in refugees.
Again, Palestinian refugees were being quartered off and oppressed.
Finally, the war of 1973 erupted on October 6, 1973 and ended roughly two weeks later.
Again, the United Nations had to step in and they did so by enacting Resolution 242 once again.
This time, Egypt had some leeway when it came to territorial disputes. Egypt finally gained
control of the Sinai once again after the Camp David Accords of 1993. The results of the war
were seen much later when the first intifada occurred. During these three major wars, the people
of Palestine were repeatedly oppressed and pushed back. As a result, modern circumstances have

pushed Palestinians into the small areas of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. Roughly one
million people are crammed into the Gaza Strip and the economic effects of the war and the
conflict can still be seen today.
The Palestinian economy has taken
great hits due to these wars and the restrictions
and taxes that Israel applies. Unemployment,
just in the last year, has increased. The first
quarter of 2013 brought a distinct change in
unemployment rates in both Palestinian
regions. Unemployment changed to 31% in the
Gaza Strip and 20.3% in the West Bank (Figure

Figure 1: PCBS: labour Force

Survey, Q1- 2013

1). Palestinians who live in the West Bank and

work in Israel and Israeli settlements has increased. As per the Palestinian Central Bureau of
Statistics, the amount of Palestinians who live in the West Bank and work in Israel and Israeli
settlements increased from 87,000 to 93,000. Of these 93,000 Palestinians, 45,000 work with
Israeli permits, 18,000 work with just a passport or some form of identification, and 30 thousand
work without any permit (PCBS, 2013).
The population of Palestine is crammed into the small areas of the Gaza Strip and the
West Bank. Roughly 1.7 million Palestinians reside in the Gaza Strip and over 2.7 million in the
West Bank. Unemployment within both Palestinian territories is at a very high level (PCBS).
Restrictions on natural resources put in place by the Israeli government, have stunted economic
growth in the region and as a result, Palestinians try to cross over into Israeli territory in order to
look for a job. According to the World Bank, Israels control over the West Bank is costing the

region more than 3.4 Billion U.S. Dollars which equates to roughly 35% of its GDP. The losses
are caused by Israeli restrictions on water flow into the West Bank. The Bank is divided into
three portions: A, B, and C. A is completely under Palestinian control, B comes under a mixed
jurisdiction, and C is completely under Israeli jurisdiction. Region C is secured by the Israeli
military and the government of Israel has placed numerous restrictions on the resources. As a
result, region C loses out on, annually, on a large sum of income. All Israeli settlements, which
have been deemed illegal under international law, are located in region C and as a result the
water flow is regulated in favor of the Israeli settlers. However, the largest amount of land is
owned by Palestinians thus, if the water regulations were removed, the region could be used for
agriculture which would greatly profit the people (Sherwood). Other industries such as
telecommunications, mining, and tourism could develop and as a result, the economic problems
of Palestine could be improved, if not solved.

The Israeli government prevents the people of Palestine from growing and prospering so,
the Palestinians search for jobs within Israeli territory. As stated before, more than 30,000
Palestinians work in Israel without permits as reported by the PCBS for the first quarter of 2013
(Figure 2). Work permits were not a problem until the Oslo Accords. The first Oslo Accords were
signed in 1993 and they did not solve any territorial dispute whatsoever. It was the second round
of Oslo, in 1995 which complicated the situation. The second round of the Oslo Accords brought
about many restrictions to labor regulations. The 1995 accords state that Israel would gain
control over much of the Palestinian territory and as a result, would have control over the borders
and immigration. The economic factors of giving the Israelis control were never calculated and
the borders were under the control of the Israeli military. Oslo II made working permits
mandatory in order to cross the border. This only complicated the situation for the Palestinian
laborers who, until the early nineties, could cross the border with ease. According to the Israeli
Border Police- led by Moshe Ben Shi- over 15,000 undocumented Palestinian workers are
arrested every year. Israeli citizens on the other hand were and still are free to travel as they
please. This bias on behalf of the Israeli government makes absolutely no sense and violates

international norms.

Figure 2: University of Chicago Press

By restricting the resources within Palestinian territory, Palestinians look for alternative
methods of income. One of those methods is to travel to Israel and look for menial jobs or
manual labor. The Palestinians that do obtain work permits have fewer problems beyond the
basic discrimination that the face as Palestinians while crossing the border. However, those that
do not have work permits or have to use a passport to cross the border end up working illegally
in very poor conditions. There is not much coverage on individual workers or their stories,
however, some workers have called living in the West Bank a slow death and that because of
that, they go looking for jobs in Israel. The workers are more worried about being unemployed
than getting arrested which is why they take such big risks. Reportedly, it takes 24 hours for the
illegal Palestinian workers to make the trip across the border which, if done through legal
methods, only takes a few minutes. These workers fearlessly risk their lives so they can take
home whatever little money they earn. It has been reported that the workers work almost all
hours of the day and in terrible conditions. Agricultural workers reportedly sleep in the fields that
they work in and keep their shoes nearby so they can run if the Israeli Border Police shows up.
The workers do not even have the most basic of amenities. They sleep where they work, clean
and wash- if they have the water to do so- where they live and live in fear of the Police. One
worker said We are humiliated and face prosecutionwe work from sunrise until sunset for
very low wages Along with humiliation, the workers also face another complication; because
they are illegal workers, the employer does not have to always pay the workers nor does the
employer have to provide benefits. Israeli employers often times will promise the workers certain
benefits such as healthcare and a pension; however, when the time comes for the benefits to be
used, the employer backs out or calls the Police and has the worker arrested. A worker spoke on
this issue: Imagine, going through this day in, day out, or working for someone for several days

only for him to refuse to pay you and threaten to report you to the police. There is no justice in
this treatment nor is there any dignity in such work (Bsaikri).
Israel has a history of ignoring vital United Nations rulings, resolutions, and mandates.
The United Nations has repeatedly recognized Israels civil rights violations however; Israel has
never paid any attention to what the U.N. has to say and has taken no action to fix these
obstructions of international law and civil rights. As per a report issued by the International
Federation for Human Rights, under Israeli law, migrant workers have the following privileges:

12 days paid holiday per annum

9 days paid religious holidays
payment of wages by the 10th day of the next month
maternity pay, sickness pay and severance pay

However, these privileges are seldom provided to the workers. The illegal workers do not get any
of these privileges nor can they fight for them. Palestinian workers cannot fight for these rights
because many of them are working illegally and as a result they are abused. Israeli employers
promise large sums of pay and numerous benefits but when the time to get their paycheck or to
redeem their benefits comes around, the employers threaten them that they will call the Border
police and have the workers arrested. The Palestinian laborers have no option but to carry on
working because most cannot afford to use illegal means to cross the border once again. Israeli
law has also provided numerous protections against any wrongdoings that can be done to the
migrant workers, however, they are almost never fulfilled (Figure 3) (Ellman).

Figure 3 fidh.org

Israels mistreatment of Palestinian individuals that enter its territory to work is the cause
of numerous civil rights obstructions. The International community, as a unanimous body, has
created treaties and conventions that ensure and protect the rights of individual citizens. Israel
has never been one to adhere to these codes and so, it goes on persistently violating the rights of
the people. It must be noted that Israel has a dualist form of government and as a result, the
international treaties and covenants that it has ratified are considered to be an entirely different
sphere of government. Regardless, Israels mistreatment of the migrant workers violates
numerous civil codes. First, a large amount of articles of the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights (1966), which Israel ratified on October 3rd, 1991, are violated. The significant
violations are of articles eight, nine, and ten.

Article 8: This article addresses forms of labor and labor restrictions. Article eight
protects the people of Palestine and other migrant workers from being held in servitude
and/or performing compulsory labor.

Article 9: This article provides the migrant workers with protections against arbitrary
arrest and guarantees that upon arrest, the detained individual will be given a reason for
their arrest. However, in the case of Palestine and other migrants, Israeli authorities do

not provide the complete information.

Article 10: This article provides the protection of liberty to those who are detained.
Israeli treatment of its foreign prisoners is inhumane and a violation of this article.

Article ten addresses the mistreatment of Israeli prisoners. The Economist stated in an August
2013 article that Palestinian prisoners, some of which are minors, are abused, beat, emotionally
traumatized, and restrained frequently during the duration of their sentence. Along with the
International Convention on Civil and Political Rights, Israel also violates numerous articles of
the International convention on the protection of the rights of all migrant workers and members
of their families. Israel has not ratified the latter, nor has it signed onto the convention. Therefore,
the convention does not apply to the state of Israel; regardless, Israel should consider signing and
ratifying it because it has a significant amount of migrant workers.
By ratifying the International convention on the protection of the rights of all migrant
workers and members of their families, Israel would ensure the protection of numerous
Palestinian citizens. By not ratifying the convention, the Israeli government shows that it lacks
care for its labor force and it can be implied that it is even trying to take advantage of its
workers. As per article three of the convention, the migrants from Palestine to Israel are covered
by the convention. Israels mistreatment of Palestinian and other migrant workers violates
articles: ten, eleven, sixteen, and eighteen.

Article 10: No migrant worker shall be subject to torture. Palestinian workers often work
in hard and gross conditions. Also, Palestinian workers frequently risk getting arrested or

even worse, killed, by the Israeli Border Police.

Article 11: No member shall be held in servitude or perform compulsory labor. The
Palestinian laborers are held in servitude for they are told to perform a job and when they

ask for their pay, they are threatened by their employers and risk getting arrested.
Article 16: Migrant workers have the right to security which is constantly denied to
Palestinian workers. The Palestinian workers, legal and illegal, have absolutely zero

rights that are protected by the Israeli constitution or international conventions.

Article 18: Migrant workers shall be deemed equal to the members of the state in which
they work. The Palestinian workers are denied the right of equality and Israeli legislation
works against the people.

If Israel signs and ratifies this convention, it can greatly improve the conditions of its migrant
labor force and prevent numerous civil rights violations from occurring.
Along with the two conventions stated above, the International Labour Organization has
also issued conventions that deal with migrant workers. Once again, Israel has not signed onto it.
The convention covers the rights of the workers and would provide numerous benefits for the
migrant workers. The Convention on Migrant Workers issued by the I.L.O also addresses the
issue of illegal workers. Articles two, three, six, eight, and nine all address the issues of illegal
workers and attempt to aid and improve their conditions (ILO). The articles addressed above call
for the systematic searching of undocumented workers, the stopping of clandestine migration
movements, and aiding the illegal workers into obtaining permits and gaining the full benefits of
working within that state. By becoming a member to this convention, Israel, would give its

30,000 undocumented Palestinian workers much needed help and would also ease its own
complications in the international community.
Israel refrains from signing and ratifying these conventions and has paid no attention
whatsoever in response to the international community. For years, the U.N has criticized the
mistreatment of Palestinian and other migrant workers in Israel; however, Israel has only made it
more complicated for the workers to achieve justice and be rewarded for their work. Throughout
its history, Israel has repeatedly oppressed the people of Palestine, be it through the illegal
obtainment of land, mistreatment of laborers and civilians, or the building of settlements. The
founding of Israel itself was done only after thousands of Palestinians were forcibly removed
from their homes. The conflict of migrant workers is one that has been a huge problem and
despite numerous warnings, Israel has not heeded to the word of the international organizations.
Numerous conventions protecting civil rights, issued by international organizations, have been
ignored by Israel and continue to be ignored. If the state of Israel signs and ratifies these treaties,
the rights of many migrant workers would be secured and it would ease future talks between the
Palestinians and the Israelis.

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Latest from the Middle East. N.p., 24 Feb. 2010. Web. 13 Nov. 2013.
C143 - Migrant Workers (Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1975 (No. 143)
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Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network & International Federation for Human Rights. 2003.
International Convention on Civil and Political Rights. United Nations. 1966.
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Review by: Ronald J. Bettauer, The American Journal of International Law , Vol. 105, No. 2
(April 2011), pp. 397-403