BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee

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Survey of Palestinian Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons (2006-2007)
By the 1990s, however, the number of local NGOs offering various services to Palestinian refugees in Arab host countries
had doubled. These offered social, medical and financial assistance, culture and sports services, as well as special provisions
for women, disabled persons and youth. In the 1967-occupied Palestinian territory, 60% of NGOs working in the refugee
community were established during the 1990s. In Jordan, 54% of relevant NGOs were established during the 1990s, and
in Lebanon, 59.6% of relevant NGOs were also established at this time.
The growth of NGO activities can be attributed to the decrease in assistance provided by the PLO, greater political freedom,
and growing international investment in the OPT related to the Oslo process. Palestinian refugees themselves became more
active, as they sought means of influence and change. In 2000, over 60 Palestinian and international NGOs committed
to utilize “expertise and experience in communication, education, advocacy and assistance in locally and internationally
co-ordinated efforts on behalf of Palestine refugees.” 45
Many of the local institutions working in the refugee community are multi-service-oriented. A large number focus
on women, children, and education in the OPT. Most Palestinian NGOs serve refugees in one locality and have
less than 1,000 beneficiaries. There were between 150 to 200 Palestinian and international NGOs in the OPT
in 2006. 46 Since the beginning of the second intifada, Palestinian and international NGOs have had to shift part
of their activities towards emergency relief operations, such as providing food aid, emergency employment, and
essential medical supplies. 47 Palestinian NGOs in the OPT have also been criticized for in some cases severing
their relationships with grassroot organizations and popular movements as a result of the Madrid-Oslo process
and the dictates of donor policies. 48 Palestinian NGOs have looked at Palestinian refugees as beneficiaries and not
rights bearers.
In Lebanon, Palestinian institutions focus on kindergartens, health care and social activities. The high number of health
centres run by NGOs in Lebanon can be explained by the legal restrictions that bar Palestinian refugees from access to
public services, and the high cost of private health care. During Israel’s war against Lebanon in the summer of 2006, local
organizations and international NGOs provided emergency assistance to displaced persons and Palestinian refugees, and
subsequently helped in the reconstruction efforts.
In Jordan, by contrast, NGOs operate only a small number of the available health centres. The vast majority of the health
centres in refugee camps in Jordan are private. There are also fewer Palestinian NGOs in Jordan than in Lebanon or the OPT.
They usually work on governance, women’s issues and provide training. In Syria, there are a number of local Palestinian
organizations, most of which focus on development, environmental matters, and the rights of women and children.
The Limits of Humanitarian Assistance
Humanitarian assistance has mitigated the effects of the Israeli occupation and conflict on Palestinian refugees and IDPs. This
assistance has also often prevented the worsening of humanitarian crises. Yet, humanitarian assistance can neither prevent
violations of international law, nor put an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It is only ever a temporary measure aimed at
alleviating suffering.
UNRWA concurs that “emergency assistance is no substitute for a comprehensive political solution; it can only mitigate the effects
of the crisis on the most vulnerable.” 49 In 2006, UNRWA expressed regret that “the root causes of humanitarian suffering and the
structural constraints to development in the OPT remain unchanged.” 50
However, the reality is that the regime of humanitarian assistance developed for Palestinian refugees since the collapse of the UN
Conciliation Commission for Palestine (UNCCP), and in particular since the creation of the Palestinian Authority, has effectively
replaced all efforts to find durable solutions to the problem of Palestinian refugees and IDPs in accordance with international law,
in particular UN Resolution 194.
The long-term provision of humanitarian assistance in a political and protection vacuum, without any prospect of a rights-based
solution, generates dependency and frustration among refugees and IDPs. 51 This is especially true when humanitarian aid
comes at a price, as the recent sanctions against the Palestinian Authority show: “With the political and economic isolation
of the Palestinian Authority (PA) following the January 2006 elections in the 1967-occupied Palestinian territory (OPT) ...
humanitarianism has been transformed into the primary manifestation of international political will as donor states condition
additional aid (beyond that required to keep Palestinians alive) on Palestinian acquiescence to conditions that Israel itself has
yet to fully accept.” 52