Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #107348

Danya M. Qato, PharmD, MPH, Harvard University School of Public Health, 9031 W. 169th Pl, Orland Hills, IL 60477, 708.261.1084, danyaqato@hotmail.com

Despite the continuation of the conflict in the occupied territories, there has been little written within the health and human rights literature on the direct impact of Israeli human rights violations on the health of the Palestinian people. A critical examination of the linkage between the health of the Palestinian people and the human rights violations of which they are subject is therefore long overdue. This paper is an attempt at establishing a framework for understanding this nexus. The aim is to empower those who have consistently argued that the application of the universal standards of human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a requisite to realizing the health of a people. The central emphasis of the paper will be a discussion of a new framework for understanding how the health of the Palestinian people is inextricably linked to the human rights and international law framework of which they are a part. This new model will emphasize the effect of the denial of basic human rights on health and how the overarching political and social landscape created by the Israeli occupation adversely impacts health and in fact makes the realization of the right to health near impossible. The analysis is based primarily on interviews with both health practitioners working in the West Bank, first hand observations, and the previous work of Israeli and Palestinian human rights organizations. It is hoped such a discussion can encourage policy change and improve opportunities for peace in the region.

Learning Objectives:

• "At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to
• 1)Recognize the linkage between health and human rights
• 2)Discuss the impact of the Israeli occupation and denial of basic human rights on the health of the Palestinian people
• 3)Analyze a new model for codifying the linkage between the health of the Palestinian people and the larger human rights and political framework in which they live

Keywords: Human Rights, International

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.