BACKGROUND INFO IN SUPPORT OF TWINNING LINKS 
BETWEEN BIRMINGHAM AND BIRZEIT UNIVERSITIES 



1.  The universal right to education is enshrined in international
    law (Article 26, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948;
    International Convenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights 
(ICESCR),
    1966 (ratified by Israel in 1991); United Nations Committee on 
Economic, 
    Social and Cultural Rights, General Comments on the Implementation 
of 
    ICESCR, Right to Education, 1999).
    
2.  Israel has systematically undermined this right with regard to
    the people of the occupied territory of Palestine in the West Bank 
    and Gaza Strip by various means including: military checkpoints
    restricting access of staff and students to their educational
    institutions; arrest of staff and students during army raids on 
    their homes and dormitories; detention and torture of staff and
    students without any legal process or charges; the building of
    the so-called "security barrier" between people's homes and their
    educational institutions and even across a university campus.

3.  During the First Intifada, between 1987-1992, Palestinian 
    education was effectively made illegal by the Israeli occupation 
and 
    all Palestinian universities, schools and even kindergartens were 
    closed down by military order for nearly five years; that since 
    September 2000, tens of schools have been closed by the Israeli 
    Army and turned into military barracks, while hundreds more have 
    been forced to close periodically due to prolonged curfew and 
    obstructed access. 
    
4.  Palestinian universities such as Hebron and Birzeit have
    been prevented from functioning by the military closing the gates
    and/or imposing miliary checkpoints, disrupting the education of
    thousands of students, while the "separation barrier" cuts through
    the campus of Al-Quds University in Jerusalem.
    
5.  The policy of the Association of University Teachers is to support
    twinning and friendship links with Palestinian universities.
    
    Council 2003: Motion no. 57: Twinning  

    "Council urges all LAs and members to establish links with 
Palestinian 
    universities, including campaigning for formal twinning 
arrangements 
    between Palestinian and British institutions, to support 
colleagues and 
    students there and to resist the narrowing of their opportunities 
and 
    suppression of their academic freedom by the oppression of the 
occupation." 

    [ N.B. LA = Local Association = local branch of the union]

6.  Birzeit University has been at the forefront of the struggle for
    Palestinian educational rights, in particular running the "Right 
to
    Education" campaign via its website.
    
7.  Stirling University Students Association voted in October
    2005, by a proportion of 10-1, in favour of twinning links with 
    Birzeit University.  On 18th October 2005 this was confirmed in
    a referendum of all students. The votes were 347 FOR, and 88 
AGAINST, 
    a margin of almost 4:1 which reflects the growing commitment to 
    solidarity with Palestine among Scottish students.  SUSA will now 
    twin with the students council in Birzeit University and pressure 
    the university to twin. It also publicly condemns the occupation, 
    the wall and the actions of the settlers.

8.  There is a Twinning Committee in Birmingham whose aim is to 
promote
    friendship links at the city level between Birmingham and 
Ramallah.