Ramallah – October 5: The Palestinian Working Woman Society for Development (PWWSD) expresses its complete rejection of the Palestinian government’s decision to postpone local council elections scheduled for October 8.
PWWSD demands that all political powers, parties, CBOs, and official bodies agree on a date for nation-wide local elections, and to work seriously to put aside all obstacles and disagreements hindering the democratic process.
The organization sees postponing local elections as a clear violation of the citizens’ democratic right to vote, run for office, and democratically select their representatives. It also serves to extend the ongoing division, and obliterates all past efforts by the Central Elections Commission opening its centers to candidates and updating voter records, as well as efforts by parties, factions, CBOs, government institutions, and women’s organizations working tirelessly to make these elections an opportunity and a path for ending division and holding general elections.
PWWSD views this halt of the electoral process by abusing the law to advance political agendas, as an affront to the judicial system.
The organization emphasizes that forming facilitation committees for local council work will only serve to entrench an undemocratic centralized approach to governance which excludes women, as we have seen in the past. This step will only create further stagnation and will bring the collapse of the political system in its entirety. A situation that gives Israel the freedom to exterminate our cause, which was written with the blood of martyrs and the sacrifices of our people.
Let us stand together to hold elections immediately as our democratic national right.