Crisis Prevention and Recovery

From the Camps to the Ministry of Justice: Supporting the Rule of Law for the Palestinian People

By Yasmine Sherif, Senior Adviser & Team Leader, Rule of Law Justice & Security, Bureau for Crisis Prevention & Recovery, UNDP

Mr. Ali Khashan is a refugee. Born in Jerusalem, his family fled the violence in 1948. “I have never known my home-town,” he says with a calm and factual tone. He grew up in the camps. As a child, he wrote poetry. He knew in his heart that he would rise out of his confined situation and “become something.” Yet, little did he know that he one day would become the Minister of Justice of the Palestinian National Authority.

We are sitting in his office in Ramallah, where the Palestinian Authority has its administrative seat. We have come to discuss UNDP’s Programme for Assistance to the Palestinian People (PAPP), which is now expanding its Governance Portfolio to support the PA in developing its capacity on the Rule of Law.
Married with four children, Mr. Khashan is articulate and sophisticated with an innate sense for justice. It feels only natural to ask him about his journey from a refugee camp to a ministerial post, responsible for contributing to a justice system for the Palestinian Authority. How did it start, I ask in anticipation? Mr. Khashan leans back in his chair and recollects his story.

“In High School I heard of the notion of ‘freedom’ and constitutional rights. Amidst the darkness around me, a light was set aflame in me. It was a light of hope and it inspired me to search. I found books on Rousseau and Montesquieu. Instead of writing poetry, I now devoted myself to reading. I reflected. Slowly it transpired before me that “freedom” was not only a noble ideal. It was a right.”

Ms. Khashan reflects for a moment and continues his story. “In my search, I also read Arabic philosophy, including the comprehensive Al Muqaddimah, by Ibn Khaldun. I began to see clearly that freedom was not a french or a western concept, alone. It is universal and it belongs to all people. The law is its vehicle. It is the glue that holds together the social contract. It establishes the checks-and-balances for a just and peaceful co-existence.”

And so it began he says: “It motivated me to study law. After I graduated from high-school in 1975, I went to Egypt to do my law-studies. As I absorbed myself in International law, human rights law and constitutional law, I began to understand the essence of the Palestinian problem. From that moment, I realized the illogic of the situation. The law is logic. It is based on imperatives of equality and non-discrimination. My earlier questions expressed in poems now evolved into a conviction in logic – the law. I refused to believe that there was no resolution to the Palestinian problem, that there would be no justice for us.”

Mr. Khashan states quietly, but firmly, “when I finished my studies in Egypt, the notions of “freedom” and “justice” were solidly embedded in my heart, beating with a deep-held conviction.”

He recollects, “I decided to go to France – the home-country of Rousseau and Montesquieu - and continue my studies. In order to afford my higher education at Montpellier University in France, I first went to Kuwait to work, and then on to France where I earned my living picking grapes in a vineyard.”

Mr. Khashan remembers: “When I completed my PhD in law in 1986, I returned and was appointed Professor of Law at Hebron University. As a legal scholar of public law, I yearned to contribute to the resolution of the Palestinian problem and to justice. The opportunity arose shortly after my return, as the first Intifada commenced. I became active in my quest for freedom and justice, opening a Media Office for Francophone information.”

He remembers: “In 1991, another opportunity came my way. I won a scholarship to Harvard. I studied human rights for the renowned Professor Henry Steiner at the Harvard Law School Human Rights Center. Our shared belief in international human rights soon evolved into a friendship that remains to this date. “
He tells us: “I returned in 1992 with a dream to establish the first Palestinian law school.”

At first, his idea of a Palestinian law school was met by resistance from some of his colleagues. Palestinian legal professionals were on strike. They saw no hope in a state of occupation.
But, Mr. Khashan persisted despite the discouragement. He went to the then Palestinian President, Yasser Arafat, and laid out the reasons for him:
‘If you want a free Palestinian state, you need a Faculty of Medicine and a Faculty of Law. We have neither.” The Palestinian President was convinced of Mr. Khashan’s arguments. The first Palestinian law school was established, later the Al Quds Law School in at Al Qud’s University.

Mr. Khashan developed a plan for legal education and assumed the position of Dean. He renovated the locations by personally investing in the project, recruited staff and appointed four professors. The first enrollment totaled 70 students. Mr. Khashan’s sought to establish a minimum of 50 per cent women enrollment. His tireless efforts eventually paid off.
Today, the first law school of Al Qud has expanded into five Palestinian law schools, totaling 2000 students, of whom 800 are women. Two of his former students are serving as the first women Sharia law judges for Islamic family law.

Mr. Khashan then went on to partake in drafting laws for the Palestinian Authorities. As the Secretary-General of the Constitutional Committee, he led the drafting of the Palestinian Constitution. Working closely with skilled constitutional lawyers from around the world, the drafting process entailed both international expertise and consultative workshops - free from subjective political interference. The Palestinian Authorities Constitution guarantees human rights and stipulates that men and women are equal.

Mr. Khashan’s passionate search to advance justice and freedom prepared him for that “something”, which he had sensed since his childhood as a young refugee in the camps. In 2007 Mr. Khashan was appointed the Minister of Justice.

While Mr. Khashan first and foremost considers himself a human rights advocate, his life-time contribution to advance justice at all levels make him exceptionally suited for his position. As a Minister of Justice, he has undertaken a number of reforms to strengthen the capacity and outreach of the ministry. Today, Mr. Khashan and the Ministry of Justice are UNDP’s primary partners.

On the basis of the UNDP Global Programme Strengthening the Rule of Law in Conflict/Post-Conflict Situations 2008- 2011, UNDP’s support seeks to strengthen the capacity of the Ministry of Justice to advance legal aid and access to justice. The Programme seeks to empower women, youth and a new generation of lawyers, judges and prosecutors to both claim and deliver justice, while also restoring confidence and trust among stakeholders dependent on, or serving, the justice system. Our rule of law PAPP programme is expected to start in June 2009 and last for an initial three years.

As we bid farewell to Mr. Khashan, we ask him to share with us the most important lesson he has learned in his journey. He reflects for a moment and responds softly with a reassuring voice: “Knock on the door of justice and freedom, again and again. Do not give up. Because when freedom and justice come from within, the door will eventually open.”

Photo captions
Top photo: Mr. Ali Khashan, Minister of Justice of the Palestinian National Authority.
Bottom photo: Mr. Ali Khashan, Minister of Justice of the Palestinian National Authority with Ms. Yasmine Sherif. Senior Adviser & Team Leader, Rule of Law Justice & Security, Bureau for Crisis Prevention & Recovery, and UNDP staff