Union of Agricultural Work Committees
The Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC) is a Palestinian non-governmental agricultural organization. It was established in 1986 and contributes to the Palestinian agricultural sector’s development through empowering farmers steadfastness and sovereignty over their resources within a sustainable community-based framework. UAWC applies a human rights based approach while designing and implementing its projects that range from agricultural land development and implementation of water interventions to capacity building, development of rural women's livelihoods, legal awareness, emergency response and other agricultural development projects. It works alongside Palestinian, regional and international organizations in order to support and protect the rights of the Palestinian farmers.
Human rights defenders in the OPT are subjected to acts of harassment, restrictions on freedom of movement, stigmatisation, abductions, long periods of arbitrary detention usually under administrative detention orders, illegal searches of their homes and offices and killings. Many of the violations are state-sanctioned, or if not sanctioned at the highest levels of the Israeli political and military establishment, then condoned by the ongoing policy of impunity which permeates the military and judicial system in relation to the OPT. In some instances Israeli settlers have also been the perpetrators of violence against human rights defenders.
