March has been a roller coaster ride for us and our partners in Palestine. The month began with a continuation of the complete silence from the government in response to Sida’s second in-depth investigation into Swedish and Palestinian partners’ work and position on Hamas, which Sida shared with the government on February 15. Once again, Sida had clarified that there were no obstacles to continue cooperation between Sida and the organisations concerned with funding from the Swedish government. Despite this and the horrible situation in Palestine, the government was in no hurry to decide on development aid. However, humanitarian aid to UNRWA was finally resumed, which had been suspended since January following suspicions that 12 people out of a total staff of 30,000 had been involved in the horrific attack on 7 October. The suspension was implemented even though it was widely recognised that no other agency could support and reach the people of Gaza to the same extent as UNRWA and despite the fact that the suspicions were unconfirmed.
In the middle of the month, somewhat under the radar, the government approved a new aid strategy for the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) where they chose to include Israel and Palestine. It was positive to see that there was a plan for continued support to Palestine and Israel. However, this is a clear de-prioritisation of the Palestinian issue and a clear refocusing of Sweden’s view of the situation. Previously, the government had a dedicated strategy for Palestine and Israel with a focus on ending Israel’s occupation and laying the foundation for a long-term sustainable peace through a two-state solution. In the new MENA strategy, Palestine and Israel are just a small part of the entire strategy and the occupation is not even mentioned. In addition, the new strategy will have a smaller budget and there is a stated ambition to reduce the number of organisations that will benefit from the aid funds.
This de-prioritisation and the government’s reduced interest in Palestine has also been reflected in other political decisions. For example, an in-depth analysis of the letters of appropriation to Sida and FBA for 2022, 2023 and 2024 shows a clear reduction in mentions of Palestine. And the ambition to end the occupation, which has previously been a main focus for improving the situation for Palestine, is conspicuous by its absence. The Foreign Affairs Declaration only mentions that “Israel must address the unacceptable settler violence in the West Bank and cease the expansion of settlements”. The Government supports the ongoing work in the EU on a proposal for sanctions against extremist settlers.” Compared to “The occupation, which has lasted since 1967, is the biggest obstacle to development in Palestine. Palestine currently lacks control over most of its territory.” and “Political developments in the conflict in recent years have complicated the prospects for a peace settlement. The Israeli government’s pledge to annex parts of the West Bank has reinforced this impression.” from the previous dedicated strategy for Israel and Palestine. It is very clear in decisions, resource allocation and choice of words how the Swedish government has changed track. In addition to the frozen funds, this shift is something that further weakens longstanding relations and cooperation between Swedish and Palestinian organisations.
Finally, one week after the release of the new strategy, we could finally read on Sida’s website that development aid to Palestine can be resumed provided that the administrative shortcomings identified during the evaluation are corrected. This decision came almost six months after the initial freezing of development aid, which has had devastating consequences for our partners working for peace and democracy. Sweden’s indifference can be seen in relation to the EU which, after its initial freeze and evaluation, unblocked aid already at the end of November 2023.
It is not yet entirely clear exactly how the development aid will turn out going forward. Since we civil society organisations must also relate to the consequences of an increased own contribution and the decision that all contracts with Sida will be terminated by the end of December this year. At the same time, the number of partners in the new MENA strategy will be reduced, according to an interview with the Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell.
This goes against the ambition of a two-state solution and sustainable peace. Building peace takes time and the inclusion of women in these processes contributes to even more sustainable solutions. This is exactly what our partners are working on in Palestine. Therefore, the continued focus should be on providing more resources and support to peace and women’s civil society organisations, not less.
Anette Uddqvist, Director