رام الله - استكملت مؤسسات المجتمع المدني بقيادة "مفتاح" مناقشة ملاحظاتها حول مشروع قانون ضريبة القيمة المضافة مع دائرة الجمارك والمكوس وضريبة القيمة المضافة ووحدة النوع الاجتماعي في وزارة المالية، وذلك ضمن مسارات العمل الاستراتيجية التي تستند إليها "مفتاح" للتأثير في السياسات العامة بما يضمن حقوق المواطنة لجميع الفئات في المجتمع الفلسطيني، وبما يعزز من الاحتكام إلى مبادئ الحكم الصالح في إدارة المؤسسات الرسمية، وتعزيز العدالة الاجتماعية في بلورة السياسات المالية.

وكانت "مفتاح" بالنيابة وبالتشاور مع مؤسسات المجتمع المدني قد تقدمت بملاحظات استكمالية لما تقدمت به سابقاً حول النسخة الأخيرة من مشروع قانون ضريبة القيمة المضافة، جاءت على النحو التالي:

من جانبها أظهرت دائرة الجمارك والمكوس وضريبة القيمة المضافة ممثلة بالأستاذ لؤي حنش انفتاحها للمشاورات مع المجتمع المدني والتعاون بشأن إجراء ما يمكن من تعديلات في النصوص بالتشاور مع المجتمع المدني وبمساندة مؤسساته في تقديم النصوص المقترحة، بحيث تم الاستجابة إلى التعديلات التالية:

• تعديل الفقرة رقم (2) من المادة رقم (4) من مشروع القانون، والتي تنص على " تفرض الضريبة على المؤسسات غير الهادفة للربح وفقاً للنسب الواردة ضمن أحكام المادة رقم (2) من هذا القانون على أية أعمال أو أنشطة تضرّ فيها القطاع الخاص"

• تم الاتفاق على أن تتولى مؤسسة "مفتاح"، وبالتشاور مع مؤسسات المجتمع المدني، إعداد قائمة استرشادية بالسلع ونسبة ضريبة القيمة المضافة عليها بما يحقق العدالة الاجتماعية، من خلال نسبة الضريبة التدرجية، واستعدت وزارة المالية لتبنيها في إطار القانون والعمل على الاستئناس بها في إعداد اللوائح التنفيذية للقانون.

وتستكمل "مفتاح" هذا العمل بالتأكيد على تعزيز البيئة الحوارية مع الجهات الحكومية والرسمية كأساس للتأثير بالسياسات العامة واعتماد معيار العدالة الاجتماعية كأساس في بلورة السياسات والتأثير في صنع القرار لصالح حقوق المواطنة للجميع وبما يضمن حماية حقوق الفئات المجتمعية والمهمشة والفقيرة.

Ramallah – Civil society organizations, headed by MIFTAH, recently completed discussions on the Value Added Tax (VAT) bill with the Customs, Excise and VAT Department and the gender unit at the Ministry of Finance. The discussions are part of MIFTAH’s strategic course of action aimed at impacting public policies to guarantee citizens’ rights for all sectors of Palestinian society, to enhance the principles of good governance in official institutions and promote social justice in developing fiscal policies.

On behalf of CSOs, MIFTAH presented further comments to those previously presented on the most recent version of the VAT draft law, which included the following:

• Article 4, Paragraph 1, stipulates tax exemption for all non-profit organizations, yet Paragraph 2 of Article 4 stipulates: “The tax shall be imposed on non-profit organizations according to rates within the provisions of Article 2 of this law, to any activities that compete with the private sector.” This achieves the goal of the private sector in subjecting institutions to other taxes, on the premise that these are profitable activities, which compete with the private sector.

• A call to amend Article 2, by preparing a list that reflects tax progression rates on commodities and services, to promote fair distribution, particularly regarding VAT reduction on basic commodities and services; the list will be included as an addendum to the law.

• Articles in the penal code were pointed out, which lack principles of the rule of law towards the ‘employer”, demanding that its provisions abide by the provisions of the amended Palestinian Basic Law.

MIFTAH commented that while it appreciated the demands previously made, the abovementioned comments were key to promoting social justice in fiscal policies.

Meanwhile, representative for the Customs, Excise and VAT Department, Loay Hanash, said his department was open to discussions and cooperation with civil society to implement amendments to the articles in consultation with CSOs, maintaining that the following amendments were positively received:

• Amendment to Article 4, Paragraph 2 of the bill, which stipulates: Taxes shall be imposed on non-profit organizations according to tax rates within the provisions of Article 2 of this law, on any activities that infringe on the private sector.”

• An agreement that MIFTAH, in consultation with CSO’s, will prepare a list of commodities and VAT percentages towards achieving social justice, through progressive tax rates. The Ministry of Finance said it was prepared to adopt this within the framework of the law.

Within this context, MIFTAH stressed on fostering a dialogue-conducive environment with government and official parties as a foundation for influencing public policies and for adopting social justice as a basis for developing policies and influencing decision-makers in favor of citizens’ rights, which guarantee the protection of rights for marginalized and underprivileged social sectors.

Gaza: 19/8/2022 – MIFTAH recently signed a cooperation agreement and memo of understanding with the University of Palestine in Gaza City. This is part of its efforts to empower and enable young leaders to participate in public and political life and to create an interactive environment inside universities based on the principles of democracy, equality, respect for public freedoms and against discrimination and marginalization.

The cooperation agreement is part of MIFTAH’s Democracy and Good Governance Program and signed in partnership with UNFPA. The program includes the development of a discrimination index in Palestinian universities in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, as a yardstick for areas of discrimination and to highlight the gaps in political, social, economic and cultural rights among university students. This will also provide valuable information and data for the development of practical measures to be utilized by decision-makers in universities for reforming policies and procedures aimed at cementing democratic values.

Ramallah – 17/8/2022 – MIFTAH recently held a meeting to discuss comments by civil society organizations following up on the amended National Referral System for Battered Women “Takamul”. The meeting is part of follow-up and coordination of efforts between CSOs combatting gender-based violence and promoting the protection of citizens’ rights for women through impacting public policies, laws and legislation so they are more responsive to the needs of women and girls, especially those caught in a cycle of violence.

CSO representatives stressed on the need for follow-up by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs so it is continuously updated on any developments pertaining to the ratification of the referral system during the weekly cabinet meeting. The participants also touched on the importance of feedback on the CSO’s comments and amendments on the draft referral system, which is currently being discussed in its third reading.

The participants discussed the importance of cooperation between the various parties responsible for implementation of the referral system, in a bid to address the obstacles that could affect the quality of the service provided to battered women; facilitating the access of battered women and girls to protection services; addressing issues pertaining to women with disabilities. In this regard, they pointed to the need to: develop capacities among grassroots organizations in dealing with issues of violence against women; update their strategies and measures vis-à-vis their work; evaluate the interventions of health and medical workers regarding the administration and handling of battery cases; provide a specialist in the field of family education; and expand and increase the medical staff that receives battery cases.

The participants pointed to the role of the Ministry of Social Development and the importance of increasing earmarked budgets for handling battered women and purchasing services for them within the framework of promoting a system of protection.

The attendees stressed on the need to: review the referral system’s manuals and procedures to ensure they conform to the provisions of the amended system; address the gaps in the system through developing manuals, which clarify the parties mandated to deal with cases of violence; facilitate the cooperation process between the partner parties implementing the system on the ground that guarantees the rights of battered women are not infringed; and promote a national system of protection capable of combatting GBV. They also pointed to the importance of incorporating the Family Protection Law and international human rights treaties as a basic pillar for implementing the referral system.

The meeting concluded with an agreement that the Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the follow-up sub-committee on the amended referral system will brief the CSO’s on the latest developments in this regard, in addition to following up on the various readings and stages of the system.