Back to Contents Riad Al Khouri: If we are talking about normal criminal and public security issues, yes. I do not think there is any difference. If somebody’s house is subject to robbery and he is a Palestinian, he will report it to the police. If we are talking about things to do with politics about a militia, then no. It becomes more complicated. In other words, to repeat the example, if I am a Palestinian refugee, somebody robbed my home, then I will report it to the police in a normal way. There will be no discrimination or other problem. But if I am a Palestinian involved in a political dispute with another person, whether it is Syrian, or Palestinian, or Lebanese. And for example, there is armed conflict, I was subject to armed harassment for political reasons, then, yes, there would be a complication in reporting this to the police and the police acting. I think they would not get involved because, in the first place, the victim would not report the case. If he reported it, the police would at once realize that this is a political issue to do with militias, and they would not get involved. Do not forget that in Lebanon, the police and the army have tended to have weaker powers than in most other Arab countries. Most Arab countries have strong security and military structures. Lebanon is the major exception. So, the police and the army in Lebanon are not as powerful as they are in other developing countries. And therefore, if a security or political issue arises, then the police would not be involved in the same way that they would in another Arab country where this would not be acceptable. Asylos: Have you known of prosecutions and potential convictions of individuals who might have humiliated, or discriminated, or taken violent actions towards Palestinian stateless persons? Riad Al Khouri: The quick answer is no; I personally do not know of them. But you must understand something. I am not a refugee, and I belong to a certain socioeconomic class such that I do not interact very much with poor people in general or with refugees. I am familiar, partly because of my work, partly because of my background, but I personally do not know of examples of discrimination or other problems facing Palestinian refugees in Lebanon with the authorities, with the police, and security. I suspect that they exist. But again, this is not as severe as it was in the 1970s and 1980s. Asylos: Thank you for your transparency. The question was hinting at media coverage, for example, of such a case that might have come to your attention. But I understand from your answer that this is not the case. Riad Al Khouri: The media in Lebanon is no longer really interested in these issues. The media is now more interested in the Syrian refugees. Asylos: Do you know whether human trafficking disproportionately affected stateless Palestinians? Riad Al Khouri: You must understand something. Among poor people and among Muslims, child marriage is not such a drastic issue. It is normal. If a rich man comes to you and wants your 12-year-old daughter, who is nevertheless biologically a woman. If she is no longer biologically a child, she is biologically a woman, then there is no severe problem in having her married, particularly if the husband is rich and he offers the family a good sum of money. And quite often these marriages end up being happy. Asylos: A question on hardships faced by specific profiles of stateless Palestinians. So, we are trying in the report to uncover the situations of specific groups such as persons with disabilities, LGBTQ persons, Palestinians, as well as people with criminal convictions, for example. And we could not find any statistics recorded on the incidents of stateless Palestinians with disabilities and the form of disability. Are you aware of whether this type of statistics is coming from the Lebanese state or by other organizations? Riad Al Khouri: There has been a tendency in Lebanon over the past years to pay more attention to the problems of the Palestinian refugees. Paying more attention is the first step. Doing something is the next step. And that has not really happened yet. But at least there is more awareness among the Lebanese and inside the Lebanese state, the Lebanese government, Lebanese officials. Now a critical point to note here, because of UNRWA and because of international NGOs and for other reasons, Palestinians tend to be slightly better off in this respect than the Lebanese themselves. The Lebanese until recently had a much higher standard of living than most other Arabs comparable to Europe. Now the economy has completely crashed and the average Lebanese can no longer afford proper medical attention and so forth. The Palestinians are a little bit insulated from this, partly through their organizations, through UNRWA and through international NGOs. Asylos: But if I understood correctly, not all Palestinians receive help from access to UNRWA services. 17. Appendices 161