Present Absentee Law: Not a UN Problem

By SUSAN BINCHY, HAARETZ

The Executive committee, the UN High commissioner for Refugee, was unsuccessful in addressing the Israeli problem of the current ‘Present Absentee Law’.  This law states that all the lands owned by the state of Israel will remain in state ownership, and will not be sold or given to anyone. This gives the government the power to seize any property that it deems absent.

This has been highlighted as a huge problem throughout history in Israel. Though it was pushed into the committee, it was voted out of all of the working papers.  The international community has failed.