Strengthening and Supporting Youth Political Participation

Introduction

Based on the population estimates prepared by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics for mid-2022, there are approximately 14.3 million Palestinians, of whom about 5.35 million live in the State of Palestine — 3.19 million in the West Bank — while the population of the Gaza Strip is estimated at about 2.17 million.

Youth in the 18–29 age group in Palestine constitute more than a fifth of Palestinian society, at 22% of the total population in Palestine as of mid-2022. Despite the fact that our society is a young society, the political participation of youth within it remains limited, and behind the limits of this participation lie several factors related to the political conditions in Palestinian society, represented by the division and dispersion inside and outside Palestine resulting from the occupation, and the absence of a real state possessing sovereignty over the land. Beyond that, there is no space allowed for youth to be part of the decision-making process, whether at the level of the National Council and the Legislative Council, or even within the parties, given that for 16 years since the division no elections have been held, despite the Palestinian Basic Law's stipulation of periodic elections that may not be postponed for more than four years — while the President has remained in his position for more than three consecutive terms, and the Legislative Council, despite being dissolved, has continued to hold its mandate to this day, at a time when student, municipal, and union elections have been absent in the Gaza Strip. Hence this paper, which will address proposing alternatives to achieve a change in the Palestinian political system that allows for youth participation and engagement in political society.