28 The PNA’s employment policy continued to be based on security vetting throughout 2010. The Ministry of Education continued to dismiss teachers and other staff from its departments, and refused to employ or enter into a contract with any person who was not recommended by the security agencies. ICHR received 193 complaints in this regard in 2010, raising the number of such complaints it has received since the end of 2008 to 742. ICHR considers such a measure to be a blatant breach of the Civil Service Law13 and the Palestinian Basic Law, as well as a violation of a citizen’s right to assume public office without discrimination. It is worth mentioning that the dismissed public servants sat for oral and written tests and assumed their jobs in accordance with the law, but they were fired upon recommendations from the security agencies. ICHR believes that subjecting an employee to security vetting and dismissing him/her as a result is not regulated by law and does not have defined conditions. In fact, it is not the jurisdiction of any administrative body to do so, especially since administrative decisions are subject to several restrictions relating to public rights and freedoms lest an administrative unit or department misuse its powers for certain ends under the pretext of security allegations. The bedrock of the PNA’s laws is the deep‐seated faith in citizens’ rights and liberties. According to Article 10 of the Palestinian Basic Law of 2003, “Basic human rights and liberties shall be protected and respected”. 5. Disruption of Local Elections On March 8, 2010, the Council of Ministers decided to hold local and municipal elections in the West Bank and Gaza Strip on July 17, 2010. It demanded that the Central Election Committee make the arrangements necessary for the elections, but altered its decision on June 10, 2010, canceling the date of the election and pledging to set another date. ICHR viewed the cabinet’s decision of postponing the election as an infringement on democracy and citizens’ rights to select their representatives for running public facilities. 13 The conditions an applicant for a job should meet, according to Article (24) of the Palestinian Civil Service Law, are the following: to be a Palestinian or an Arab; aged 18 years or over; free of diseases and physical and mental disabilities preventing him / her from fulfilling the duties of the relevant function which he / she could assume upon a medical report; he /she enjoys civil rights and has never been condemned by a competent Palestinian court of a felony or a demeanour breaching honour or trust, unless exonerated from such charges.