We went to see Al-Walaja with professor and activist Mazin Qumsiyeh who wanted us to witness how the Separation Wall is encircling the village of 2300 people in order to separate it from the agriculutral land from which it survives. The benefits for Israel are: 1) that the village's land that will be on the other side of the wall will be available for expansion of the settlements of Gilo and Har Gilo, and 2) villagers who can no longer make a living, will leave, thus reducing the overall Arab population that Israel has to deal with.
To put today's crisis in perspective, Mazin gave us this history. The original Al-Walaja was completely demolished in 1948 by Jewish forces fighting the indigenous Arab inhabitants in order to establish a Jewish state free of an Arab population. It had been a prosperous food-producing area on its 17,793 dunams (4440 acres) of land. When the 25,000 villagers were forced to flee, they dispersed to Jordan and to refugee camps all over the Middle East. Among them was Abu Nidal (Ahmed Bargout) who was hosting us on this visit. He was also among the 10% who came back in 1963 to rebuild. By then the village was reduced to a quarter of its original size and under the control of Jordan.
However, life was to take another sorry turn in 1967 when Israel conquered the Jordanian territories and started the military occupation that endures until today. At that time, and without notifying the citizens of Al-Walaja, Israel annexed most of the village into Jerusalem. Al- Walaja did not come to realize what that meant until 1982 when all of their homes and structures received demolition orders for being erected on land claimed by Israel. The orders were promptly executed. Having nowhere else to go, and determined to hold onto their ancestral lands, the villagers lived in caves and shelters until they could once again rebuild. This time they knew that their new homes, schools and mosques would be considered illegal by Israel and subject to demolition at any time. Many have been demolished.
Fast forward to 2006 when Al-Walaja heard of the Israeli plan to build the separation wall around the village. They went to court - Israeli court - and though a case is still pending to decide if the wall can be put there, the wall is under construction. We could see parts of the tall, concrete structure that have been finished, and, just below Abu Nidal's living room where we sipped tea, we could see the heavy equipment moving up and down the dirt road where the wall will soon be. Like many things in pPalestinian daily life, there was a surreal quality to this view. On the near side of the dirt road are Abu Nidal's house, animal pens, fruit trees, gardens, and us sipping tea as if everything were normal. On the other side of the dirt road and down the hillside into the valley below are Abu Nidal's olive groves, grape vineyards and sheep pastures--90% of his land. Also on that side is his family cemetery where his mother is buried. The view out another window shows one of the village roads, which has been blocked from use while the wall construction goes on. When the wall is finished, he has been informed, the reopened road will be about 5 feet wide, which cannot accommodate a car.
When the wall is finished...which won't be long now, the houses inside of it will not be exempt for demolition orders. More than half of them already have the orders. Part of the torture is that no one knows when the bulldozers will come...
Abu Nidal is a distinguished-looking man with white hair who must be in his 70's. He has seven grown children. Three of his sons have not married because they don't have any money. He ended his explanation of what is happening here by mentioning the emotional stress everyone is under which shows up in the increase of tensions within families. One of the biggest strains is the separation from parents, siblings and children caused by the restrictions on travel. For example, he has a sister in Jerusalem, but he is not allowed to go to Jerusalem from the West Bank. And soon his sister will not be allowed into Al-Walaja because only its residents will have passes to cross through the gate in the wall.
We asked Abu-Nidal what he thought about the future. He laughed. "Bleak," he answered. There is alot of animosity towards the occupier, the world doesn't do anything to help, and there are those within Palestine who collaborate with Israel. The PA doesn't do anything and "this is more dangerous than the settlements." He called it a "conspiracy of silence."
Before we said goodbye to Abu-Nidal, he took us up to the roof for a better view of Al-Walaja and Jerusalem just across the valley. As a parting gift he cracked open his home-grown walnets and handed us the fresh meats.
Mazin then took us to meet with the leader of the Village Council of Al-Walaja, Abu Ahmad. He added more history and analysis to the picture. Before the occupation there were 26 water wells in the village. Now there are only 2, and these are being tapped by the nearby settlements. When the wall is finished, the 2 wells will be on the other side, and the occupation does not alow Palestinians to dig new wells.
Sixty percent of villagers now depend on U.N. aid, for which they are eligible due to being officially designated as refugess from '48. I asked Abu Ahmad what he thought of the PA's economic development plan. Did he see any benefit for Al-Walaja? He answered, "The PA is under occupation." To illustrate his point, he pointed out that Israel forbids Palestinians to import fertilizers or pesticides.
As for pledging allegiance to a "Jewish state" as Israel's parliament is now considering, he said he was shocked that the U.S. would support this idea because it takes away the rights of all Palestinians, those who live in the diaspora and want to return and those who live inside Israel but could not swear loyalty to a state only for Jews. He concluded that moderates in the Arab world who want a peaceful solution for Palestine are losing credibility, which will leave the radicals in charge of the field. Here in Palestine, people voted for Hamas in 2006 because they were fed up with Fateh, not because of Hamas' ideology, but if they voted today, the resistance parties would win because they are willing to fight.
Meanwhile, Al-Walaja is gasping for breath.
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Applying Israeli Justice to Palestinians
Mazin Qumsiyeh is a Palestinian activist, known to many in Palestine because of his courage in contronting Israeli soldiers at demonstrations or home demolitions, for his astute analysis of the Israeli occupation, and his knowledge of Middle Eastern history. He is a genetecist, a professor at Bethlehem University and has taught at several American universities, including Yale. He is just finishing his second book, this one about the history of nonviolent struggle in Palestine going back to the early 1900's. Mazin decided to move from the States back to Palestine 2 and a half years ago, to share in the hardships of the occupation while continuing the struggle for freedom for his homeland.
He is now being summoned to court by the Israeli military. The manner in which he was informed of this demand speaks to how Israel treats Palestinians:
--On October 19 Mazin received a hand-delivered registered letter dated October 3rd.
-- It is written entirely in Hebrew, for which he must seek translation.
--It gives him 30 days to answer "the charges against him", which are not stated in the letter.
This means Mazin must get an Israeli lawyer to investigate the charges and prepare an answer within eleven days--actually 7 working days.
This is Israeli military justice, the system that enforces the law in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. All Palestinians who are detained for any reason and need to appear before a judge, must do so in a military court. Israeli civil law does not apply to them.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Amira and Sammeh:Saving History to Save Palestine
Amiral, whose name means , Princess was born in Palestine, in Al-Bireh, the twin city of Ramallah, in the house her parents built in 1950. She was politically active in high school, for which she was arrested and held in prinson several times. By the time she started college, Israel had banned her from traveling outside the country, but she attended Bir Ziet University, graduating in 1981 with a degree in economics. When the First Intifada broke out in 1987 she and her husband, Ahmad, were helping to coordinate the civil resistance. For this activism, her husband was deported in 1989 to Lebanon, and she was deported in 1990 to Jordan. It took a year and a half for them to reunite.
In 1994, after the Oslo Peace Accords were signed, Amal and Mohammed were among the first Palestinians to take advantage of the amnesty for deportees and return to their homeland. They knew that the Accords would not deliver peace and end the Israeli occupation, but they were hoping they could start an a-political life. But very shortly they could see that the situation was not Accordsgoing to improve. Already Gaza was isolated, Jerusalem was closed off, checkpoints were set up all over the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority was corrupt from the beginning, and was controlling the press. It felt like a big jail. They left for Australia in 1997, looking for freedom from restrictions for their children.
However, life in Australia was not satisfying, so the couple decided in 2001 to move to the U.S. where Amal had a sister. After a few years in the States, Amira began to make frequent trips back to Palestine because she really wants to live there. But her husband's application for a green card has been held up for 7 years because of accusations that he belongs to a terrorist organization - the very organization, Amira points out, that the U.S. is now negotiating peace with - the Palestine Liberation Organization. Currently, Amira is free to travel back and forth, speaking out for Palestine in both countries, while Ahmad must wait until his status is settled. Their three children are doing well, two in the States and one here. Her son is a computer engineer in California, one daughter is a podiatrist on the medical faculty at An-Najah University in Nablus, and one daughter is a senior at Ohio State Univesity, studying biology.
Because of her history as an activist, I wanted to hear Amira's opinions on various aspects of Palestinian politics. I asked about the popularity of the current regime in charge of Palestine. She explained that President Abbas' party, Fateh, employs 160,000 people which gives it a base of people who want to keep their jobs. However, many of them had been active in other political parties, and are not necessarily happy with Fatah's policies. A huge amount of money enters Palestine from Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries through the so-called "Donors", but it does not reach the people. Development is practically non-existent. While the PA announced it is implementing an economic plan for the West Bank, it is mostly cosmetic: a movie theater opened in Nablus, some public places have been beautified, and there is a new Palestine Satelite Network to show to the business world.
As Amira sees it, this economic plan is designed to make people forget about the occupation. All the while, the education and health systems are deteriorating and public discontent is rising. People see President Abbas (Abu Mazin) collaborating with the Israelis, and it is not acceptable. She thinks a third Intifada is coming, first against the PA and then against the occupation, and it will not be pretty. "I can't imagine what a third intifada will look like." She sees no leadership on the national level that could bring order out of chaos. Will the popular committees play a role in the uprising? Yes, but it is not possible to know how strong they will be by then.
Meanwhile, it seems like Abu Mazin will not be long in power. Already his term in office has expired, and he has no power to strike a deal in the peace negotiations. When the talks fail, so will he, and Israel and the U.S. will need to prepare someone else to take over the puppetry. Could Marwan Bargouthi be released from Israeli prisons and become the next President, selling himself like Abu Mazin is now doing? (This assumes that Israel and the U.S. will have to approve of the next president of the PA and will chose someone whom they think will do their bidding.) Amira knows Marwan from their joint time in exile, and she does not think he can make a difference. Besides, there are several others vying for the job of President. For example Jibril Rjoupe, now head of the powerful Palestinian Soccer League and popular with the U.S. And Mohammed Dahlan, who was charged by Hamas with complicity in overthowing their newly elected government in 2006 and with collaborating with Israel for the attack on Gaza in 2008-09.
At present, Amira's energies are devoted to the foundation she just created, the Sheik Husan Foundation for Culture and Science. She has named it for Sheik Hasan Al-Labadi, a little known patriot who spent 44 years in solitary confinement in British and Israeli prisons after receiving a life sentence for killing a British officer in 1939. Before he was imprisoned, he was a respected imam and a teacher in several Palestinian villages. By honoring him, the Foundation fulfills part of its mission - "to preserve Palestine's cultural and historical heritage from theft and distortion by the Zionist colonial entity." The Foundation will promote sustainable development in Palestine by "intensive investment in education, health, and agricultural and industrial cooperatives."
Amiral is working on a Palestinian Memory Museum for which the Foundation will engage in extensive research into the displacement of Palestinians during the '48 war and before that under the British Mandate. She explains that in 1938 there were 50,000 Palestinian prisoners in administrative detention (without charges) in British prisons, 2,000 received life sentences and 148 were executed. What is the story behind this and Britain's collaboration with the Zionist terrorist groups that were fighting to take over British controlled Palestinian lands? The Foundation will explore this history with an eye toward prosecuting prior and current Zionist governmets for war crimes.
The Foundation will also strive to provide scholarships and support services to families of political prisoners and martyrs and create student exchange programs that will encourage Palestinian students to maintain their cultural identity and foreign students to increase their understanding of the Palestinian reality.
SAMMEH HAMMOUDEH
Doris and I had been invited to Sunday dinner with Sammeh and his wife, Nadia. When Sammeh learned we were staying with Amira, he invited her to come too, as they already knew each other through their common interests. For me and Doris this was our third annual visit with Sammeh and his family. Doris knew him when he was a co-defendant of Dr. Sami al-Arian of Florida, who has been unjustly held in the custody of the American judicial system for the last 7 years. That is a story in itself, but not the one for today.
Sammeh teaches political science at Bir Ziet University and has just finished writing his second book. He and his wife have six healthy children. His oldest, a daughter whom I met two years ago, is just starting a PhD. program in public health at Brown University in Rhode Island. His second daughter, on full scholarship, is getting her masters in human resources in London. Hanan, daughter number three is in her last year at American University in Lebanon, majoring in international relations. The younger three children were born in the United States while Sammeh was studying for his PhD at the University of Southern Florida. He was months away from getting his degree when he was arrested along with Dr.Al-Arian. The three citizen-children were deported by the U.S. government along with their parents, even though Sammeh was exonorated of all charges against him.
Sammeh's wife, Nadia, teaches elementary age children, in English, at a private school for Palestinian kids who were born abroad and whose parents want them educated in Palestine.
Our conversation turned to analyzing what is happening in today's Middle East. "Israel is doing anything it wants to do," said Sammeh, "because of the weakness of the Arab and international communities. Its supporters are embarrassed because they can't defend what Israel is doing. The Turks, on the other hand are smart; they have good relations with everyone in the area. The U.S. is not dominating the scene as before and is losing power because of the cost of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars and its economic policies at home. It has created enemies; other countries are boycotting American goods and currency."
Will there be another intifada? Sammeh doesn't think so. "We didn't get anything from the first two." Coming soon will be another war between Israel and Lebanon due to the rise of Hezbollah and Israel's inability to accept its defeat in previous conflicts with Lebanon. Neither Israel nor the U.S. will attack Iran because Iran's Shia population is allied with Iraq's Shia, and any attack on Iran would ignite extreme violence within Iraq.
Like Amira, Sammeh is interested in promoting the histories of Palestinians who have struggled to protect Palestine. The book he just finnished is about Daoud Houseni, born in 1903, and a leader who fought all his life against occupiers of Palestine. I asked Sammeh what drew him to write about this particular man. He answered that he has always been drawn to the history of Palestinians under the British Mandate (1921-1949), thought this man should be known, but research on this period is difficult because the only records are family papers. Britian did not keep statistics or records on the local population that they controlled. He heard about and contacted Houseni's daughter (who happens to be my new friend Dyala Dajani), and she handed him reams of detailed journals kept by her father, thus providing him with most of the documentation he needed for his research.
Amira and Sammeh are themselves invaluable resources for my understanding of what is happening in Palestine, in the whole Middle East, and in the world. On the one hand, the story is complex and puzzling. On the other hand, it is very simple. Israel is illegally occupying what is left of historic Palestine, and is oppressing the people who live there. A just peace must see the end to this occupation, however long that takes. People like Amira and Sammeh are part of the resistance, keeping Palestine alive by capturing and teaching the rich legacy of Palestinian culture and resistance.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
You Have to BELIEVE in Peace
Iyad Bournat is the head of the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in the small rural village of Bil'in (pronounced Bila-een). I spent one hour with him before the weekly demonstration against the wall that has cut off 55% of the village lands. I want you to hear his voice, because he is someone who carries an unshakeable hope in his heart, and it inspires his leadership.
Iyad started with a short history. As soon as Israel started to build the Wall in June of 2002, Bil'in could see it coming, even though it was still far to the North. Eventually, Israeli engineers began to frequent village lands, and the people organized a committee to plan their resistance. As soon as the bulldozers appeared on the scene, villagers chained themselves to olive trees that were in the path of the bulldozers and demonstrated every day to stop the uprooting of trees that not only represent income, but embody the spirit of the land and its people.
However, as the days passed and the destruction continued, protected by Israeli soldiers who detained as many demonstrators as they could catch, the demonstrations became a weekly event, while simultaneously the Popular Committee hired sympathetic Israeli lawyers and took their case to the Israeli Supreme Court. Their argument,- that the wall was not anywhere near the border with Israel but was routed in order to expropriate more land for nearby settlements, and therefore had nothinng to do with security, was upheld in court, and the army was ordered to move the wall closer to the border. That victory was in 2007, but not until 2009 was action taken to move the wall. Now one can see where the "new wall" is being consstructed in the distance, while the current wall is still in place.
In spite of winning the court case, Iyad listed several ways that Israel tries to stop the demonstrations, which are attended by villagers, internationals, Israeli activists, and the media. It tells Israelis that it is illegal for them to come, because their mere presence proves that the two sides CAN live together and cooperate. It imposes curfews and conducts night raids to harass villagers and frighten them. It kidnaps children from their homes in the night and during detention tries to get them to say that the leaders tell them to throw stones. It arrests the leaders based on the accusations of frightened children.
Israel denies exit to the leaders like Iyad who are invited to speak abroad. Iyad has twice been turned back at the border with Jordan ( the only point of departure allowed to Palestinians without foreign passports). Internationals who are discovered to have demonstrated in Bil'in are often barred from re-entering Israel on their next visit.
The odds seem stacked against Iyad , against Bil'in, against a Palestinian state. Others I have met on this trip have lost hope. So what keeps Iyad going? " You need to BELIEVE," he says. "If I didn't have hope, I couldn't continue this work. And he points to successes. The wall is being moved. Other villages now have weekly demonstrations. The international boycott campaign is growing.
After the demonstration today, when I am soaked in sweat and tear gas, I listen to another member of the Popular Committee, Basil, orient a group from Norway. From him I learn that these demonstrations are not labeled "nonviolent resistance", but "popular resistance." which in part answers my questions about stone throwing. There is an unwritten agreement not to throw stones until after the demonstrators have reached the wall and delivered the message of the day, which today is about freeing political prisoners. After that, stones will fly, sometimes from a powerful sling shot. But...
But stones are not guns. And international law protects the right of occupied people to armed resistance. Israel is the occupier. Israel has the tanks, guns and airpower. The children cannot sleep at night, and the youth can't find jobs, but they can throw stones at their oppresor. Even for someone committed to nonviolence, it is hard to argue with this formulation.
Iyad believes peace will come soon, but he admits that others need to believe it too. If enough people really believe, they will make peace happen.
Iyad Bournat is the head of the Popular Committee Against the Wall and Settlements in the small rural village of Bil'in (pronounced Bila-een). I spent one hour with him before the weekly demonstration against the wall that has cut off 55% of the village lands. I want you to hear his voice, because he is someone who carries an unshakeable hope in his heart, and it inspires his leadership.
Iyad started with a short history. As soon as Israel started to build the Wall in June of 2002, Bil'in could see it coming, even though it was still far to the North. Eventually, Israeli engineers began to frequent village lands, and the people organized a committee to plan their resistance. As soon as the bulldozers appeared on the scene, villagers chained themselves to olive trees that were in the path of the bulldozers and demonstrated every day to stop the uprooting of trees that not only represent income, but embody the spirit of the land and its people.
However, as the days passed and the destruction continued, protected by Israeli soldiers who detained as many demonstrators as they could catch, the demonstrations became a weekly event, while simultaneously the Popular Committee hired sympathetic Israeli lawyers and took their case to the Israeli Supreme Court. Their argument,- that the wall was not anywhere near the border with Israel but was routed in order to expropriate more land for nearby settlements, and therefore had nothinng to do with security, was upheld in court, and the army was ordered to move the wall closer to the border. That victory was in 2007, but not until 2009 was action taken to move the wall. Now one can see where the "new wall" is being consstructed in the distance, while the current wall is still in place.
In spite of winning the court case, Iyad listed several ways that Israel tries to stop the demonstrations, which are attended by villagers, internationals, Israeli activists, and the media. It tells Israelis that it is illegal for them to come, because their mere presence proves that the two sides CAN live together and cooperate. It imposes curfews and conducts night raids to harass villagers and frighten them. It kidnaps children from their homes in the night and during detention tries to get them to say that the leaders tell them to throw stones. It arrests the leaders based on the accusations of frightened children.
Israel denies exit to the leaders like Iyad who are invited to speak abroad. Iyad has twice been turned back at the border with Jordan ( the only point of departure allowed to Palestinians without foreign passports). Internationals who are discovered to have demonstrated in Bil'in are often barred from re-entering Israel on their next visit.
The odds seem stacked against Iyad , against Bil'in, against a Palestinian state. Others I have met on this trip have lost hope. So what keeps Iyad going? " You need to BELIEVE," he says. "If I didn't have hope, I couldn't continue this work. And he points to successes. The wall is being moved. Other villages now have weekly demonstrations. The international boycott campaign is growing.
After the demonstration today, when I am soaked in sweat and tear gas, I listen to another member of the Popular Committee, Basil, orient a group from Norway. From him I learn that these demonstrations are not labeled "nonviolent resistance", but "popular resistance." which in part answers my questions about stone throwing. There is an unwritten agreement not to throw stones until after the demonstrators have reached the wall and delivered the message of the day, which today is about freeing political prisoners. After that, stones will fly, sometimes from a powerful sling shot. But...
But stones are not guns. And international law protects the right of occupied people to armed resistance. Israel is the occupier. Israel has the tanks, guns and airpower. The children cannot sleep at night, and the youth can't find jobs, but they can throw stones at their oppresor. Even for someone committed to nonviolence, it is hard to argue with this formulation.
Iyad believes peace will come soon, but he admits that others need to believe it too. If enough people really believe, they will make peace happen.
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Reacting to Lies and Distortions
Yesterday I read the lies and distortions of truth coming from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a piece in the Washiington Post by Joel Greenberg. I assume his quotes are accurate. The issue is whether Israel should be recognized as a Jewish state.
The issue is also that lies that come through the media from a political leader tend to be believed by an undiscerning public, which in turn may support the politician to the detrement of his opponents. In the case of Netanyahu's lies and distortions, it is the Palestinians who suffer the consequences.
(The problem is, when political leaders are quoted in the media, their words tend to stick in people's minds as if they were true.)
Netanyahu said that Palestinian acceptance of Israel as a Jewish state is not a precondion for peace talks, which makes it sound like no big deal if they do or don't accept it. But in reality it is a precondition, because unless Palestinians accept this new definition, Netanyahu will not extend the settlement freeze. Palestiinians cannot continue the talks if settlements continue to be built. Settlements equal the death of a Palestinian state.
Even talking about a settlement freeze is more than misleading. First of all, the freeze was never enforced; settlement construction went on, albeit at a slower pace, the entire nine- month period. Secondly, the freeze was lifted on September 25th, so why talk about extending it as if it were still in force? Since I arrived in Palestine on October 1st, I have read almost daily reports of settlement expansion.
Netanyahu says, in an apparently even-handed way, "Just as the Palestinians expect us to recognize the Palestinian state as their nation-state, we are permitted to expect that they recognize the Jewish state as our nationn-state." This sounds reasonable. But 20% of Israeli citizens are Palestinian, also known as Arab-Israelis. How can they be expected to pledge allegiance to a Jewish state? Furthermore, if a state is for only one ethnicity and excludes all others, is that not racist? Already many Israeli artists and intellectuals and even members of the Knesset have said just that.
In another distortion of reality, the Israeli prime minister tries to shift the peace process from ending the occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza to defining the nature of the state of Israel. "Undoubtedly such a step (i.e. to accept Israel as a Jewish state) by the Palestinian Authority would be a confidence-building measure that will open a new horizon of hope as well as trust amoung broad parts of the Israeli public, which in light of events of the last decade, have lost faith in the desire of the Palestinians to end the conflict."
What this ignores is that Israel has closed the door on hope and trust among Palestinians over and over by continuing its takeover of Palestinian lands, starting with the 1948 war that resulted in the expulsion of 2/3's of the indigenous Palestinians and the establishment of the state of Israel on 78% of historic Palestine. O.K. - conquest by war, which was accepted by the U.N. at that time, ( although the refugees were supposed to be able to return to their homes, which has not been allowed by Israel). But in 1967 Israel militarily occupied the remaining 22% of Palestine, and has held onto it ever since, in violation of international law (the Geneva Conventions of 1948 and multiple U.N. resolutions).
After '67 Israel started to build settlements inside of occupied Palestine, also in direct violation of the Geneva Conventions. In the years following the Oslo Accords of 1993 until the 2nd Intifada errupted in 2000 settlement building doubled in volume. Thus Israel's response to the peace accords was expansion on Palestinian lands. Indeed, some say that Oslo prepared the way for this expansion.) There are now about 500,000 Israeli settlers living on land that was supposed to be the future state of Palestine. The location of these settlements, along with the roads that connect them to each other and to Israel proper, the military instalations built to protect the settlements, the checkpoints, closed roads and military invasions of cities and towns adds up to a tangle of obstructions which make the establishment of a state impossible to imagine.
Linking a settlement freeze to recognition of a Israel as a Jewish state adds a new dimension--actually a new obfuscation to peace talks, already choked by many thorny issues, such as the status of East Jerusalem, refugees, borders and water use. As a Palestinian spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority said, "There is no connection between halting settlements and recognizing the Jewish character of Israel."
To further confuse the public, Netanyahu is stalling on accepting an incentive from U.S. President Obama that would require a mere 60-day extension of the settlement freeze. Why stall unless to make it seem as if Israel is the agrieved party to whom something more is owed. Sixty days of halting an already illegal activity? Sixty days instead of a complete end to settlement building? A settlement "freeze", not even close to removal of all the illegal settlements? What are they talking about? How easy it is to lie and distort until indeed no one can figure out what they are talking about.
Today's news says that the U.S. recognizes Israel as a state for the Jewish people. The curtain falls. Having the backing of the most powerful country in the world, along with its enormous amount of military aid, proves that lies and deceit work.
The issue is also that lies that come through the media from a political leader tend to be believed by an undiscerning public, which in turn may support the politician to the detrement of his opponents. In the case of Netanyahu's lies and distortions, it is the Palestinians who suffer the consequences.
(The problem is, when political leaders are quoted in the media, their words tend to stick in people's minds as if they were true.)
Netanyahu said that Palestinian acceptance of Israel as a Jewish state is not a precondion for peace talks, which makes it sound like no big deal if they do or don't accept it. But in reality it is a precondition, because unless Palestinians accept this new definition, Netanyahu will not extend the settlement freeze. Palestiinians cannot continue the talks if settlements continue to be built. Settlements equal the death of a Palestinian state.
Even talking about a settlement freeze is more than misleading. First of all, the freeze was never enforced; settlement construction went on, albeit at a slower pace, the entire nine- month period. Secondly, the freeze was lifted on September 25th, so why talk about extending it as if it were still in force? Since I arrived in Palestine on October 1st, I have read almost daily reports of settlement expansion.
Netanyahu says, in an apparently even-handed way, "Just as the Palestinians expect us to recognize the Palestinian state as their nation-state, we are permitted to expect that they recognize the Jewish state as our nationn-state." This sounds reasonable. But 20% of Israeli citizens are Palestinian, also known as Arab-Israelis. How can they be expected to pledge allegiance to a Jewish state? Furthermore, if a state is for only one ethnicity and excludes all others, is that not racist? Already many Israeli artists and intellectuals and even members of the Knesset have said just that.
In another distortion of reality, the Israeli prime minister tries to shift the peace process from ending the occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza to defining the nature of the state of Israel. "Undoubtedly such a step (i.e. to accept Israel as a Jewish state) by the Palestinian Authority would be a confidence-building measure that will open a new horizon of hope as well as trust amoung broad parts of the Israeli public, which in light of events of the last decade, have lost faith in the desire of the Palestinians to end the conflict."
What this ignores is that Israel has closed the door on hope and trust among Palestinians over and over by continuing its takeover of Palestinian lands, starting with the 1948 war that resulted in the expulsion of 2/3's of the indigenous Palestinians and the establishment of the state of Israel on 78% of historic Palestine. O.K. - conquest by war, which was accepted by the U.N. at that time, ( although the refugees were supposed to be able to return to their homes, which has not been allowed by Israel). But in 1967 Israel militarily occupied the remaining 22% of Palestine, and has held onto it ever since, in violation of international law (the Geneva Conventions of 1948 and multiple U.N. resolutions).
After '67 Israel started to build settlements inside of occupied Palestine, also in direct violation of the Geneva Conventions. In the years following the Oslo Accords of 1993 until the 2nd Intifada errupted in 2000 settlement building doubled in volume. Thus Israel's response to the peace accords was expansion on Palestinian lands. Indeed, some say that Oslo prepared the way for this expansion.) There are now about 500,000 Israeli settlers living on land that was supposed to be the future state of Palestine. The location of these settlements, along with the roads that connect them to each other and to Israel proper, the military instalations built to protect the settlements, the checkpoints, closed roads and military invasions of cities and towns adds up to a tangle of obstructions which make the establishment of a state impossible to imagine.
Linking a settlement freeze to recognition of a Israel as a Jewish state adds a new dimension--actually a new obfuscation to peace talks, already choked by many thorny issues, such as the status of East Jerusalem, refugees, borders and water use. As a Palestinian spokesperson for the Palestinian Authority said, "There is no connection between halting settlements and recognizing the Jewish character of Israel."
To further confuse the public, Netanyahu is stalling on accepting an incentive from U.S. President Obama that would require a mere 60-day extension of the settlement freeze. Why stall unless to make it seem as if Israel is the agrieved party to whom something more is owed. Sixty days of halting an already illegal activity? Sixty days instead of a complete end to settlement building? A settlement "freeze", not even close to removal of all the illegal settlements? What are they talking about? How easy it is to lie and distort until indeed no one can figure out what they are talking about.
Today's news says that the U.S. recognizes Israel as a state for the Jewish people. The curtain falls. Having the backing of the most powerful country in the world, along with its enormous amount of military aid, proves that lies and deceit work.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
Corrie Family Seeks Justice, Not Just for Rachel
Last night, October 9th, in the small Bethlehem suburb of Beit Sahour where I am now living and working, the Alernative Information Center hosted Cindy, Craig and Sarah Corrie. They are in Israel to attend the trial surrounding the killing of their daughter and sister, Rachel, in 2003. Rachel's death under the blade of an Israeli military bulldozer as she was trying to protect the home of a Palestinian family in Gaza may have faded from our memories, but has consumed the lives of her family for the last seven and a half years.
The first to speak, after being introduced by one of the Palestinian hosts, was Craig, Rachel's father. He addressed the packed audience of mostly international visitors and volunteers and described his initial shock and grief, that at first he feared would paralize him with hate. Instead, he was able to take action to seek accountability, not revenge, for Rachel's death. He quit his successful job in business, and within six months went with his wife to Gaza to visit the people and places Rachel had being writing home about. Meanwhile, then Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had promised the family that Israel would conduct a thorough, credible and transparent investigation into Rachel's death. Even the U.S. Department of State agrees that such an investigation never took place.
The Corries persued every diplomatic and legal channel available to them in the U.S. before filing a civil case in Israeli courts. That case was opened last March, temporarily closed, and, in an unusual move, it was reopened this month in the Israeli city of Haifa, giving the family another chance to reach understanding. As Sarah told us, she wants to look the responsible soldiers in the eyes and hear what they were thinking and feeling when they killed her sister. But it seems she will not have that chance, as the soldier witnesses will testify behind a screen "for security reasons."
Cindy Corrie spoke about how the court procedings are trying to hide the reasons Rachel was in Gaza in the first place, so she told us how Rachel decided to join the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement (ISM) and go to Gaza to learn and to help. Not to know why Rachel took this action, is to turn this trial into a narrow examination of facts, such as how visible Rachel was to the bulldozer driver.
She said the trial is revealing in exposing what Israel's investigation didn't include, such as visiting the site of the killing or getting into a D9 bulldozer to check on visibility of people in front of it. She added that the crime site was smoothed over withi 24 hours of the killing, destroying any possible evidence against the military.
I asked the Corries what they thought internationals like us should do to be most effective in our work to end the occupation. They said most important thing is to hold our government to international standards of human rights and law. One way to do this is to pressure Congress through our individual congressmen. While we all know how frustrating this can be, Congress has shown movement on this issue. We should develop relationships with our congressmen so that they will listen to us. Only the grassroots will bring change, not the so-called leaders.
The Corries also support the BDS movement ('Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions), but they stressed that we should each do what matches our individual talents. The Corries will follow this trial to its conclusion, but they want us to know that it is not just for Rachel. They use the trial to speak of the many Palestinians who do not have the same resouces nor access to lawyers and courts as they do; to speak of the Palestinians who are being attacked, jailed or killed for trying to protest nonviolently; and to fight the notion that the military are immune from prosecution simply because they are involved in a war. One military officr told them that "there are no civilians in a war." Should that become accepted truth, it will be a huge shift in the conduct of wars and a huge loss for human rights.
Craig Corrie was applauded when he concluded, "We must DEMAND that our Constitution be upheld."
.
The first to speak, after being introduced by one of the Palestinian hosts, was Craig, Rachel's father. He addressed the packed audience of mostly international visitors and volunteers and described his initial shock and grief, that at first he feared would paralize him with hate. Instead, he was able to take action to seek accountability, not revenge, for Rachel's death. He quit his successful job in business, and within six months went with his wife to Gaza to visit the people and places Rachel had being writing home about. Meanwhile, then Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had promised the family that Israel would conduct a thorough, credible and transparent investigation into Rachel's death. Even the U.S. Department of State agrees that such an investigation never took place.
The Corries persued every diplomatic and legal channel available to them in the U.S. before filing a civil case in Israeli courts. That case was opened last March, temporarily closed, and, in an unusual move, it was reopened this month in the Israeli city of Haifa, giving the family another chance to reach understanding. As Sarah told us, she wants to look the responsible soldiers in the eyes and hear what they were thinking and feeling when they killed her sister. But it seems she will not have that chance, as the soldier witnesses will testify behind a screen "for security reasons."
Cindy Corrie spoke about how the court procedings are trying to hide the reasons Rachel was in Gaza in the first place, so she told us how Rachel decided to join the Palestinian-led International Solidarity Movement (ISM) and go to Gaza to learn and to help. Not to know why Rachel took this action, is to turn this trial into a narrow examination of facts, such as how visible Rachel was to the bulldozer driver.
She said the trial is revealing in exposing what Israel's investigation didn't include, such as visiting the site of the killing or getting into a D9 bulldozer to check on visibility of people in front of it. She added that the crime site was smoothed over withi 24 hours of the killing, destroying any possible evidence against the military.
I asked the Corries what they thought internationals like us should do to be most effective in our work to end the occupation. They said most important thing is to hold our government to international standards of human rights and law. One way to do this is to pressure Congress through our individual congressmen. While we all know how frustrating this can be, Congress has shown movement on this issue. We should develop relationships with our congressmen so that they will listen to us. Only the grassroots will bring change, not the so-called leaders.
The Corries also support the BDS movement ('Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions), but they stressed that we should each do what matches our individual talents. The Corries will follow this trial to its conclusion, but they want us to know that it is not just for Rachel. They use the trial to speak of the many Palestinians who do not have the same resouces nor access to lawyers and courts as they do; to speak of the Palestinians who are being attacked, jailed or killed for trying to protest nonviolently; and to fight the notion that the military are immune from prosecution simply because they are involved in a war. One military officr told them that "there are no civilians in a war." Should that become accepted truth, it will be a huge shift in the conduct of wars and a huge loss for human rights.
Craig Corrie was applauded when he concluded, "We must DEMAND that our Constitution be upheld."
.
Creating Understanding in order to Create Peace
George N. Rishmawi is my Palestinian boss for these three weeks that I am volunteering for the International Middle East Media Center (IMEMC), which delivers a daily English-language radio broadcast of Palestinian news. George is a peace activist, a promotor of nonviolence and the Director of the Rapproachment Center, the umbrella NGO for the radio station. On October 8 my friend Doris was interviewing George for her Tampa Bay, Florida radio program, while I took notes.
George was an English literature and translation major at Beir Zeit University, but as soon as he graduated in 1991 he started working with the newly formed Palestinian Center for Rapproachment Between People (PCR). Starting during the First Intifada when tensions ran high, PCR tried to bring Israelis and Palestinians together in dialogue groups to get to know each other. A large group of activists and intellectuals from both sides met for 12 years. "Human recognition is needed for any progress to be made," says George, "and, while we had other options for how to deal with the occupation, we chose dialogue." This attitude is still at the heart of the work of the Center, including the radio station.
"Our mission is to close the gap between Palestine and the rest of the world, to create understanding and to stop the sterotypes. We reach out beyond our borders and encourage people to come here. ' Alternative Tourism' is the work of another branch of PCR, the Siraj Center. Come to enjoy the culture, yes, see the holy and historical sites, AND get to know the people."
Doris asked George about the peace process now going on. "Peace process? The term is tricky. Everyone wants peace, but we need a 'just peace' that will provide a place to live in dignity, security and safety on our own land." The current talks are not between equals; solutions will be imposed. So why should Palestine sign on? If the leaders do sign, it will because of money and support. "Are the leaders honest? It's hard to judge."
George believes that the whole discourse has gotten sidetracked by the issue of freezing the settlements. Palestinian negotiators are now focusing on continuing the freeze instead of demanding removal of the settlements and ending the occupation. While the official position of the Palestinians calls for the two state solution, George says that a viable state is not possibe while the West Bank is chopped up by settlements and the wall - entities that also increase separation and misunderstanding. He advocates for one state --"a human solution" for all Israelis and Palestinians. A country based on one religion or ethnicity is inherently racist. "How can we recognize Israel as a "Jewish state"?
George was an English literature and translation major at Beir Zeit University, but as soon as he graduated in 1991 he started working with the newly formed Palestinian Center for Rapproachment Between People (PCR). Starting during the First Intifada when tensions ran high, PCR tried to bring Israelis and Palestinians together in dialogue groups to get to know each other. A large group of activists and intellectuals from both sides met for 12 years. "Human recognition is needed for any progress to be made," says George, "and, while we had other options for how to deal with the occupation, we chose dialogue." This attitude is still at the heart of the work of the Center, including the radio station.
"Our mission is to close the gap between Palestine and the rest of the world, to create understanding and to stop the sterotypes. We reach out beyond our borders and encourage people to come here. ' Alternative Tourism' is the work of another branch of PCR, the Siraj Center. Come to enjoy the culture, yes, see the holy and historical sites, AND get to know the people."
Doris asked George about the peace process now going on. "Peace process? The term is tricky. Everyone wants peace, but we need a 'just peace' that will provide a place to live in dignity, security and safety on our own land." The current talks are not between equals; solutions will be imposed. So why should Palestine sign on? If the leaders do sign, it will because of money and support. "Are the leaders honest? It's hard to judge."
George believes that the whole discourse has gotten sidetracked by the issue of freezing the settlements. Palestinian negotiators are now focusing on continuing the freeze instead of demanding removal of the settlements and ending the occupation. While the official position of the Palestinians calls for the two state solution, George says that a viable state is not possibe while the West Bank is chopped up by settlements and the wall - entities that also increase separation and misunderstanding. He advocates for one state --"a human solution" for all Israelis and Palestinians. A country based on one religion or ethnicity is inherently racist. "How can we recognize Israel as a "Jewish state"?
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