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Call
to Action: International Day of Action for Justice
in Palestine
June 5, 2003
On June 5, 2003, the thirty-sixth anniversary of the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza, we call for linked actions by Palestinian, international, and Israeli peace groups to protest the escalating violence against the Palestinian community and international human rights workers in the occupied territories. We demand protection for Palestinian civilians and for internationals, a moratorium on construction of the apartheid wall and its associated land confiscations and home demolitions, and an end to the occupation.
I. Who is Initiating this Call?
The Middle East Committee of United for Peace and
Justice is proposing that United for Peace and Justice
initiate this call together with Palestinian based,
Israeli, and other international peace groups. Committed
convening groups include the Peace and Justice Studies
Association (PJSA), the International Women's Peace
Service, and the International Solidarity (ISM)
Movement, which attempts to protect civilians and
supports the nonviolent resistance within Palestine,
We seek and welcome endorsements by all groups and
individuals that support our points of unity.
II. What Would Happen on and around June
5?
- Demonstrations and acts of nonviolent resistance by Palestinians and
internationals within the occupied territories of Palestine.
- Sister demonstrations, vigils and nonviolent direct actions by Israeli peace groups within the pre-1967 borders of Israel.
- A massive campaign of lobbying at the United Nations and of the U.S. Congress culminating on June 5.
- Teach-ins and educational programs in communities around the world.
- Demonstrations, vigils, and nonviolent occupations of Israeli embassies and consulates worldwide, and at offices of corporations that profit from the occupation.
III. Why This Call?
There can be no true peace or security in the Middle
East without justice for the Palestinian people.
In the wake of the war on Iraq, the Sharon government
has stepped up a campaign of land confiscation,
enclosure and isolation of Palestinian communities,
and attacks on nonviolent human rights workers.
The Sharon government is rapidly moving ahead on
the second phase of construction of a mammoth "security
fence" -- in reality an apartheid wall which
dwarfs the Berlin wall. A thirty-foot high concrete
wall with gun towers in some areas, in others, a
giant electrified fence surrounded by a wide swath
of "no-man's land", it strays far from
the 1967 borders to confiscates more than thirty
percent of the proposed Palestinian state. It encloses
the illegal settlements that have undermined peace
negotiations since Oslo, annexes water resources
and the traditional lands of Palestinian villages
without compensation, and will turns Palestinian
cities into giant, open-air prisons.
In Gaza, construction of the security zone along the Egyptian border has resulted in destruction of olive groves and homes. On March 16, Rachel Corrie, a human rights worker with the International Solidarity Movement, was deliberately killed by an Israeli Occupation Forces bulldozer driver while trying to prevent home demolitions. The Israeli military has refused to seriously investigate her death, and the United States government has declined to pressure them.
The result has been tacit encouragement of attacks
on nonviolent peace workers and inconvenient witnesses.
In Jenin, Brian Avery was shot in the face on April
5 by soldiers in an armored personnel carrier that
opened fire on clearly visible, unarmed members
of the ISM. On April 12, ISM member Tom Hurndall
was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier on the
Rafah border as he attempted to rescue children
who were under fire from Israeli sniper tower. On
April 20, a Palestinian journalist was shot dead
by a gunman from an Israeli tank as he attempted
to cover an incursion into Nablus.
These attacks on human rights workers make visible
the ongoing violence against Palestinian civilians.
In Rafah, more than two hundred and fifty people
have died since the beginning of the intifada forty-five
of them were children.
Unless the international community responds strongly
to these attacks, no human rights workers, medical
personnel, journalists or NGOs will be able to operate
safely in the occupied territories. Without those
who are prepared to intervene against, witness,
or report on acts of aggression by the Israeli military,
the way is open for even further escalations of
violence and repression against the Palestinian
people.
Linked actions by groups within the territories, within Israel and by the international community would send a powerful message to the Israeli government. Moreover, they would break the isolation of the Palestinians, encourage and support the nonviolent resistance within Palestine, making that aspect of the struggle more visible, highlight the ongoing violence against Palestinian civilians and shift the climate of public opinion that allows this injustice to continue.
IV. Demands:
1. Protection and Accountability:
- We demand that the U.S. and British governments,
the United Nations, and the world community
hold the Sharon government and the Israeli Occupation
Forces accountable for the death of Rachel Corrie
and the shootings of Brian Avery, Tom Hurndall
and the Palestinian journalist, which make visible
the ongoing violence against Palestinian civilians.
We demand a full and impartial investigation
of these and other attacks on nonviolent human
rights workers.
- We call for an immediate deployment of UN international observers in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
2. Moratorium on the Wall:
- We call for a moratorium on the building of the so-called "security wall", An end to the land theft, home demolitions, appropriation of water and resources, destruction of villages and of livelihoods that this apartheid wall requires.
3. End the Occupation:
- We call for an end to the policies of control and de facto imprisonment that violate the human rights of Palestinians: closures, curfews, checkpoints, roadblocks, incursions, snipers, and ongoing attacks on civilians. An end to attacks on the Palestinian economy and civil society, the obstruction of education, health care, emergency services that are part of an ongoing assault on daily life. An end to the occupation.
V.
Points of Unity
1.Nonviolence
For this campaign, we ask that groups that participate
commit to nonviolent actions that maximize respect
for life, and that embody the openness, creativity
and compassion we are calling for.
2. Palestinian focus
Attacks on international human rights workers
are an important focus of this campaign, but we
ask that they always be seen in the context of
the overwhelming daily violence directed against
the Palestinian population.
3. Diversity
We represent a very broad coalition of groups
that may hold out different visions for this issue.
As a coalition, we can unite around the specific
goals named for this campaign. Individual groups
are free to pursue their own broader goals and
demands in their own names.
4. Independence
We welcome support from a broad variety of political
groups and organizations, but as a coalition we
do not identify with or align with any political
party or affiliation.
5. Tolerance
Jewish and Israeli peace groups are part of this
campaign, and allies in this struggle. Charges
of anti-Semitism are often hurled at anyone who
challenges the Israeli government. We refuse to
be silenced or intimidated by those charges, while
we also recognize that some recent attacks on
jewish institutions do betoken a resurgence of
actual anti-semitism. Our campaign is directed
against the policies of the Sharon-led Israeli
government and military, and the U.S. funding
and support for those policies, not against Jews
or Israelis as a people.
Only justice for Palestinians can assure real
security in either Palestine or Israel. We cherish
the lives of Israelis and Palestinians. While
we especially condemn attacks on civilians, whether
Palestinian or Israeli, we understand that attacks
on Israeli civilians are a response to the conditions
of the occupation, that are only furthered by
the policies of collective punishment and brutality
practiced by the Sharon government. At the same
time, we understand that such attacks stir fear
and rage among Israelis that lends a spurious
legitimacy to brutal actions of the Sharon Government.
We encourage participating groups to be proactive
in reaching out to their local Jewish communities
to begin dialogues and discussions around this
issue, and to hold out the hope that even those
who are now our opponents may change their views.
6. Autonomy
Within the framework of these points of unity,
local groups are free to plan their own actions
and campaigns. Local groups know best how to organize
in their own areas, and how to speak to their
own communities.
VI. Structure
The June 5 coalition would be a loose network
of affiliated groups, providing coordination and
support for autonomous actions within the framework
of the points of unity. Convenor groups would
take responsiblility for coordination nationally
or regionally, in Palestine, Israel, the U.S.,
Europe, and other regions. A central website would
be created and maintained, where support materials
could be posted and where a list of planned actions
and contacts could be maintained. Media coordination
could be centralized regionally.
Funding would be sought for the website and to
support media centers.
Groups would fund their own actions independently.
For more information:
Website: http://www.peacejusticestudies.org/palestine.php
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Also, keep an eye on this site www.starhawk.org
for updates.
Email: Simona Sharoni at sharonis@evergreen.edu;
Telephone: 360-867-6196
Or contact the ISM press office (Beit Sahur, Palestine):
info@palsolidarity.org 972-2-277-4602
For a map of the wall, see:
http://www.gush-shalom.org/thewall/index.html
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