We Will Lift the Siege on Palestine
Tagged as: anti-militarism culture economic_crisis repression social_strugglesNeighbourhoods:
Posted by North League Against War, based in Leeds
Two more reports from the GAZA convoy people, one from Code pink in the USA, including a copy of the CAIRO DECLARATION, January 1, 2010.......End Israeli Apartheid, a new organising venture.
And now the threat comes from the Egyptian government, now that it become abundantly clear that the plight of the Palestinians is as much the fault of the Egyptian government, as it is the Israeli. That for decades the Mubarak government had it in its hands to completely change this situation, but no, they too are responsible for GAZA being turned into a ‘concentration camp'.
And yet, though Israel, a thoroughly failed state if ever there was one, itself being only the world's largest refugee camp, albeit a fanciful, delusional and ‘sweet' one in comparison to all others, Mubarak's government has supported them in taking the lands of the Palestinians.
Irrespective of the failure of the Israeli bombardment of Gaza with operation ‘cast lead', a neo-platonic play imbued with the dominance of tragedy, with a ‘cast' of barbarians who threw ‘lead' from gun barrels, that destroyed the domestic areas of Gaza and left the people with little or no shelter in many parts.
A year ago, following the casting of the lead, the Palestinians buried 1,400 dead, almost 400 of them children, killed in a murderous attack, one in which the Egyptian authorities stood by and watched, but did little or nothing for the Gazans, a government that now wants to build a wall, apparently to compliment the good sense and ingenuity of the Israeli's, as a way of further cutting off the Gazans from the outside world.
It seems that not a single person in the Egyptian government or administration combined, could manage a better plan of action, but to copy, ‘upside down' the Israelis wall, and then bury it in the sand, but they do say flattery is a good way of ingratiating oneself, so it may be understandable, after all would Mubarak want people who can think in his government ? Sycophants are always more amenable.
It must have come as the greatest of shocks to Mubarack, who is well known to be extremely superstitious, that the numbers of the people on the convoy, as reported in the newspapers was 1,400 people.
It must have sent shiver up Mubaraks spine, mayhap he thought the Palestinian had set ‘Allah' on him, as the number of the dead of last year and the number of the living that were in themselves the convoy, were one and the same -1,400, one can only wonder if he thought the spirits of the dead had risen, to come back and haunt him.
So it can become understandable for the Egyptian government to now become completely paranoid and resort to panic measures.
If it is true that George Galloway, as reported in some newspapers, once called for the removal of the Mubarak regime, a position that will now echo around the world and particularly throughout Egypt and then the rest of Arabia, then Mubarak should get his ‘theoreticians', soothsayers, oracles, to try to work out for him what will possibly happen next, the game is not finished yet.
G.A. for Northllaw.
Egypt bars Gaza-bound aid convoys
CAIRO - Aid convoys bound for the Gaza Strip will now be banned from travelling across Egypt after activists this week clashed with police, the foreign minister said in remarks published on Saturday.
Ahmed Abul Gheit told government newspaper Al-Ahram that members of one convoy led by British MP George Galloway committed "criminal" acts on Egyptian soil on their way to the blockaded Palestinian coastal enclave.
"Egypt will no longer allow convoys, regardless of their origin or who is organising them, from crossing its territory," Abul Gheit said.
"Members of the (Viva Palestina) convoy committed hostile acts, even criminal ones, on Egyptian territory," the foreign minister added without elaborating.
On Tuesday night activists with the Viva Palestina convoy clashed with police in Egyptian the port town of El-Arish, 45 kilometres (30 miles) from the Gaza border. They had been protesting an Egyptian decision to send some of the convoy's trucks to Gaza through Israel. Seven protesters were arrested during Tuesday's clashes, but police swapped them for four policemen held by the activists.
A prosecutor in El-Arish later issued warrants for the arrest of seven activists, including two Britons and an American woman.
Abul Gheit was speaking to Al-Ahram from Washington where he is on a visit to discuss the Middle East peace process. He said that, from now on aid, to Gaza must be handed over to the Red Crescent at El-Arish who will turn it over to the Palestinian chapter of the Muslim relief organisation in Gaza.
The comments come a day after a foreign ministry official told Galloway he was no longer welcome in Egypt as he flew out of the country.
Later on Friday, Galloway told Sky News television he and a friend had been "bundled into a car" and given little choice but to get on a plane out of Egypt. "On the steps of the plane a representative of the foreign affairs ministry in Egypt told me that I was declared persona non grata," he said.
Egypt accused Galloway, who once called at a London rally for the overthrow of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, of trying to embarrass the country, which has refused to permanently open its Rafah border crossing with Gaza..........Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reserved
From Cairo to Home:
We Will Lift the Siege on Palestine!
Returning home full of stories about an intense week in Cairo, in the Egyptian border towns of Al Arish and Rafah, in Gaza for those who got inside, and in the West Bank and Erez crossing for those who went to Israel, we hope that you return energized by the momentum our movement has created. It was a rough week for many-battling Egyptian police on the streets, getting rebuffed by our own embassies, joining the hunger strike, debating the Egyptian offer of allowing only 100 people into Gaza. Through it all, however, we can be proud of our many accomplishments:
* We set up a new international network that can coordinate future work and, initiated by the South African delegation, we put out the Cairo Declaration that outlines a program for moving forward. You can read and sign the Declaration below.
* By focusing worldwide attention on the siege, we lifted the spirits of the isolated people of Gaza. "For us, a population of 1.6 million being imprisoned and starved, the gratitude we express to you, the Gaza freedom marchers, is immense. Thank you all from the depth of our hearts!" Mohammed Omer - Gaza
* We put the spotlight on the negative role Egypt is playing in maintaining the siege and we put pressure on the highest levels of the Egyptian government. "Your presence in Egypt was like an earthquake," said Suzanne, an Egyptian student. "You did more good politically by protesting in Egypt than you could have ever done in Gaza."
* The delegation that went to Gaza took in tens of thousands of dollars in humanitarian aid, allowed Palestinians to see long-lost family members, recorded stories they will disseminate broadly, and put up a stunning mosaic memorial to those who died in a central location in Gaza City.
* We signed on to a lawsuit against the Egyptian government for building a wall to block off the tunnels that have become the commercial lifeline for the people in Gaza.
* We inspired solidarity actions all over the world and reinvigorated our own determination to keep struggling to lift the siege.
In order to keep the momentum going, we call on all GFM marchers and supporters to organize demonstrations, vigils or other forms of protest at Israeli embassies and consulates around the world:
on the weekend of January 16-17 to mark the end of the 22-day invasion last year.
The purpose of these actions is to demonstrate global solidarity with Palestinians. Thus any action, no matter how small, will contribute significantly to this message. Also, the rolling hunger strike will continue until this date!
In order to highlight the global character of this movement, we ask that you register your actions through our Solidarity Actions page. This site will also allow you to see actions that are already planned in your region and show your local media that you are taking part in a coordinated protest worldwide.
We also encourage you to contact your media and write letters to the editor. Keep spreading the message that the siege must be lifted.
Thank you for your work and dedication....Code Pink Thu, January 7, 2010
CAIRO DECLARATION http://www.codepinkalert.org/article.php?id=5269
January 1, 2010.......End Israeli Apartheid
We, international delegates meeting in Cairo during the Gaza Freedom March 2009 in collective response to an initiative from the South African delegation, state:
In view of:
- Israel's ongoing collective punishment of Palestinians through the illegal occupation and siege of Gaza;
- the illegal occupation of the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and the continued construction of the illegal Apartheid Wall and settlements;
- the new Wall under construction by Egypt and the US which will tighten even further the siege of Gaza;
- the contempt for Palestinian democracy shown by Israel, the US, Canada, the EU and others after the Palestinian elections of 2006;
- the war crimes committed by Israel during the invasion of Gaza one year ago;
- the continuing discrimination and repression faced by Palestinians within Israel;
- and the continuing exile of millions of Palestinian refugees;
- all of which oppressive acts are based ultimately on the Zionist ideology which underpins Israel;
- in the knowledge that our own governments have given Israel direct economic, financial, military and diplomatic support and allowed it to behave with impunity;
- and mindful of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People (2007)
We reaffirm our commitment to:
Palestinian Self-Determination
Ending the Occupation
Equal Rights for All within historic Palestine
The full Right of Return for Palestinian refugees
We therefore reaffirm our commitment to the United Palestinian call of July 2005 for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) to compel Israel to comply with international law.
To that end, we call for and wish to help initiate a global mass, democratic anti-apartheid movement to work in full consultation with Palestinian civil society to implement the Palestinian call for BDS.
Mindful of the many strong similarities between apartheid Israel and the former apartheid regime in South Africa, we propose:
- 1. An international speaking tour in the first 6 months of 2010 by Palestinian and South African trade unionists and civil society activists, to be joined by trade unionists and activists committed to this programme within the countries toured, to take mass education on BDS directly to the trade union membership and wider public internationally;
- 2. Participation in the Israeli Apartheid Week in March 2010;
- 3. A systematic unified approach to the boycott of Israeli products, involving consumers, workers and their unions in the retail, warehousing, and transportation sectors;
- 4. Developing the Academic, Cultural and Sports boycott;
- 5. Campaigns to encourage divestment of trade union and other pension funds from companies directly implicated in the Occupation and/or the Israeli military industries;
- 6. Legal actions targeting the external recruitment of soldiers to serve in the Israeli military, and the prosecution of Israeli government war criminals; coordination of Citizen's Arrest Bureaux to identify, campaign and seek to prosecute Israeli war criminals; support for the Goldstone Report and the implementation of its recommendations;
- 7. Campaigns against charitable status of the Jewish National Fund (JNF).
We appeal to organizations and individuals committed to this declaration to sign it and work with us to make it a reality. Please e-mail us at cairodec@gmail.com to sign on.
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Gaza Freedom March.
Fri Jan 8, 2010..... Dear friends
We're not heading for the Promised Land, but I do have some sympathy for the ancient Israelites as they struggled to leave Egypt a few thousand years ago.
We don't require the Red Sea to part, just to be allowed to get on the road to the northern town of Rafah and cross the border into Gaza, but the Pharoah, President Mubarak, and his heavily armed men will not allow us.
The Gaza Freedom March has attracted about 1400 people from around the world to Cairo in a bid to cross the border and break the siege of Gaza, by entering with aid and solidarity. For five months organisers have been negotiating with the Egyptian authorities to allow the entry of the marchers at the Rafah border. The negotiations were positive and amicable. Egypt had already allowed Code-Pink, the US women's peace group organising the march, to have seven delegations enter Gaza just this year. But a few days before the scheduled entry, Egyptian authorities announced they would not give permission for his one. By then most participants were already in transit.
We can speculate the many possible reasons for this, but just to give you an idea of the kind of police state Mubarak runs here, this is what Gaza Freedom Marchers have had to contend with:
- Egyptian authorities withdrawing permits from bus drivers so that they could not drive the buses we booked to Rafah for Monday morning.
- Withdrawing a permit to hold an orientation meeting at a Catholic School in Cairo.
- Announcing we are not allowed to meet in groups of more than six people.
- When we tied messages and flowers as a memorial for those killed in Gaza on a busy bridge, police and security forces ripped down the notes and flowers.
We when asked "what is the reason?" the reply was: "we don't need a reason."
- to avoid the meeting rule organisers booked feluccas (boats) to sail on the Nile River so we could receive briefings in groups of 25. Authorities shut down the boat hire company so we could not even get on the boats.
- Instead we stood on the footpath by the river and held our candlelight vigil, about 400 of us, surrounded by hundreds of riot police.
- Still unable to meet, we decided to gather in the busiest square in Cairo and just started. Police were not amused and asked organisers to stop talking, but the feisty Code-Pink women just kept going and we were able to do some organising. This was a great outcome and locals were bemused and very supportive.
- Various groups have tried to leave Cairo for the border but have been turned away at checkpoints and had their passports confiscated
- Bus companies have been ordered not to drive any internationals towards the border area.
- As a protest at having their buses cancelled, a French delegation of about 300 have camped outside their embassy for the last 3 days and nights, surrounded by about 1000 Egyptian riot police.
- We occupied the plaza outside the UN offices in Cairo on Monday for five hours and ignored initial orders to disperse, we then were barricaded in by lines of hundreds of police.
- We are under constant surveillance by less-than-subtle security agents who wear dark glasses and talk into their collars or walk-talkies
- We were invited to a demonstration organised by local Egyptian activists to protest Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu's visit to Egypt today. It was an honour to be in solidarity with these brave activists who risk much to be so outspoken. Again we were surrounded by hundreds of armed riot police and security agents.
Despite all this intimidation, participants are still passionately focused on the main issues: ending the illegal siege of Gaza, and lobbying our Governments to take diplomatic action to allow that to happen.
We have a large group of people here currently on a hunger strike, led by 85 year old Holocaust survivor Heddy Epstein.
The Australian contingent went to the Australian Embassy in Cairo today and demanded to present our concerns about the Australian government's silence on the crisis in Gaza. After some time we were granted a meeting with the Ambassador. She acknowledged that the humanitarian situation in Gaza was "utterly tragic" but that the Australian government had no influence on the policies of Egypt or Israel. She warned us about the dangers of entering
Gaza and we reminded her of UN head in Gaza Richard Falk's recent exhortation saying that since the international political community has failed Gaza, it is now time for civil society to step in and act.
And so we are here hoping to do that. There's a group from the women's delegation that is lobbying the President's wife, Suzanne Mubarak, who is the head of a humanitarian organisation, to intervene and allow the international contingent through, considering we are carrying a large amount of humanitarian aid.
We still hope to get to Gaza and will continue to call on the Egyptian government to let us leave Egypt - please Pharaoh let us go, we wish no plagues of locusts to come upon you, only justice and freedom for Gaza, for Palestine and for your people.
Your pilgrim....Donna
PS: We've heard positive news tonight about the lobbying of the President's wife Suzanne Mubarak - more news as it comes to hand. For updates see gazafreedommarch.org
PPS: There's been a large amount of media coverage of the Gaza Freedom March in Europe, (see http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/8433010.stm ) and see this great summary http://www.truthout.org/1229097 but I suspect there's not been much coverage in Australia. But Australian author and activist Antony Loewenstein, who is part of the Oz contigent, just did this interview with ABC Radio Nationalhttp://www.abc.net.au/rn/breakfast/stories/2009/2782504.htm
PPS: I've never done this before, I don't know how my body will react, but I'll do whatever it takes," 85-year-old Hedy Epstein, Gaza Freedom Marcher, hunger striker, Holocaust survivor.
Holocaust Survivor Explains Why She Went on Gaza Freedom March
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Contact email: northllaw@yahoo.co.uk