[WCUSP] May statement on Israel/Palestine from International WILPF
Mary Day Kent
mdkent at wilpf.org
Mon Jun 18 11:56:13 CDT 2007
For those who have not seen this yet, a recent statement from WILPF sections
in the Middle East--mdk
---- Original Message -----
From: "Susi Snyder" <susi.snyder at wilpf.ch>
To: <iec_members at wilpf.ch>
Cc: <tlalibertad at gmail.com>
Sent: Monday, June 18, 2007 7:52 AM
Subject: Re: marta-- Palestine, Israel, Lebanon
WILPF International Executive Committee
I realized that some of you may not have easy access to the internet, so
here is the statement in the body of the email:
*Statement of the Middle East Committee*- 7 May 2007
Delegations from WILPF Israel ( Aliyah Strauss, Fathia Akafa), WILPF
Palestine (Hanan Awwad, Nariman Al Far), WILPF Lebanon (Samira Khoury)
and WILPF Germany ( Heidi Meinzolt – coordinator, Anja Witte, Nouria
Ali-Tani, Irmgard Heilberger, Barbara Lochbihler, Irene Eckert) and
WILPF international (Regina Birchem – int. president) met on May 7 in
Berlin, considering that this is the historic place of the tearing down
of a wall.
As the Arab Human Development Report issued in December 2006 states, the
situation of Palestinian women has seriously deteriorated because of the
ongoing Israeli occupation. We showed our solidarity with the
Palestinian women in the occupied territories, who are struggling for
peace and justice.
*We support the* *Arab peace initiative* declared in the Arab summit in
Beirut in 2002 and reaffirmed in Riyadh in 2007 and *request* that the
International Community, particularly the EU, adopt it as a *basic
initiative for peace in the region*. The UN Security Council
Resolution1325, which calls for the protection of women and the
participation of women in conflict solution and democracy building, and
in the prevention of conflicts, must be part of the implementation of
this initiative.
The most important points of this initiative are:
a) a call for the full withdrawal of Israel from the Occupied
Palestinian Territories to the armistice line of June 1967;
b) the offer of land for peace;
c) a nuclear free Middle East.
2. We call for the *recognition of the elected Palestinian
representatives* and of the formation of *the unity government* as
a result of the Mecca agreement.
3. We call for an *immediate lifting of the economic and political
siege* imposed on the Palestinian people and the Palestinian
government and the *lifting of the economic sanctions*:
a) Funds promised by the EU for Palestinian development must be
transferred to the Palestinian National Authority. The Norwegian example
should be followed by other European governments.
b) Money owed to the Palestinian people, taken as taxes by the Israeli
government, should be transferred immediately to the Palestinian
National Authority.
c) EU countries should not continue to block Palestinian bank accounts.
d) The political boycott of Hamas ministers and parliamentarians must end.
1. The immediate lifting of the siege will help the Palestinian
leadership to *secure internal peace within Palestine*.
4. We call for an *immediate release of more than 10 000 Palestinian
political prisoners *held in Israeli prisons and detention camps
particularly all women and children prisoners. This can lead to
the release of the three Israeli hostages and improve the
relationships in order to resume peace negotiations.
5. We call *for the removal of all the checkpoints and closures
*within Palestine and for the *respect of the geographical and
political integrity* of Palestine.
6. In accordance with the International Court of Justice we call for
the *removal of the wall,* the separation barrier, which has been
built for the most part on Palestinian land and serves as a tool
of annexation of Palestinian land and water and the separation of
Palestinian families.
7. We call for *freedom of movement* for all Palestinian people.
8. We call for *international protection* for the Palestinian people
in particular women and children.
9. We condemn the continuous expansion of the Israeli settlements
located on the Palestinian land, and the creation of new bypass
roads that confiscate thousands of acres.
10. We condemn the acceleration of so called „security measures“ at
the checkpoints and passage gates, which are a violation of human
rights, humanitarian rights and human dignity. These measures
include body scans for security checks - damaging the health of
the people and extremely dangerous, for example, for pregnant
women, the use of dogs at the checkpoints and the use of young
Palestinian men by the Israeli military as human shields.
11. We condemn the continuous closure of the Palestinian territories
and the long security search process taking place at the Israeli
checkpoints, giving no access for the Palestinian people to
medical, educational and social services and threatening the life
of patients.
12. We condemn the bombardment of Palestinian civilian areas that has
caused the deaths of hundreds of innocent people, in particular
women and children. At the same time, we condemn the bombardment
of Israeli civilian areas with rockets from the Gaza Strip.
13. We condemn the extra-judicial assassinations of Palestinian activists.
14. We condemn the new Israeli law which prohibits a Palestinian
married to an Israeli citizen to live in Israel or to receive
Israeli citizenship.
This statement was issued in Berlin and will be distributed as such. At
the WILPF Congress in Bolivia it should be discussed in order to be
accepted by the congress.
Heidi Meinzolt – Coordinator of the Middle East Committee
Marta Benavides wrote:
> WILPF International Executive Committee
> Nariman, saldu..we are concerned--please send to us the statement teh
> group work in berlin, and take action, give jsut some basic
> recommendations based in your work plese...love..marta
>
> On 6/18/07, nariman ahmad <narimanahmad134 at hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> Dear Heidi,
>>
>> dear all , yes we met in Berlin in a high resposnsibility ,from the
>> MIddle
>> east committee and the convener ofthe commitee and president of wilpf and
>> other members of wilpf , we were predicting that as a result of the
>> current
>> seige imposed on the palestinian peaple and gov , things will explode
>> ,our
>> meeting was intensive and serious to try to find a way to join the voices
>> of
>> women and peace activists to take an action in such an emergency . in
>> this
>> moment , we call our wilpf sisters to stand firm with us and take quick
>> action .Itis the lives of innocent peaple who pay the price ,so dear
>> sistetrs lets work togather for iprotecting the degnity of the palesinian
>> peaple.
>>
>> yours ,
>> Nariman Al far
>> WILPF PAlestine
>> ________________________________
>>
>> Subject: Re: Palestine, Israel, Lebanon
>> From: Meinzolt-Depner at t-online.de
>> To: cjminster at gmail.com
>> CC: japa at igc.org; iec_members at wilpf.ch; regbirchem at earthlink.net;
>> edibal at bluewin.ch; lmfrank1 at verizon.net; roweenayvonne at yahoo.com;
>> meinzolt-depner at t-online.de; jmclean at jps.net; Claypat at aol.com;
>> kzaidan at wilpf.org; odilehh at gmail.com
>> Date: Sun, 17 Jun 2007 15:24:00 +0000
>>
>>
>> Dear sisters,
>> I fully understand that you are getting crazy if you hear about all these
>> atrocities going on in the Middle East at the moment and the selective
>> informations you and we get all over the world through media and
>> interested
>> politicians. I just wanted to remind you that a drafted statement from a
>> quite rcent ME meeting is in the internet so public to WILPF and if you
>> see
>> what is happening now it is the tragic but nearly logic continuation of
>> what
>> we mentioned as problems there; it was a very constructive meeting with
>> the
>> 3 ME sections and Europeans in Berlin; It is a sad reality that our WILPF
>> sisters in the ME cannot meet in their region due to political reasons.
>> And
>> I don't want and cannot speak for them, but if you take the mentioned ME
>> statement as an information it is easier to understand other informations
>> but also more sad somehow, because all perspectives for a peaceful future
>> towards waht we are engaged as WILPFEre are getting nearly obvi! ous.
>> That
>> is the reason why we have to discuss it in Boilivia and strengthen each
>> other in peaceful meanings nevertheless!! and don't forget putting
>> pressure
>> on your respective governments!
>> In peace
>>
>> Heidi Meinzolt
>> "C.J. Minster" <cjminster at gmail.com> schrieb:
>> My suggestion is similar to Linda's -
>>
>> I understand that the International WILPF Middle East Committee has a
>> German
>> convener - I'm sorry I do not know more about the composition of this
>> committee. I suggest contacting her and having that committee draft a
>> statement for WILPF International.
>>
>> It would also be helpful if that committee could find out -
>> 1. From WILPF Palestine, what form of advocacy they would like their
>> sister
>> WILPFers to take regarding this internal dispute
>> 2. From WILPF Israel, what their official response to Israel's
>> involvement
>> in this conflict is. In particular, I have heard news accounts of
>> militants
>> in Palestine shelling the Israeli city of S'derot and that the Israeli
>> military has gone into Gaza and executed people. I would like to
>> understand
>> the official position of WILPF Israel on what their government is cu!
>> rrently doing and how their government's past actions has laid the
>> groundwork for the current Palestinian fighting. (No where in the
>> mainstream
>> media do I hear explanations of how Gaza is an open air prison, only the
>> fact that Hamas has taken over Gaza. Nor do I hear accounts of the
>> "Israelis-only" highways in the West Bank or the appropriation of land in
>> the West Bank for Israeli settlements. I believe these are the things
>> that
>> we need some clarity on from the Israeli Section.)
>>
>> I share everyone's concern about this situation. As the Program Chair of
>> the
>> US Section, where we have an ongoing campaign to challenge US Policy on
>> Israel / Palestine, I am particularly keen to receive quick direction
>> from
>> my international sisters. But I'd also like to respect our structure and
>> get
>> guidance from my sister sections and the International Middle East
>> Committee.
>>
>> I would also love to receive official word from WILPF Lebanon regarding
>> their government's decision to bomb a P! alestinian refugee camp.
>>
>> Look, I know that in times of ! crisis, people don't necessarily reach
>> for
>> their email to engage with their international sisters. But this is the
>> protocol as I understand it. If the women of the region are unavailable
>> to
>> send statements to us, then by all means the convener of the Middle East
>> Committee (again, sorry, I cannot find her name quickly on the
>> International
>> web page) and International President should write a short statement
>> regarding both situations.
>>
>> I hope one of the things we can deal with in the months ahead - including
>> during our Congress in Bolivia - is who we should turn to for writing
>> immediate statements in response to current events. I think we can all
>> agree
>> that we condemn the violence and we are particularly concerned about
>> access
>> to healthcare, food, and the safety of the civilian population. I think
>> such
>> a statement could be drafted rather quickly, while we wait for our
>> sisters
>> to be available for consultation on a more in depth statement. I do not
>> know
>> who usually writes such sta! tements. This weekend, I am staying in my
>> room
>> for health reasons, and would be willing to help with such a statement.
>>
>>
>> in sisterhood,
>> C.J.
>>
>> ------------
>> C.J. Minster
>> Program Chair, US Section
>> Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
>> railing against the military industrial complex since WWI
>> http://www.wilpf.org
>>
>> ~Social Upheaval~
>> political analysis from a feminist, activist perspective
>> http://www.socialupheaval.com
>>
>> ~angelheaded hipster~
>> cotton candy for the brain
>> http://www.angelheadedhipster.com
>>
>>
>> Linda B. Belle wrote:
>> Dear Regina and All,
>
> I suggest we ask our Israeli, Palestinian and
>> Lebanese
> sisters to come together and send an agreed upon
> recommendation to
>> us.
>
> in hopes,
> Linda
>
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
>
>> From: Regina Birchem <regbirchem at earthlink.net>
> Sent: Jun 16, 2007 12:18
>> PM
> To: iec_members at wilpf.ch
> Cc: Regina Birchem
>> <regbirchem at earthlink.net>,
> Edith Ballantyne <edibal at bluewin.ch>, Libby
>> or
> Mort Frank <lmfrank1 at verizon.net>,
> "C.J. Minster"
>> <cjminster at gmail.com>,
> yvonne simmons <roweenayvonne at yahoo.com>,
> Heidi
>> Meinsolt-Depner <meinzolt-depner at t-online.de>,
> Joyce McLean
>> <jmclean at jps.net>, Pat
> Hollingsworth <Claypat at aol.com>, Kate
>> Zaidan
> <kzaidan at wilpf.org>
> Subject:
>
> Dear WILPF sisters,
>
> The following
>> message came to us from WILPF Palestine regarding the
> bloodshed and
>> fighting in Gaza.
> We know this has serious implications for the future of
>> Palestine,
> Israel and the region.
> Please advise us of any steps you think
>> we should take as
> International WILPF.
>
> My regards,
> Regina Birchem
> WILPF,
>> International President?
> Gaza Drowns in Blood Because of the Conflict
>> between Fatah and Hamas
> Movements
>
> For the 4th consecutive day, Gaza City
>> has witnessed unjustifiable
> violent internal fighting, and an atmosphere of
>> tension has spread
> over Gaza. Since Monday evening, violence has extended
>> to most areas
> in the Gaza Strip from the north to the south, and militants
>> have
> deployed in the streets, at the entrances of towns and near
>>
> governmental headquarters and security compounds. Militants from
> Hamas and
>> Fatah movements have used various kinds of weapons and have
> occupied a
>> number of official buildings belonging to the Palestinian
> presidency and
>> government. The attacks have even targeted the house
> and the office of
>> Prime Minister Ismail Haniya and the presidential
> compound. Militants have
>> been more violent than ever before as they
> have stormed hospitals and
>> forced medical crews out. They even fired
> inside hospital and killed a
>> number of persons. Moreover, mutual
> kidnappings and field executions have
>> been reported. The two
> movements have even threatened to escalate the
>> situation and extend
> the fighting to the West Bank. In this atmosphere of
>> terror,
> approximately 76,000 students have attended the exams of the
>> General
> Certificate of Education (Tawjihi), in addition to thousands of
>>
> university students who have attended their final exams. The current
>>
> situation threatens the overall educational process. President
> Mahmoud
>> Abbas chaired a meeting of the PLO Executive Committee in the
> West Bank
>> city of Ramallah.
>
> The Committee was updated by President Abbas on the coup
>> by Hamas in
> Gaza Strip against the legal authority.
>
> The top PLO body on
>> Thursday 14th recommended to Palestinian
> President Mahmoud Abbas that he
>> declare a state of emergency and
> dismantle the government in response to
>> Hamas' near-takeover of Gaza,
> an aide said.
>
> Abbas said hewould review the
>> recommendations.
>
> The Committee discussed the grave situation that endangers
>> the
> Palestinian cause, it also presented a number of political and
>>
> security recommendations aiming at keeping the national legitimacy
> and the
>> political system.
>
> The Committee also authorized President Abbas to take a
>> number of
> decisions to protect the national legality and national unity and
>> put
> an end to the conspiracy against the national future and the dreams
> of
>> the Palestinian people of freedom and independence. Wilpf
> Palestine
>> strongly condemns such fighting which is not of the ethics,
> sacrifices and
>> struggle of the Palestinian people, and warns that it
> threatens the overall
>> national aspirations and lives of innocent
> Palestinian civilians, whose
>> daily activities have been paralyzed.
>
>
>> Linda B. Belle
> Executive Director
> Jane Addams Peace Association
> 777 United
>> Nations Plaza
> 6th Floor
> New York, NY 10017
> ph: 212.682.8830
> web:
>> janeaddamspeace.org
>
> Jane Addams Peace Association is the Educational
>> Fund
> for the Women's International League for Peace and
> Freedom.
>
>
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> Heidi Meinzolt-Depner
>> Kreuzweg 6, D 82131 Stockdorf
>> Tel +49 89 89979690
>> Meinzolt-Depner at t-online.de
>> ________________________________
>> Change is good. See what's different about Windows Live Hotmail. Check it
>> out!
> WILPF works on issues of peace, human rights and disarmament at the local,
> national and international levels, participating in the ongoing
> international debates on peace and security issues, conflict prevention
> and resolution, on the elimination of all forms of discrimination, and the
> promotion and protection of human rights. It contributes to analysis of
> these issues, and through its many activities, educates, informs and
> mobilizes women for action everywhere.
>
> For more information, please see our websites:
> http://www.wilpf.int.ch
> http://www.peacewomen.org
> http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org
>
>
>
>
--
Susi Snyder
Secretary General
Women's International League for Peace and Freedom
1, rue de Varembe
Case Postale 28
1211 Geneva 20
Switzerland
Telephone: +41 22 919 7080
Fax: +41 22 919 7081
www.wilpf.ch
www.peacewomen.org
www.reachingcriticalwill.org
WILPF works on issues of peace, human rights and disarmament at the local,
national and international levels, participating in the ongoing
international debates on peace and security issues, conflict prevention and
resolution, on the elimination of all forms of discrimination, and the
promotion and protection of human rights. It contributes to analysis of
these issues, and through its many activities, educates, informs and
mobilizes women for action everywhere.
For more information, please see our websites:
http://www.wilpf.int.ch
http://www.peacewomen.org
http://www.reachingcriticalwill.org
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