26 November 2009 By
Mazin Qumsiyeh
Happy Eid
AlAdha to all Muslim
friends and Colleagues. May this holiday return to us
with advance in justice and freedom and a retreat in
the forces of darkness, hate, and violence in this
world. A
trip to
Jenin Monday turned into another detour
on the way back. The trip already takes 2.5 hours and
this is when the roads are open. Soon major sections
will be closed to us as
Israel closes off other roads and make them
available only to settlers. But on the way back,
military contingent closed the road (simple spite as
there was clearly nothing to justify it), they simply
asked us to turn around. Since it was the only way I
knew back to Bethlehem, for a while I did not know
what to do. We tried to ask locals but the ones we
asked did not know or speculated on alternative
routes.
Finally we found someone in a car who was also turned
back and we followed him to go in a round-about-way to
connect to eth road on the other side. Wasting much
time (and obviously indicating since it was doable
that this had nothing to do with security but with
making life as hard as possible). But we will persist
despite everything. In bad news: we heard that the US
decided not to sign the Land Mine Treaty signed by
over 150 countries (Israel and the US want to continue
to allow the killing of Children). And local
authorities and
human
rights groups warned that
Gaza is on the brink of humanitarian
catastrophe (http://www.alarabiya.net/save_print.php?print=1&cont_id=92014&lang=en).
Most
of its water is unfit for human consumption (and also
below needed quantities). Israel refuses to deal with
this man-made catastrophe. Ethnically cleansing the
Palestinians and concentrating them in Gaza (70%
refugees on a tiny desert strip) and now denying them
even import of pipes and equipment to deliver water,
to filter water, or to treat sewage is simply a
crime
against humanity.
Walls and water: ripple effects of the occupation
(interview with me, information useful on our
situation, picture not useful so just listen in the
background if interested ;-)
http://www.findingcanaan.com/home/2009/10/12/walls-water-ripple-effects-of-the-occupation/4/
Right of Return to refugees: fact sheet in Arabic and
English
http://palestinethinktank.com/2009/11/24/ali-hattar-a-right-of-return-primer-arabic-and-english/
Award Winning video: No way through (Palestine in
London?)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcYcw-uWqzk
Action: The One Democratic State Group -Gaza "The
One Democratic State Group is committed to the
struggle for Palestinian rights. These rights will
never be realized outside the framework of a
unitary
state with equality for all its citizens. For
too long this aim has been a vision. It is time to
make it happen, and the ODSG is at the forefront of
that effort. They deserve our full support."~
Ghada
Karmi "In
this time of despair and ever-growing violence that
threatens to destroy the
Palestinian people, it is most refreshing to
hear about a humanist and genuine initiative to find a
just solution for the Palestine question. It is most
amazing that it grew on the killing fields of Gaza,
which bore the brunt of the Israeli criminal
policies. It carries with it a hope that despite the
various Nakbas the
Palestinian people have gone through, there is still a
valid possibility for Jews and Palestinians to share
the land on the basis of equal and human rights. This
is the only way forward and it is in particular the
people of Gaza who can show us the way forward.~
Ilan
Pappe
"At a moment when ever more people are recognizing the
futility at again attempting to partition
Palestine/Israel, and the failure of the 'two-state
solution,' there is an urgent need for a new
vision to bring about decolonization, equality and
justice. The One Democratic State Group is at the
forefront of thinking, advocacy and action to bring
about such a new vision from within Palestine. Their
important and courageous work inspires real hope and
deserves all our support."~
Ali Abunimah "Durable
peace can only be based on justice especially the
implementation of the basic right of return and
restitution for
Palestinian refugees. This can only be done in
a context of a democratic pluralistic state for all
its people. Institutions and movements that promote
this logical and just vision for peace are growing and
should be supported. The ODSG stands at the forefront
of dynamic grass-root movements that are changing the
political landscape and thus are creating a better
future not only for the native victims but for all
people." Mazin Qumsiyeh The
ODSG, One Democratic State Group, is a Palestinian
non-violent popular resistance group based in Gaza. We
are Palestinian activists, from various backgrounds,
who have come together to further peace with justice
in the
Middle East. We believe that the One State
Solution is the only viable option that guarantees
comprehensive
peace in the Middle East. We believe that
justice and peace can be achieved in the context of a
single Democratic State that would include and benefit
equally all current residents of historic
Palestine--after the return of Palestinian
refugees--irrespective of race, ethnicity or religion.
We pledge to work actively towards this end. We
are also active in the Palestine-initiated campaign of
Boycott,
Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel.
These measures, similar to those applied to
South
Africa during the apartheid era, are necessary
to bring an end to Israel's genocidal policies towards
Palestinians both within Israel and throughout the
Occupied Territories. We believe that these
non-violent measures should be maintained until
Apartheid Israel recognizes the Palestinian people's
inalienable right to self-determination and the
establishment of a democratic state on Mandatory
Palestine; a state for all of its citizens. As
we are not an NGO, all our funding comes from our own
pockets. As our movement is now rapidly growing it is
becoming more difficult to financially sustain our
projects and hire greatly needed staff. Due to lack of
funds we have been forced to freeze some of our
projects. Our
current projects include the following:
1. Organizing for the Gaza Freedom March (31
December 2009). We are represented on the March
Steering Committee.
2. Collecting video testimonies of refugees who
survived the 1948 Nakba
for an oral history project that will be posted at
Palestine Remembered.
3. Working on the "Right to Read" Campaign in
partnership with solidarity groups. Challenging the
siege by getting books for Gaza university students.
4. Producing a documentary, Forbidden Dreams,
and copying thousands of a Palestinian-South African
CD, Amandla
Intifada.
5. The promotion of the one state solution and
the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign
against
Israeli military occupation, colonization and
Apartheid by:
- Networking to
strengthen connections among people and groups in Gaza
and with solidarity activists around the world.
-
Running BDS workshops across the
Gaza Strip
-
Organizing video conferences with activists,
intellectuals and students based in the Arab World,
Canada, Europe, South Africa, and the US.
-
Conducting media advocacy and writing articles
in Arabic and English. In order to keep ODSG
productively running, we are in need of your generous
support and donations. We
invite you to visit our website, http://www.odsg.org/co/
and join us in our work to in an act of people to
people solidarity, and anti-apartheid activism for
peace with justice. You
can make a donation via paypal through our website. If
you are in the United States and would like to make a
tax-deductible donation, contact us at http://odsg.org/co/index.php/contact-us.html
onedemocraticstategroup@gmail.com This e-mail
address is being protected from
spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view
it
Through your help we will be able to make our vision a
reality and thereby ensure that our children and
grandchildren may live together in more just and equal
world. The
One Democratic State Group, Gaza, Palestine Mazin
Qumsiyeh, PhD Comments 💬 التعليقات |