Political debate. Sunday 16:30-17:45
We are not dealing with a 2 sides conflict, but there are many
prespectives to the issue, and we shouldn't accept the splitting view point.
A debate was around the suicide bombers-
Opinions-
- The root of the bombings are in the deep disaster of the people and their
dissappointment, thinking there is no hope and no future.
- Following talk about brainwashing to get the suiceide bombers on the way,
it was mentioned that Israeli youth are also brain washed to get to the
Army, and we don't find it justifying any actions they do whit their guns.
We should resist all killings.
- Unfortunally and Desperately it seems that solution can only come throught
the game of the political powers.
- After 3 months in refugee camp, I could really tell you where the real
Terror is coming from.
- ->It was here agreed that we stand in resistance to the policies of
the Israeli state, and talk about the violence in the actions of the Palestinian
Bombers, not in Justification, not In comparison, but because want to help
the struggle, but by less explosive means.
- The term "terror" is systemtically aplied not only to suicide
bombers but to all people fighting to freedom around the world, done by
the US, Israel, and other very nice goverements.
- All wars are serving the huge arms industry around the world.
WE THAN PASSED TO DISCUSS 2 Issues raised at the previous workshop-
1. Women activism in Israel - Palestine
- New Profile is a feminist group dedicated to demilitarize the Education
system through other education, workshops for people who are about to get
to the armi, and practical support for people who are refusing and thus
get to jail.
- Question - How is the mainstream actions like "women in Black"
promoting awareness to the problems?
- We expected that in non violence actions the fact that women were present
would reduce military violence, but they repress with tear gaz. - We need
a lot of help. Internationals, please come and support us also, not only
palestinians.
- It seems that with time actions like the ones of women in black managed
to get less spitings and more positive awareness.
- Women in palestine cannot build resistance due to the general process
of oppression.
- Women NGO'S organizations are not so welcomed as they were in the oslo
years, because they strive to normalization, and without political direction.
- The reconciliation process that took place in Ruanda was suggested. This
was a popular process revived from tradition and included women. The people
had to disclose their guilt/war crimes and the process was open and democratic
to the point that tribes that killed each other can no live together.
2. Organization in neighbour arab countries
- No efficient organiztion of women in arab countries due to the military
state regime. How could we help these women organize?
- There are organizations that exist and suggest alternatives but they can't
do much. There are among them individuals with minds open to the ideas that
we discuss here.
- Public Opinion in Europe, and maybe Israel is in favour of humane solution,
but we need to open spaces for people, not only to agree but to get active
as well.
- Women get organized as women in many places, but due to the general repression,
religious/new orld order/national or other, they tend to get together with
men to fight their mutual opression.
- The Patriachal opression comes not mainly from Islam but from many cultures,
European or Mediterrenean.
- Towards thinking of ways of action, the workshop on tuesday, it was said
that we should find way to combine people from palestine, Israel, and the
mediterrenean in the struggle. The Meadle East free trade agreement, now
in progress, could be a focal point for joint action.
Top
author: uri
Monday 2-9-2002
Following the general political discussion on Sunday of the
conflict in "that lump of land west of the Jordan river", activists
from Palestine/Israel and international activists met on Monday for an extremely
productive discussion of action plans.
The first session focused on the creation of a strong networking infrastructure
between Israeli, Palestinian and international activists. Over the past few
months there has been a rise of activism in the area. Local people (Jewish
and Arab) have formed a growing radical peace movement and many international
activists are arriving in the occupied territories for solidarity actions.
The intensity of the conflict in this period made it difficult for the two
groups to create strong links, and so the participants began the session by
drawing up a 'wish list' of things they would like to do for each other. Among
these: international participation and support for actions in Israel; financial
and resource sharing; news and media exchange; and local help for international
activists coming in or out.
This was followed by a brainstorm session to come up with tools for making
these things happen. Among these: a list of people who can meet, house and
help international activists; a shared action calendar; an information kit;
and a permanent 'combo' that would deal with the nuts and bolts of visas,
legal aid and communication. A meeting was set for tuesday at 10 in the evening
in the freeplace Boerhaavelaan to further define these tools. The planned
international mobilisation to defend the olive harvest in Palestine in October
can be an opportunity to test these tools.
In the second session, there was a discussion of some very high-profile international
actions that could give visibility to many issues and opinions, and send a
strong political message going beyond what the politicians are talking about.Among
these were the idea of having a boat of activists and Palestinian refugees
trying to enter Israel, an international womens' human-rights march in Palestine/Israel
with related actions, a mass demo at the port in Marseilles calling for boycotts
on Israeli products, an International Kaffieh (Palestinian scarf) Day, and
the Abraham's Alliance project of meetings among Jewish and Muslim religious
figures.
Finally there were suggestions to have action-workshops at the autonomous
space during the European Social Forum in Florence, and to create a radical
alternative news agency to counterbalance the information which the Israeli
government and army feed to the mainstream media.
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