It is undeniable that the Palestinian
people, Muslims and Christians, have suffered in pursuit of a
homeland. For more than 60 years, they have endured the pain of
dislocation. Many wait in the refugee camps in the West Bank, Gaza
and neighboring lands for a life of peace and security that they
have never been able to lead. They endure the daily humiliations,
large and small, that come with occupation.
So, let there be no doubt, the
situation for the Palestinian people is intolerable. And America
will not turn our backs on the legitimate aspirations for dignity,
opportunity and a state of their own.
Hamas must put an end to violence,
recognize past agreements, recognize Israel's right to exist. At
the same time, Israelis must acknowledge that just as Israel's right
to exist cannot be denied, neither can Palestinian's [right to
exist]. The United States does not accept the legitimacy of
continued Israeli settlements. This construction violates previous
agreements and undermines efforts to achieve peace. It is time for
these settlements to stop.
These was the most encouraging words
spoken by a president in my life time, and millions of people
dedicated to peace through justice around the world remember them
well. I wish that Obama also remembered them. But it seems that he
is choosing to wash his hands of the whole Israeli/Palestinian mess.
Peter Beinart in Newsweek writes, “Even though E1 has long been an
American red line.(1) And even though the Israelis alerted the White
House mere hours before they announced the decision, the Obama
administration's response was pro forma and bland. Publicly, Obama
said nothing. It was the first sign of what senior administration
officials predict may be a new approach to the Israeli-Palestinian
conflict in Obama's second term: benign neglect. (2)
In what terms can the silence of Obama
be described other than that he has in fact “turned his back on the
Palestinian people?” He obviously knows that the United States is
up to its ears in supporting Israel's illegal activity with our
money, weapons and UN Security vetoes.
Roger Waters, addressing the United
Nations on November 29, 2012, spelled out Israel's guilt of
international crimes in five terms: apartheid, ethnic cleansing,
collective punishment, violation of Geneva Convention and use of
illegal weapons. At risk of diminishing the power of his full address
I will summarize his presentation.
APARTHEID – to establish on a racial
basis the domination of any one group of persons over any other group
of persons and systematically oppressing them, as has been the policy
of Israel towards the Palestinians since 1948.
ETHNIC CLEANSING - as in the systematic
expulsions of Palestinians from their homes in 1948 and 1967.
COLLECTIVE PUNISHMENT – as in the
punishment of an entire civilian population, explicitly prohibited by
the Geneva Convention. Israel has violated its obligation as an
occupying power by the virtual imprisonment and blockade of the
entire population of Gaza.
VIOLATION OF GENEVA CONVENTION -
which prohibits an occupying power from transferring
citizens from its own territory to the occupied territory.
USE OF ILLEGAL WEAPONS – such as
dropping white phosphorus on civilians, which sticks to the skin like
jelly and burns at 1500 degrees, declared to be a war crime.
To those who say, “But, Hamas started
it all.” Roger Waters responds. How we understand history is shaped
by when we start the clock. Start the clock in the afternoon with
rockets flying into Israel and Hamas looks guilty. Israel is simply
defending itself. But, start the clock earlier that same morning
when a 13 year old boy was shot dead by an Israeli soldier as he
played soccer, and history looks a little different. Start the clock
even earlier, like in 2009 and 271 Palestinians have been killed by
Israeli soldiers and settlers. During that same time, not a single
Israeli was killed. In fact, Waters, said, “IT” actually
started in 1967 with the occupation of Gaza and West Bank. The
crisis of rockets is rooted in occupation.
Obviously the rest of the world takes
these facts into consideration. I only hope Obama is listen.
Thomas Are
December 17, 2012
1 – The geographical area of
Palestine between the West Bank and Jerusalem.
2 – Peter Beinart, Why Obama Will
Ignore Israel, Newsweek, December 17, 2012. p.22
No comments:
Post a Comment