by: Walid Zaher
• A Message from H.E. President Mahmoud Abbas (http://www.plo.ps/en/article/51/A-Message-from-HE-President-Mahmoud-AbbasBy-President-Mahmoud-Abbas) Attachment
• From the Desk of PLO Secretary General (http://www.plo.ps/en/article/52/From-the-Desk-of-PLO-Secretary-GeneralBy-Dr-Saeb-Erekat) Attachment
• Weekly Report On Israeli Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (25 – 31 May 2017) (http://pchrgaza.org/en/?p=9164)
• 50 Years of Occupation – This month’s issue (http://thisweekinpalestine.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/June-230-2017-Final.pdf)
• At least five of the twelve international speakers scheduled to participate in the Tel Aviv International LGBT Film Festival this June 1-10 have reportedly pulled out after queer Palestinian activists and their allies in the BDS movement called for boycotting the “pinkwashing” propaganda event that gives progressive cover for Israel’s ongoing and grave violations of Palestinian human rights. (http://imemc.org/article/wave-of-boycotts-hits-israeli-lgbt-film-festival-as-international-artists-heed-palestinian-call-to-respect-picket-line/)
• Days ahead of the 50th anniversary of the Israeli annexation of East Jerusalem, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip, Catholic NGO Pax Christi International called the dire humanitarian situation brought on by the occupation “not sustainable,” and called for renewed peace talks.(http://www.maannews.com/Content.aspx?id=777435)
• The Israeli Interior Minister, Aryeh Deri, has refused to grant 449 Palestinians permits to be reunited with their families in Israel, Haaretz reported.(http://english.pnn.ps/2017/06/01/israel-rejects-palestinian-family-unification-requests/)
• The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine calls on all Greek movements for social justice and supporters of Palestine to rally, organize and protest against the visit of the Prime Minister of the occupation state, the war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been announced as participating in a tripartite summit with Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras and the president of Cyprus, Nicos Anastasiades, on 15 June.(http://english.pnn.ps/2017/06/02/pflp-call-to-greek-movement-expel-the-criminal-netanyahu-from-thessaloniki/)
• Some 2,100 new housing units all over the West Bank will be on the agenda of the planning and building committee of the Israel Defense Forces’ Civil Administration next week according to Hareetz news paper . (http://english.pnn.ps/2017/06/02/israel-set-to-approve-2100-new-housing-units-in-west-bank/)
• The annual report issued by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) revealed that 2016 witnessed a record-breaking number of home and livelihood structure demolitions by the Israeli occupation authorities.(http://english.pnn.ps/2017/06/02/un-record-breaking-number-of-palestinian-homes-demolished/)
• Commenting on Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon’s election to the post of Vice President of the 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), PLO Executive Committee Member Dr. Hanan Ashrawi said:“Israel has intensified its campaign to assume official positions within UN bodies, emboldened by the support it is receiving from both the Western European and Others Group (WEOG) and the intensive campaign by the U.S. and its representative to harass and intimidate any bodies or states that seek to hold Israel accountable.(http://english.pnn.ps/2017/06/02/ashrawi-israel-violates-international-law-and-strengthens-its-positions-in-the-united-nations/)
• U.S. President Donald Trump signed a waiver delaying the relocation of the U.S. Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, breaking his election promise, several reports said on Thursday according White House statement. (http://english.pnn.ps/2017/06/01/trump-signs-order-delaying-u-s-embassy-move-to-jerusalem/)
• A sixteen year old Palestinian girl Friday succumbed to wounds she sustained on Thursday after being shot by Israeli forces following an alleged stabbing attack to the south of Jenin’s town of Y’abad, said medical sources. (http://english.wafa.ps/page.aspx?id=bBNrCHa91001863095abBNrCH)
• Israeli forces Friday detained four Palestinian youths in the West Bank districts of Jenin and Qalqilia, said local sources. (http://english.wafa.ps/page.aspx?id=6KRbboa91002814848a6KRbbo)
• The formulation of a document of principles for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations on the core issues of a permanent solution by the US administration hit the front page headlines in Palestinian dailies. (http://english.wafa.ps/page.aspx?id=1JBDGca91000911342a1JBDGc)
A Message from H.E. President Mahmoud Abbas
By: President Mahmoud Abbas
Our challenge as Palestinians is greater than ever. After 50 years, we are the only remaining people in the world who still live under occupation. And it has been over 100 years that we have been actively denied our right to self-determination, along with all the hardships associated with the denial of that right: exile and forced displacement, occupation and subjugation, harassment and incarceration. There is no doubt that the balance of power is still weighted firmly against us. But I believe in our people and I believe that, even in these circumstances, we can and will prevail. We have truth on our side and strength in our hearts.
Our vision for peace remains clear and consistent: Two sovereign and independent states on the 1967 border: the State of Palestine – with East Jerusalem as its capital – living side by side in peace and security with the State of Israel. Jerusalem, the open city that befits its rich history as the cradle of the three monotheistic faiths. A just solution to the refugee issue based on the Arab Peace Initiative (API) and UNGA 194. And the freedom of all Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
We have been committed to exploring and developing creative solutions based on international law and relevant UN resolutions. The API is a regional proposal that has been on the table since 2002. It offers Israel normalized relations with 57 Arab and Islamic countries, in exchange for Israel’s withdrawal to the 1967 borders (based on UNSC Resolution 242), a just and agreed-upon resolution to the refugee issue (based on UNGA Resolution 194), and the acceptance of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital. So far, Israel has ignored this historic offer. And yet, our offer stands. There is no direct pass to normalization between Israel and the Arab World without Israel fully ending its occupation of the State of Palestine, while implementing its obligations under international law.
From our side, we have focused on a strategy of internationalization in order to create conditions for our people to achieve their legitimate right to freedom and independence, while giving the two-state solution – and peace – the best chance of success. This strategy aims to bring the Palestine Question to a multilateral forum, to root a solution even more firmly in international law, to adhere to universal principles and global standards, and to engage the support of the international community in order to hold all parties accountable to international law and previously signed agreements. Without accountability for violations – particularly relating to Israel as the Occupying Power – there can be no hope of a just and lasting solution.
The occupation has survived for 50 years, and during that time it has been actively transformed from a military occupation to a project of settler colonialism. Ultimately, however, the situation is as untenable as it is unacceptable. No people in the world would tolerate living under these conditions, and we are no exception. We are mothers and fathers, grandmothers and grandfathers. More than anything we want a safe environment and a future full of opportunity and possibility for our children, our grandchildren, and all future generations of this vibrant and beautiful land.
We are a small but great nation, proud of our diversity and identity. We educate our children to respect themselves and others by standing up against injustice wherever it is found. We build our institutions based on the implementation of their responsibilities under international law. Palestinian Muslims, Christians, and Samaritans live and worship side by side, working together towards freedom and justice. We are a people famous for our hospitality and are keen to achieve our full potential as an independent and sovereign state, welcoming people of all faiths to the Holy Land.
We look forward to a day when, instead of commemorating 50 years of occupation, we celebrate the end of this occupation – and with it the beginning of independence, justice, peace, and stability in our region and beyond. In the meantime, the Palestinian people will remain steadfast.
From the Desk of PLO Secretary General
By: Dr. Saeb Erekat
National commemorations form part of every society’s fabric and identity. Some are celebrations – of peace, of independence, of milestones in human development. Others are solemn markings of a time gone by, of events to be remembered and learned from, but never repeated. For Palestine, this year brings several significant commemorations. While such anniversaries mark solemn historical events, they differ from most commemorations in one important way: Each event still impacts the lives of people in very real and very urgent ways.
One hundred years ago, a British politician, at his desk in London, signed a letter that would profoundly affect the fate of a people over 3,500 kilometers away. That politician was Sir Arthur James Balfour. And the letter he signed – promising a national home for one people in the homeland of another – denied the indigenous Palestinian population the right to self-determination and paved the way for decades of violence and suffering. Today, the Palestinian struggle for independence and self-determination continues.
Seventy years ago, the United Nations, in its assembly hall in Geneva, passed a resolution approving a plan to partition Palestine into two states, once again denying the right of Palestinians to determine their own fate. The following year, Israel declared independence, igniting war with Arab neighbors. By the end of the war, Zionist militias had taken 78 percent of historical Palestine, far beyond what was envisioned by the United Nations. Thousands of Palestinian civilians had been massacred or went missing, and approximately 800,000 Palestinians had been forced from their homeland, taking little more than a few belongings and the keys to their homes. Today, the vast majority of those who were made refugees in 1948, along with their direct descendants, still live in refugee camps throughout the Middle East. Meanwhile, forced displacement is very much a current Israeli policy – from Occupied East Jerusalem, from the Jordan Valley, from the Naqab. The Nakba (catastrophe), the name given to the horrific events of 1948, continues to this day in one form or another.
Fifty years ago, following a second war of six days, Israel occupied what remained of historical Palestine, displacing another 300,000 people and subjecting the rest of the indigenous population to military rule. Meanwhile, and in complete contradiction to international law, Israel began to transfer its own civilian population into this occupied territory, resulting in a situation where two groups of people now live on the same land but under two separate and unequal systems of law and control.
Palestine, although now a state, is sovereign but not independent. In reality, and despite our best efforts with the limited autonomy we have managed to secure, Israel controls all borders, natural resources, airspace, movement, trade, and economy. From the issuing of a birth certificate to the issuing of a death certificate, all aspects of our people’s lives lie ultimately in the hands of a foreign military occupier. On a daily basis, people are denied movement between their towns and cities, have their homes and businesses raided or demolished, are arrested and imprisoned, injured and killed – without any ability to protest or appeal outside of this system of military control that is so heavily skewed against them.
And yet, the Palestinian people remain. And remain resilient. Every day we find new and creative ways to demand our long overdue rights to security, dignity, and freedom. The articles in this edition of TWIP shed light on the Palestinian struggle over the past 50 years and focus on specific elements of life under occupation. Personal testimonies remind us of the real and individual struggles that our people face every day. And a list of international figures who have stood up and supported our just cause reminds us that we are not alone.
One day, these national commemorations will be nothing more than the solemn marking of a time gone by. One day, we will celebrate independence and peace. Until then, we remain steadfast – as Palestinians and as friends of Palestine. It is my honor and privilege to introduce this edition of This Week in Palestine.
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