The meeting in Jordan of the World Economic Forum (WEF) is a shameful
spectacle of self-described World business and political leaders.
Millions are spent to have good food, smiles and handshakes between elite
Arabs and war criminals like Shimon Peres and Israeli business tycoons.
John Kerry suggested $4 billion investment to improve life under Israeli
occupation via economic peace [pacification]. Israeli industries would
benefit from cheap Palestinian (slave) labor after having taken our
country, our natural resources, and dispossessed most of us. This to
fulfill the biblical message of Let them live; but let them [the
remaining non-Israelites] be hewers of wood and drawers of water unto all
the congregation (Joshua 9:21). As soon as the WEF meeting ended, The
Peres Center for Peace [read for Pacification] hosted a conference
bringing Israeli chambers of commerce and Israeli business leaders with
some (shameless) Palestinian high tech business leaders for normalizing and
business relations (undermining the widespread call for BDS among
Palestinians). Nine years ago, I managed to get an article in the magazine
of the WEF that caused an uproar and a public apology from Klaus Schwab,
the founder of the WEF. My article was titled Boycott Israel and I urge
all to read it to see why boycott is the way to go to achieve real peace
and not normalization and cheeky relationship with an apartheid regime
built on ethnic cleansing: http://qumsiyeh.org/boycottisrael/
Every week I share with you more reasons for such boycotts, divestment and
sanctions (BDS) rather than normalize relations with Israel (which today
was psychologically preparing its population for yet another offensive war
while it continues its colonization activities). In this week s mailing
you find articles and action calls about ongoing ethnic cleansing, ongoing
human rights violations (including especially rights of children), and
ongoing denial of refugee rightsm but also two pieces of good news at the
bottom.
>From Al-Araqib to Susiya: Forced Displacement on Both Sides of the Green
Line. Adalah captures the stories of two Palestinian villages, Al-Araqib
and Susiya -- one in Israel, one in the West Bank -- that share a single
story of struggle against forced displacement.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HtF3rOdSbr4
The Israeli Knesset is about to vote on a bill that would force up to
40,000 Bedouin citizens out of their homes [destroying 45 communities and
taking over 800,000 dunums of the land of the Negerv from its owners] You
have a last chance to stop it by sending a direct message to heads of
coalition factions, calling them to and vote against the government bill
and by writing to your country representatives to urhge them to push Israel
to stop its ethnic cleansing practices. See
http://www.avaaz.org/en/no_to_forced_eviction_of_negev_bedouins/?ktikOab
Huffington Post features discussions with elderly Palestinians on Nakba
http://mondoweiss.net/2013/05/grandmother-discussion-palestinians.html
Our friend Sireen was abducted by Israeli soldiers and we ask you to help
free her. She was active in promoting Palestinian life in the Jordan
valley, an area targeted for more ethnic cleansing. Send messages of
solidarity and support https://www.facebook.com/FreeSireenKhudiri (ENGLISH)
https://www.facebook.com/Welcome.toOo.Palestine (ARAB)
and Write to your politicians and ask them to make representations to the
Israeli government calling for Sireen's release
Palestinian kids swept up in wave of Israeli arrests : According to Defence
for Children International (DCI), an independent non-governmental
organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, since the beginning of this year
there has been a 17 percent increase in arrests of Palestinian children. An
average of 198 children were arrested each month in 2012; that average has
risen to 232 arrests during the first three months of 2013, DCI reported.
http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/05/19/18322645-palestinian-kids-swept-up-in-wave-o
f-israeli-arrests
B Tselem video: Israel bans Gaza children from seeing their fathers
http://youtu.be/W4z8GvtmrCI
US Secretary of State John Kerry visited Ramallah and even shut down whole
streets so that he can eat a Shawerma sandwitch and claim connection with
common people who were not allowed anywhere near him (next time, please try
a Falafel sandwich in a refugee camp not emptied).
http://youtu.be/5RPcD2Av6Lg
there were demonstrations against his visit
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USt9xKAAImE
Two pieces of Good news:
- Palestinian-American Plants Flag on top of Everest, Dedicates Climb to
Political Prisoners
http://palestinechronicle.com/palestinian-american-plants-flag-on-top-of-everest-dedicates
-climb-to-political-prisoners/#.UZ-4N6IweNI
- Two Palestinian titles compete at Cannes (Film Festival)
http://euromedaudiovisuel.net/p.aspx?t=news&mid=21&l=en&did=1380
PS: And on personal good news, four of us were doing some environmental
field work in Wadi Mikhmas (between Ramallah and the Jordan Valley) in a
very hot day and we underestimated the distance and ruggedness of the
valley and ran out of water after 10-15 km hike. Israeli rescue team was
apparently called by a colleague and they came late to the edge of the
valley from the settlement side (refusing to come close to the Arab
village) and spent time chatting and laughing about our situation (I could
hear their loud laughs on the phone). Meanwhile, young Palestinian men of
Mihkmas (and two colleagues who happened to be in Ramallah) came and helped
us. One man (Yousef) brought water first and then guided us up the
cliff-side and we were met half way up the cliff with several young
energetic men for the climb up the steeper part of the valley. Three days
later, we are still sore but recovering from the 14 hour ordeal and are
grateful to these great Mihkmasi Palestinians.
Mazin Qumsiyeh
http://qumsiyeh.org
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