Palestine

As Written by: MICHELLE BRIGNONE, WOW Intern in Geneva UN

The little girl was confident and self assured, speaking quickly as she explained her drawing. This was her house with flames coming out of it, here was her mother with the missile that killed her pointing at her head as she held the little girls hand. Over there was her father and brothers, each with a missile pointing at their heads.  In front of the house were the tanks and the trees the soldiers had uprooted. Behind the house were more soldiers and tanks; overhead was a couple of planes, dropping more missiles.  The neighbors were all on the ground, laying in pools of blood. She explains the drawing very matter of factly, without emotion, oblivious to the large gauze bandage covering her for-head and part of one eye; she is maybe 10 years old and the only member of her friends and family to survive the attack. She lives in Gaza.

Today, the United Nations Human Rights Conference turned its eye on the Palestinian territories. Richard Falk, the Special Rapporteur for human rights in Palestine, presented his report. Unable to actually enter Gaza due to the Israeli blockade, he addressed his report and remarks to the issues he was able to verify and from credible reports about areas off limits to him during his visit.

Israel has unlawfully occupied the Palestinian territories of East Jerusalem, Gaza and the Golan Heights since 1967. They have escalated the building of Jewish settlements in occupied territories, demolishing Palestinian homes and religious sites in the process. While they have returned Gaza to the Palestinians, they have blockaded them in, allowing very few to cross the border in either direction. Israel is in the process of constructing a wall, separating Jewish and Palestinian settlements, effectively walling off Palestinians from access to infrastructure and services (such as highways, trains, water etc).

Mr. Falk noted that the “continued building by Israel in occupied lands and the systematic killing or forced removal of Palestinian families from their homes is akin to ethnic cleansing.” Because Israel has banned exports and is severely limiting imports, Gaza has an unemployment rate of 45% and the citizens live in abject poverty among piles of rubble as the Israeli strikes have left very few buildings in tact. Israel even blocked a flotilla of humanitarian aid headed for Gaza amid worldwide outrage. The systematic eviction, beating and murder of Palestinians, and the continued exploitation of their land and resources by the Israeli’s, Mr. Falk maintains, constitutes the worst forms of colonialism, apartheid and ethnic cleansing.

With the obvious exception of the United States, who staunchly supports Israel, every other country weighed in, in favor of the human rights of the Palestinians and their right to self determination. All lamented the violence, perpetuated by both sides and urged an end to hostilities. All condemned the recent killing of an Israeli family as well as the devastation suffered by Gaza at the hands of Israel. The torching of Mosques and the killing of Palestinian families was also strongly condemned by the international community. Most were saddened to learn of the destruction of the historic Shepard’s Inn hotel in East Jerusalem and the continual illegal uprooting of olive trees planted there. All agreed that the continued excavation under Muslim and Christian holy sites must end as well.

No one denies the fact that Israel has a right to protect itself but, as the ambassador from Turkey pointed out, “If Israel is serious about the Palestinians having a state of their own and living side by side with them in Peace, they should start acting like it.”

All but the United States voiced the need for an independent state of Palestine with it’s capitol in East Jerusalem.

After nearly 2000 years of wandering from place to place, frequently being hunted and discriminated against because of their religion, I understand the need and desire of the Jews to have a homeland. But, after denying entry to many Jews during World War II, the guilty western states, had no right to give away the Palestinian homeland, it was not ours to give. The Palestinians had occupied that land for centuries. We would have fought to the bitter end if a bunch of countries got together and decided to give the Eastern seaboard away to someone else to have as their homeland without our permission, just as the Palestinians are doing. If someone came to our home and said their ancestors used to live there and they wanted the house back, we would call the police and have them removed. Why does Israel and the United States stubbornly refuse to recognize the rights of the Palestinian people? Why, in the United States, do we only hear about what terrible things the Palestinians are doing but never what the Israeli’s are doing?

The only comment the United States would give, was in defense of the good job, Israel is doing, investigating its own human rights abuses. With all due respect to our ambassador, that is like suggesting that the Nazi’s were competent enough to investigate their own human rights abuses. Ethnic cleansing is ethnic cleansing.

Will the little girl who lost her family get to tell her story? That depends on you. Gazastrophe – the independent documentary made by Samir Abdallah and Kheridine Mabrouk, detailing her account and other atrocities of the last Israeli strike on Gaza, was supposed to be shown in a special screening here in Geneva. The theater owner cancelled at the last moment due to extreme pressure from the Jewish community. They cannot get the film shown in the United States at all. The film makers have been beaten and abused as they have tried to get their film shown in country after country, but they will not give up. As concerned citizens, we need to search out this movie, demand to see it. We are supposed to live in a country with freedom of speech, yet these filmmakers are being prevented from speaking.

Does Israel deserve a homeland? Yes, but so do the Palestinians. Does each side want to live in peace and safety, able to practice their religion and cultural customs free from the fear of persecution? I think so, so why can’t they find common ground and find a solution to the problem?

Fear and hatred; we fear what we do not know or understand. We hate what we have been taught to hate. We are not born this way, we have to be socialized and taught, just as the South Pacific song says, ‘…you’ve got to be taught to hate and fear… to be afraid of people whose eyes are oddly made and people whose skin is a different shade…to hate all the people your relatives hate, you’ve got  to be carefully taught.’ Only when mothers and fathers, teachers and preachers teach their children, students and congregations hatred and discrimination are unacceptable and that we are all children of God and all of worth will the attitudes and practices of hatred and discrimination end.