Students for Palestine

In 1835, Thomas Macaulay, a British colonial officer in India, decreed that “We must do our best to form a class who may be interpreters between us and the millions whom we govern, a class of persons Indian in blood and color, but English in taste, in opinions, words and intellect.” European colonial powers often used political outsourcing through a network of native collaborators as a convenient way to subjugate the masses. These collaborators would tame the colonized on behalf of their masters who became sheltered in this way from popular uprisings. However, this process was not always predictable. In 1857, the sepoys, Indian soldiers allied to British rule, revolted against their colonial masters. Britain’s response was fierce. Over 100,000 sepoys and hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed in cold blood. This became known as India’s first struggle for independence; which was finally realized in 1947.

A year later, European settler colonialists established the state of Israel through a pre-mediated campaign of ethnic cleansing of the indigenous Palestinian population. Despite divisions amongst Arab governments and self-interested manipulation of the Palestinian plight, the response was that of opposition and generally in line with the feelings of the Arab masses. As a result, western governments have sought for decades to bully those governments into submission by forcing them to accept the premise of an inherently racist Jewish state in their midst.

As Israel massacres the Palestinians in Gaza once again, one may ask what has happened to this Arab voice. It is no surprise that the world’s super powers condone Israel’s genocidal acts in Gaza. Colonization, slavery, apartheid, genocide and ethnic cleansing have been constants in western colonialist adventures. What has now reached new levels is the open, vocal and active support of Arab governments to the massacre of the Palestinian people. As the Indian sepoys once did, new collaborators have joined the chorus of voices condoning the carnage.

The Rafah border between Gaza and Egypt is a case in point, symbolizing this painful new reality. Hosni Mubarak’s government in Egypt and the unelected Palestinian Authority in Ramallah have actively colluded with Israel, first to unsuccessfully overthrow Hamas from Gaza through force and then to choke the Palestinians in Gaza by denying them basics such as food, clean water, medical treatment and a decent education. While this “holocaust in the making” was occurring, as the UN Special Rapporteur Richard Falk fittingly described it, PA President Mahmoud Abbas and his cronies were collaborating with Israel to deploy forces across the West Bank cities to suppress resistance to the occupation. As US general Keith Dayton put it, these forces were taught that they “are not here to learn how to fight against the Israeli occupation,” but instead to fight “the lawless elements within Palestinian society.”

Not surprisingly, Abbas blamed Hamas for the ongoing bloodshed, claiming that they have refused to renew the truce. The best he could come out with, in the face of growing popular discontent, was a “threat” to discontinue negotiations (read, collaboration) with Israel. Hamas has in fact shown willingness to extend the truce but under the condition of ending the illegal siege. This is tantamount to requesting basic human rights for Palestinians, something Abbas never conditioned in his dealings with Israel.

Israel’s other ally, Egypt, has accused Hamas of barring the wounded from escaping Israel’s attack, conveniently ignoring their own long-term refusal to allow any Palestinians to cross in and out of Rafah. According to the London-based daily al-Quds al-Arabi, the Egyptian Intelligence Minister Omar Suleiman deceived Hamas into believing that Israel would not launch an attack on the Gaza Strip while sending their forces to seal the border in preparation for an Israeli attack. Egyptian forces later opened fire against Palestinians wanting to escape the carnage.

This form of hypocrisy found expression all over the Arab world. In the United Arab Emirates for instance, protests in solidarity with the Palestinians were banned or tightly controlled. The Arab League with its usual incompetence has been remarkably slow in reacting, first delaying their meeting for days and then issuing an insignificant declaration for all parties to cease violence offering no solution to the desperate plight of the Palestinians under siege.

But a more important question is how the Arab masses and people of conscience around the world have reacted. What are their real democratic wishes? If the Arab governments surpassed their own low standards in usurping Palestinian rights, the Arab masses have conversely renewed their determination to reject foreign domination, for every time they are stripped off their dignity; their spirit of resistance to oppression is revitalized. Across the Arab world, there has been a renewed sense of revulsion and determination to stand in solidarity with the Palestinians, uniting their causes with the occupied Iraqis and others suffering under oppressive regimes sponsored by the West.

In a very sober address to the Egyptian people, Secretary General of Hizballah Hassan Nasrallah, stated: “Let the Egyptian people take to the streets in their millions. Can the Egyptian police arrest millions of Egyptians? No!” These words sum up why today, Hamas and Hizballah, have gained more respect and legitimacy in the Arab popular opinion than any of the corrupt Arab regimes. The resistance organizations represent the aspirations of the ordinary people, who want their rights and freedom reinstated, not because they support terrorism or are subhuman, as much of the western media portrays them to be. Israel and its allies are sowing the seeds of more radicalism and greater instability in the Middle East. While powerlessly watching the massacres in Gaza, one cannot discern whether this instability is a means or an end in itself. As for the corrupt Arab regimes, they are left with two choices: either they listen to their citizens or they will have to face continuous revolt by the people. The pages of history have taught us that oppression never existed without provoking revolt for liberation and rights.

Abbas and his minions can learn much from the sepoy mutiny in India and the Ghandian nonviolent struggle for liberation that ensued. Since the Oslo Accords were signed in 1993, the 15 years of collaboration with Israel has yielded more settlements, thousands of house demolitions, kidnappings and massacres — the truth is that the leaders have nothing to show to the people in return. The time has come for the Palestinian factions to unite behind the popular masses, for active and passive legitimization of Israel’s actions to stop and for a return to basics. Resistance to Israel’s occupation can most effectively be done through a nonviolent struggle calling for equal rights to that of their Israeli occupiers under one secular state. It is time that we extend the basic premise the West has insisted upon for themselves: that freedom is non-negotiable.

Ziyaad Lunat is an honorary life member of the London School of Economics (LSE) and an activist for Palestine.

(Ideas for actions below)
(News/Analysis/Opinion/Editorials here)

Israeli bomber and helicopter gunship attacks on the Gaza strip on the morning of Saturday 27th December killed more than 200 people in the first wave of 60 aircraft, and injured hundreds more. Police stations, Khan Younis and Rafah refugee camps, the Gaza City port as well as numerous civilian buildings were all targeted and hit by the Israeli bombers, after being given the go-ahead on Christmas Day by Ehud Olmert, Tzipi Livni and Ehud Barak. The death toll on the third day of the bombing campaign has risen to at least 345, with 1,450 injured.

This latest Israeli atrocity comes after 18 months of the Israeli siege and blockade of Gaza, which has crippled the Gazan economy and caused starvation and malnourishment throughout Gaze. The Israeli blockade has brought to a virtual halt food, fuel, medical supplies and other necessities and prevented UN and medical personnel from entering Gaza. Journalists have been barred by Israel, preventing outside reporting of the situation.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, has said of this siege “This is in direct contravention of international human rights and humanitarian law. It must end now.” Adding that “By function of this blockade, 1.5 million Palestinian men, women and children have been forcibly deprived of their most basic human rights for months.” In December 2008 Israel restricted the average number of trucks into Gaza to less than 5 a day, while in December 2005 more than 500 trucks were able to pass into Gaza. According to UNRWA reports, the daily need for Gaza’s 1.5 million residents is 400-600 truckloads.

The slaughter does not stop there, with the IDF threatening further escalation and that the attacks “will be continued, expanded and intensified as much as required”

The response from Western governments has been silence or at most a call for “restraint” by Israel, while in contrast, the British FCO spokesman called on “militants in the Gaza strip immediately cease rocket attacks on Israel” . Since September 2005, 9 Israelis have been killed by rocket attacks and in the same period at least 1400 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces.

We must do something to stop this now! Grassroots movements have worked before and CAN WORK AGAIN.

The demonstrations, vigils and actions taking place now must be the start of an invigorated and relentless campaign that lasts past the shock and anger. Every action, however small, is an important contribution. Vital to this movement is coordination; both organising effective action locally and building nationally.

Below is a list of things that YOU can do (please contact us with more ideas, if you can):

1. Send this information and ideas for actions to all your contacts.

2. Attend the demonstrations happening around you. For a list of demonstrations/vigils/stunts/actions please visit: http://www.actionpalestine.org/home/demonstrations/

If there is no demonstration/actions happening near you, coordinate with others people/groups to organise one (please, get in touch if you want any advice on this). Send us the information so we can advertise it on the website and our mailing lists.

3. Bring your ideas to the movement. Attend your local palestine group’s organising meeting, and if there is none, organise a meeting for every one who is interested to plan a campaign. This is a has to be a grassroots movement, the more people involved the bigger the potential.

4. Watch the media and contact them to ask them to improve their coverage (Please see below, for a list of media contacts, and tips on what to say)

5. Contact your MP and ask pressingly for urgent action, don’t take any diplomatic answers, this is a life or death matter and they need to know you care!! (Please see below, for ideas and contacts)

6. Call and email your government representatives (Please see below, for contact information for governments officials and sample emails)

7. Donate to Interpal, (they are a charity that do a lot of important work in Gaza) http://www.interpal.org/donate/donate.html

—————————————————–

Media:
Watch the reports on the news, read the reports in the papers and online. Keep an eye out for biased reporting or inadequate coverage on the current events in Gaza and write in, ring in, or fill out online response/feedback forms to make your voice heard to let the media outlets know you will not let biased reporting go unquestioned!

BBC complaint line: 03700 100 222
Complain about the lack of Palestinian voice, and the framing of the story and being a response from Israeli to Palestinian fire!
See here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7801662.stm
and here: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/talking_point/default.stm

More contact information to follow, but the BBC is the most important one to target for now.

MPs and government:
(a sample letter below)
Below is a list of contact details you can use:

1. Write to your MP
You can find your MPs details on this site http://www.writetothem.com/ just enter your postcode.

2. Write to the Labour Party
You can send a message to the Labour Party using this online form
http://www.labour.org.uk/contact

4. British Consulate Jerusalem
00972 02 541 4100

British Embassy Tel Aviv
02 3510 1167 / 03 527 1572

Call them asking what the British government is doing about the attacks on Gaza.

5. Prime Minister - Gordon Brown
Fax PM’s office on +442079250918

6. Foreign Secretary - David Miliband
private.office@fco.gov.uk

Here is a sample letter, please personalise if possible - personalised letters are more effective.

Dear

I am writing to you to urge you to immediately call on Israel to cease its attacks on Gaza. I am horrified to learn that over 200 people have been killed in Gaza in the last few hours and many more will be killed if Israel does not cease its attacks immediately.

I also urge you to call for an urgent meeting of the United Nations Security Council to press for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

The response of the international community in urging Israel to minimise civilian casualties is entirely unacceptable when over 200 people, many of whom are women, children and innocent civilians, have been killed in the past few hours. Israel must be pushed to immediately cease all its attacks.

The international community must accept that it has a moral imperative to bring an end to the violence unfolding in Gaza. The UN Security Council should meet straight away, call for a ceasefire and impose an arms embargo on Israel.

Yours sincerely
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Blow the letter that was sent by several NGOs to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development for human rights conditionalities on Israel. The letter was signed by Action Palestine.

25 September 2008

Re: Israel’s accession to the OECD

Your Excellency Mr. Angel Gurria, (cc. representatives of delegations of all member countries)

We are writing to express our concerns regarding Israel’s accession to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). Israel is not in compliance with the human rights conditionalities that are components of the accession process. The undersigned organisations call upon the OECD, within the framework of Israel’s accession to the OECD, to immediately establish a committee to assess the extent to which Israel has complied with the OECD criteria of respect for human rights, commitment to democracy and adherence to the purposes of the United Nations. We further hope and expect that all countries currently applying for accession to the OECD as well as current members are held to the same high standards.

In the ‘Road Map for the accession of Israel to the OECD Convention’, adopted by the Council at its 1163rd session on 30 November 2007, the Council noted that in order for Israel to accede to the OECD it must demonstrate its commitment to “fundamental values” shared by all OECD members. These include “a commitment to a pluralist democracy based on the rule of law and a respect of human rights, adherence to open and transparent market economy principles and a shared goal of sustainable development.”1

Further the Convention on the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (1960) states that members consider “that economic strength and prosperity are essential for the attainment of the purposes of the United Nations, the preservation of individual liberty and the increase of general well-being.”2

In matters related to its treatment of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and Gaza, as well as concerning a range of racially discriminatory policies, practices and laws concerning Palestinian citizens of Israel and Palestinian refugees, Israel is currently not in compliance with either international human rights law, international humanitarian law, the stated principles of the OECD, or with the criteria set out in the Road Map to Israel’s Accession. Common Article 1 of the Geneva Conventions states that “The High Contracting Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for the present convention in all circumstances.”3 This article requires all States to refrain from the violating the conventions’ provisions and their humanitarian principles. It also requires them to take necessary steps within their power and legal authority to ensure that States that violate international humanitarian law return to compliance with the Geneva Conventions.

1. Commitment to a pluralist democracy

Discrimination - The State of Israel discriminates against ‘non-Jewish’ Palestinian citizens of Israel on the basis of nationality, ethnicity, race and religion and confers preferential treatment on Jewish citizens. In its review of Israel, the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, concluded that the “excessive emphasis upon the State as a ‘Jewish State’ encourages discrimination and accords a second-class status to its non-Jewish citizens”. It further stated, “This discriminatory attitude is apparent in the continuing lower standards of living of Israeli Arabs as a result, inter alia, of higher unemployment rates, restricted access to and participation in trade unions, lack of access to housing, water, electricity and health care and a lower level of education”.4

Land rights - In Israel, 93 percent of land is held for the exclusive use and benefit of the Jewish people by the State (including the Development Authority and Israel Land Administration) and para-state agencies (including the World Zionist Organization and Jewish National Fund). Much of this land has been expropriated and confiscated from Palestinians through laws such as the 1950 Absentee Property Law which has been applied to seize land where its owners are displaced. Palestinian citizens of Israel constitute 20% of the citizens of the State. In July 2007, a draft bill passed its preliminary reading in the Knesset which, if adopted into law, would establish that land belonging to the Jewish National Fund (circa 13% of State lands) could be allocated to Jews only. This issue is still pending but it is believed that the draft bill will be adopted into law in the near future. The UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination has urged Israel to “ensure that State land is allocated without discrimination, direct or indirect, based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin.”5

Family unification - Israel continues arbitrarily to deny Palestinian spouses of Israeli citizens, as well as spouses and family members from a number of other Arab states, from obtaining legal status in Israel due to the enactment of the Citizenship Law. Thousands of Palestinian women who are married to Palestinian citizens of Israel and are mothers of children with Israeli citizenship, are living without civil status and denied their social rights, such as access to health care.6 This law was initially passed as a temporary measure but it has been renewed on numerous occasions thereby nullifying its temporary nature as a measure of emergency scope.

The Arab Bedouin - Around 84,000 indigenous Arab Bedouin citizens in Israel live in villages in the Negev/Naqab which the State refuses to recognize and are absent from state planning documents and maps. These individuals and communities are denied access to basic services such as water, sanitation, health clinics and electricity and are subject to wide-spread forced evictions and home demolitions.7 There are immediate concerns that the State intends to conclude their dispossession by seizing, as a final legal matter, extensive lands which are owned by them and from which they may be displaced.

2. Human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories

In addition to the widespread violations of human rights perpetrated against Palestinian citizens of Israel mentioned above, Israel is systematically violating the rights of Palestinians living in the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT). The International Court of Justice8 and the UN human rights treaty monitoring bodies have repeatedly confirmed that as an Occupying Power Israel is responsible for ensuring the full enjoyment of human rights for residents of the OPT.9 However, Israel still argues that it is not bound by and does not apply international human rights law in the OPT.

Some examples of Israel’s violations in the OPT, which have been widely documented by both United Nations mechanisms and leading human rights NGOs include:

Gaza – Israel maintains effective control over the Gaza Strip. The blockade and sanctions on Gaza have lead to the wide-spread denial of economic, social and cultural rights including the rights to health, education, food, water and sanitation and have been described by the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights as constituting collective punishment.10

Land Confiscation and Settlements – Israel occupies the entire surface of the West Bank (some 5,860 km2) and has confiscated or de facto annexed more 3,350 km2.11 The lands confiscated from Palestinians are turned over to the exclusive use of Jewish settlers and for building and expanding the Jewish-only settlements and related infrastructure.12 Since the Annapolis summit, Israeli tenders and plans announced for construction in the OPT amount to almost 30,000 Jewish-only housing units.13 By March 2008, construction was under way in over 100 settlements and 58 “outposts”, including 16 new outposts/settlements. In occupied East Jerusalem alone, new plans and tenders have been announced for construction of almost 14,000 housing units since December 2007.14 This reality of illegal settlements in the OPT has led to the confiscation and control of Palestinian land and the denial of basic human rights of the Palestinian people, first of all their right to self determination.

Home Demolition – Israel has demolished over 18,000 houses in the OPT between 1967 and 2006.15 In the first quarter of 2008 alone, Israel demolished over 120 Palestinian-owned structures in the Jordan Valley and South Hebron. These demolitions included 61 residential structures and led to the displacement of 435 Palestinians.16 Between January 2000 and September 2007, more than 1,600 Palestinian buildings were demolished in Area C, whereas over 3,000 houses are at risk of demolition.17 In the Gaza Strip 7,675 homes have been destroyed since the start of the intifada (September 2000) to date, affecting 72,533 people.18 Most of those affected have not been provided alternative houses as Israel prevents construction material from entering Gaza to enable local and international humanitarian agencies to complete construction projects for them.

Ongoing Internal Forcible Displacement – As a result of the land confiscation, demolitions and construction of the Wall more than 115,000 people are estimated to have been internally displaced during the last four decades of Israel’s occupation in the 1967 Palestinian territories.19

The Closure Regime- Residents of the West Bank are denied freedom of movement through the construction of the Wall, roadblocks, checkpoints (678 as of April 2008) and bypass roads which exclusively serve the illegal settlements. Restrictions on movement have negatively affected Palestinians’ enjoyment of a wide range of human rights, such as the right to education, work and health.20

Torture and Ill-treatment - Palestinians held in Israeli jails and other places of detention are subject to torture and other ill-treatment and this practice has not been prohibited by the highest judicial body in Israel.21 Moreover, in violation of international humanitarian law, Palestinians arrested in the OPT are held in prisons located outside of the OPT preventing them from receiving adequate legal representation and family visits.

Refugees - For six decades, the State of Israel has prevented the Palestinian refugees from returning to their homes of origin. Today, there are approximately 7 million Palestinian refugees. The Palestinian refugee situation constitutes the largest and longest unresolved refugee case in the world.

Children- Palestinian children in particular are suffering from the widespread abuse of their rights. In 2007, 31 per cent of Palestinian child deaths were attributable to Israeli military activities in Gaza, 23 per cent to Palestinian factional violence in the Gaza Strip, 15 per cent to Israeli military activities in the West Bank, and 7 per cent to the handling of unexploded Israeli military ordnance in the Gaza Strip. At least 345 Palestinian children were injured in the conflict during 2007. About 70 per cent of these injuries were attributable to the Israeli military, 14 per cent to Palestinian factions, 8 per cent to Israeli settlers and 7 per cent to UXO (unexploded ordnance).22 During 2007, the Israeli military arrested and detained approximately 700 Palestinian children. At any given time, there were between 310 and 430 Palestinian children held in Israeli prisons or detention/interrogation centres, around 30 of whom were held at some stage in administrative detention without charge or trial. Reportedly, some children held in Israeli detention have been subject to torture.23 Schools have also been subjected to attacks by Israeli military and settlers.

3. Ensuring the attainment of the purposes of the United Nations

The UN Charter, in Article 1, sets out the four main purposes of the UN which are; to maintain international peace and security; to develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples; to achieve international cooperation and promote and encourage respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion; and to be a centre for harmonizing the actions of nations.24 All of these provisions are systematically violated by the State of Israel as a result of its human rights violations listed above.

Israel continues to ignore the pronouncements of UN human rights treaty monitoring bodies some of which are mentioned above. It further has failed to implement a number of UN General Assembly and Security Council Resolutions relating to human rights including:

General Assembly Resolution 194, 11 December 1948

“Resolves that the refugees wishing to return to their homes and live at peace with their neighbours should be permitted to do so at the earliest practicable date, and that compensation should be paid for the property of those choosing not to return and for loss of or damage to property, which under the principles of international law or in equity, should be made good by the Governments or authorities responsible.”25

Security Council Resolution 242, 22 November 1967

Calls for the “withdrawal of Israel armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict” as well as the “termination of all claims or states of belligerency and respect for and acknowledgment of the sovereignty, territorial integrity and political independence of every State in the area and their right to live in peace within secure and recognized boundaries free from threats or acts of force”.26

General Assembly Resolution 3236, 22 November 1974

“1. Reaffirms the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people in Palestine, including:

(a) The right to self-determination without external interference;

(b) The right to national independence and sovereignty;”27

General Assembly Resolution 146, 4 March 2008

“Reaffirms the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination, including the right to their independent State of Palestine”28

The Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice, 9 July 2004

Israel has further failed to act in accordance with the July 2004 Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice on the legal consequences of the construction of the wall being built by Israel in the occupied Palestinian territory which states that Israel’s construction of the wall in the occupied Palestinian territories, including in an around East Jerusalem, is contrary to international law and Israel is obliged to cease all construction, to dismantle the wall and to make reparation for all damage caused by the construction of the wall.29

The undersigned organisations therefore call upon the OECD, within the framework of Israel’s accession to the OECD, to immediately establish a committee to assess the extent to which Israel has complied with the OECD criteria of respect for human rights, commitment to democracy and adherence to the purposes of the United Nations. We further hope and expect that all countries currently applying for accession to the OECD as well as current members are held to the same high standards.

We look forward to your response and an opportunity to meaningfully engage with you on these issues.

With highest regards,

Salih Booker
Executive Director
Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE)
83 Rue de Montbrillant, 1202 Geneva, Switzerland
www.cohre.org

Shawan Jabarin
General Director
Al-Haq
Ramallah Main Street, PO Box 1413, West Bank, occupied Palestinian territory
www.alhaq.org

Hadas Ziv
Director
Physicians for Human Rights- Israel (PHR-IL)
Dror st.9 Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel
www.phr.org.il

Ingrid Jaradat Gassner
Director
Badil Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights
PO Box 728, Bethlehem, occupied Palestinian territory
www.badil.org

Fanny-Michaela Reisin
President
(Internationale Liga für Menschenrechte)
International League for Human Rights - German Section of AEDH and FIDH
Haus der Demokratie und Menschenrechte Greifswalder Str.4, D-10405 Berlin, Germany
www.ilmr.org
George Abu Al-Zulof

General Director
Defense for Children International –Palestine Section (DCI/PS)
PO Box 55201, Jerusalem, occupied Palestinian territory
www.dci-pal.org

Joseph Schechla
Coordinator
Habitat International Coalition- Housing and Land Rights Network
11 Tiba Street, 2nd Floor, Muhandisin, Giza, Egypt
www.hlrn.org
Hassan Jabareen

General Director
Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel
94 Yaffa Street, PO Box 8921, Haifa 31090, “Israel”
www.adalah.org

Issam Younis
Director
Al Mezan Center for Human Rights-Gaza
Gaza City, The Gaza Strip, PO Box. 5270, occupied Palestinian territory
www.mezan.org

Kamel Jendoubi
President
Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network (EMHRN)
Vestergade 16, 2nd Floor, DK-1456 Copenhagen K, Denmark
www.euromedrights.net

Mohammed Zeidan
General Director
Arab Association for Human Rights -HRA
PO Box 215, Nazareth 16101, Israel
www.arabhra.org

Mr. Bo Paulsson
Secretary General
The Swedish Organization for Individual Relief/ Individuell Människohjälp
Box 45, S-221 00 LUND, Sweden
www.manniskohjalp.se

Luc Claessens
Director
Broederlijk Delen
Huidevettersstraat 165, 1000 Brussels, Belguim
www.broederlijkdelen.be

Raji Sourani
Director
Palestinian Centre for Human Rights
Omar El Mukhtar Street, PO Box 1328, Gaza City, occupied Palestinian territory
www.pchrgaza.org

Daniel Machover
Chair
Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights
C/O Smita Shah, Garden Court Chambers, 57-60 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, London WC24 3LS, UK

Gerhilde Merz
Coordinator of working team “Israel-Palestine”
PAX CHRISTI AUSTRIA
A-4040 Linz, Mengerstraße 23, Austria
www.paxchristi.at

Abraham Weizfeld
Interim Administrative Secretary
Alliance of Concerned Jewish Canadians
68 Duluth Ave. East, Montreal, Quebec H2W 1G8, Canada
www.groups.yahoo.com/group/ACJC2006

John McHugo
Chairman
Liberal Democrat Friends of Palestine
26 Sefton Street, London, UK
www.ldfp.eu

Betty Hunter
General Secretary
Palestine Solidarity Campaign
Box BM PSA, London, WC1N 3XX, UK
www.palestinecampaign.org

Chris Doyle
Director
The Council for Arab-British Understanding (CAABU)
I Gough Square, London, EC4A 3DE, UK
www.caabu.org

Paula Abrams-Hourani
Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East (EJJP-Austria)
Vienna, Austria
www.nahostfriede.at

Anan
Communications Officer
Action Palestine
Action Palestine, University of Manchester Students Union, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13 9PR, UK
www.actionpalestine.org