December 25, 2007
GREETINGS WITH TEARS OF RAGE IN OUR EYES
Felicity Arbithnot and David Halpin join me in sending our thoughts at this unhappiest of Christmas-times in Gaza.
Greetings to all the citizens of Gaza, and the many new friends from my short visit last month.
And congratulations to you guys at PCAS for producing this excellent website and providing a channel of communication with the outside world.
As an Englishman I am embarrassed to show you this letter just received from Kim Howells, Minister of State at the Foreign & Commonwealth Office responsible for the Middle East, in reply to questions put to him...
"We share concerns about the situation in Gaza and reports that the Israeli government may reduce services to Gaza. We remain firmly committed to Israel's security, but we are concerned that any measures taken by Israel in response to actions by violent extremists should not cause suffering to innocent Palestinians. Israel has expressed its commitment to avoiding a humanitarian crisis in Gaza and we have called on Israel to ensure that any response is in accordance with international law.
"We have made clear our commitment to helping all Palestinians, including those in Gaza. We believe that the suffering of Palestinians on the one hand and the fear and insecurity felt by many Israeli citizens on the other, need to be addressed together. They can only be addressed through mutual recognition, which will be vital to long-term stability in the area.
"We also share concern about freedom of movement in the OPTs. The continued Israeli closure regime of roadblocks and checkpoints and the impostion of curfews, has a severe impact on almost every Palestinian in the OPTs. This restriction of freedom of movement cannot always be justified on security grounds. Closures restrict access for medical personnel to those who need their services, they make it difficult for children to travel to school and hinder ordinary Palestinians when travelling to work. Israel's closure regime has a devastating effect on the Palestinian economy. Economic hardship and unemployment contribute to the Palestinians' sense of frustration and make a comprehensive settlement more difficult to achieve. We have made our concerns extremely clear to the Israeli Government on political, legal and humanitarian grounds.
"The implementation of the 2005 Agreement on Movement and Access stalled following the election of Hamas in January 2006. We continue to call on both the Israelis and Palestinians to implement the Agreement. We have repeatedly raised our concerns about movement and access with the Government of Israel. We hope that the continuing dialogue between Prime Minister Olmert and President Abbas, and the US-led international peace meeting held on 27 November 2007 in Annapolis will lead to a rapid improvement on movement and access.
"As the Foreign Secretary made clear, in his Parliamentary statement following the Annapolic Conference, we should not lose sight of Gaza, an integral part of a future Palestinian state. Continuing rocket fire into Israel by extremist groups within Gaza is a reminder of the dangers Israel faces. However, the deteriorating humanitarian situation is a real cause of concern. The UN Secretary General spoke forcefully to this issue and we support his efforts to ensure that the interests of the civilian population are not forgotten."
Howells defines the situation in Israel's terms - the victim of 'extremists'. Only Israel's security is important, no-one else's.
Dancing to Israel's tune
It's no surprise that he is a former chairman of Labour Friends of Israel. The Opposition's foreign affairs spokesman is also a Friend of Israel, as is the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. Blair also. Brown, probably. Conservative leader David Cameron, who hopes to be the next prime minister, is not only a Friend of Israel but calls himself a Zionist. At every turn the path to justice is blocked by an Israeli stooge. It is easy to see who shapes British foreign policy. Our leaders are dancing to Israel's tune. They loudly proclaim democracy but reject the Palestinians' democratic choice, preferring to 'do business' in the Holy Land with quislings and racists.
Some of us have written to the Committee on Standards in Public Life asking them to investigate the activities of the Israel lobby and why it has been allowed to penetrate so deeply to the heart of British government when its influence is clearly in conflict with our national interests. The Committee is supposed to uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life, which are....
Selflessness - Holders of public office should act solely in terms of the public interest. They should not do so in order to gain financial or other benefits for themselves, their family or their friends.
Integrity - Holders of public office should not place themselves under any financial or other obligation to outside individuals or organisations that might seek to influence them in the performance of their official duties.
Objectivity - In carrying out public business, including making public appointments, awarding contracts, or recommending individuals for rewards and benefits, holders of public office should make choices on merit.
Accountability - Holders of public office are accountable for their decisions and actions to the public and must submit themselves to whatever scrutiny is appropriate to their office.
Openness - Holders of public office should be as open as possible about all the decisions and actions that they take. They should give reasons for their decisions and restrict information only when the wider public interest clearly demands.
Honesty - Holders of public office have a duty to declare any private interests relating to their public duties and to take steps to resolve any conflicts arising in a way that protects the public interest.
Leadership - Holders of public office should promote and support these principles by leadership and example.
Fine words... but no questions are asked when MPs allow themselves to fall under the influence of a foreign regime like Israel, promote its aims and defend its crimes. The high-sounding Standards Committee is itself infiltrated by Friends of Israel.
How can this happen in our wonderful western democracy? Good question. The history of the Arab-Israel conflict is not taught in our schools and politicians take advantage of our ignorance. Pro-Israel MPs do not declare their interest when speaking or writing on the Middle East. Our democracy has grown fat and flabby and unresponsive: politics has become a dishonourable profession. People are so disillusioned that fewer than half bother to vote.
"The right to life, liberty and security"
We are now in the 60th year of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, yet the Israeli government still does not understand that other people have the same rights. British ministers behave as if they have never read it... especially Article 3 "Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person"; Article 5 "No one shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment"; and Article 13 (1) "Everyone has the right to freedom of movement and residence within the borders of each state" <7i>and (2) "Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country".
You Hamas lads , if you capture Olmert send him home with Article 13 tattooed on his forehead and Articles 3 and 5 stencilled on his backside. Blair also. And Bush when he visits Palestine to meet his puppets.
The continuing siege of Gaza is a chilling reminder of Israel's vicious assault on Lebanon last year, when the west lacked the human decency to say ENOUGH! even while horrific death and destruction was being inflicted on an innocent population.
Once again our leaders turn their back - this time on Israel's unlawful attempts to squeeze the life out of Gaza. While they are busy enjoying their Christmas festivities, indulging themselves extravagantly with fine wines and foods, and jetting off wherever they please to see family and friends, Muslims and Christians trapped in the West Bank and Gaza are terrorised and starved. They care little, it seems, that Gaza is being turned into another Warsaw Ghetto by their 'friends' in Tel Aviv.
But many ordinary people in the UK do care, and we send greetings with tears in our eyes and shame in our hearts for what our politicians have done in our name. We long to see the present evil defeated, and meanwhile think of you all in Gaza.
My friend David Halpin of www.doveanddolphin.co.uk, a surgeon who has visited Gaza seven times and is well known to your brave doctors, wanted to send an Eid al Adha and Christmas message. But he is so distressed by what is happening - the slow genocide - and by what he calls the corrupt and unprincipled leadership in Britain that "for once," he says, "I do not know what to say''.
For justice and reason,
Stuart Littlewood
Dear Friends,
Reading Stuart's words, I was reminded of Ali Ahmed Said's poem, 'A mirror for the twentieth century' - equally relevant in this twenty-first one. He writes of:
'A rock
Breathing with the lungs of a lunatic'.
He has also written:
'The cities break up
The earth is a train of dust
Only love
Knows how to marry this space.'
There is love with you all from across the globe, trying to 'marry this space'. And our tears are also of rage. We will walk with you to the end of the road, in actions, not helplessness.
In solidarity,
Warmest of Season's Greetings,
Felicity Arbuthnot
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