Toronto: March 28-30, 2008 saw the historic creation
of a new Canadian organization -- *Independent Jewish
Voices. This organization was established to offer a
progressive alternative to the Zionist lobbying of the
Canadian Jewish Congress, B'nai Brith and Canada
Israel Committee. It was a honour to be invited to
the founding conference.
of a new Canadian organization -- *Independent Jewish
Voices. This organization was established to offer a
progressive alternative to the Zionist lobbying of the
Canadian Jewish Congress, B'nai Brith and Canada
Israel Committee. It was a honour to be invited to
the founding conference.
Many congratulations to Diana Ralph
and her team for their initiative and phenomenal
organizational and outreach abilities.
and her team for their initiative and phenomenal
organizational and outreach abilities.
Enclosed in this posting please find related
documents.
documents.
Susan.
(*I think the new name is Independent Jewish Voices but
you may also know the founders as the Alliance of
Concerned Jewish Canadians ACJC. Approximately
18 Jewish Canadian organizations plus solidarity
organizations participated in the conference. )
you may also know the founders as the Alliance of
Concerned Jewish Canadians ACJC. Approximately
18 Jewish Canadian organizations plus solidarity
organizations participated in the conference. )
A Time to Speak Out:
Independent Jewish Voices
Independent Jewish Voices
We are a group of Jews in Canada from diverse
backgrounds, occupations and affiliations who
have in common a strong commitment to social
justice and universal human rights. We come
together in the belief that the broad spectrum
of opinion among the Jewish population of
this country is not reflected by those
institutions which claim authority to
represent the Jewish community as a whole.
We further believe that individuals and groups within
all communities should feel free to express their views
on any issue of public concern without incurring
accusations of disloyalty.
backgrounds, occupations and affiliations who
have in common a strong commitment to social
justice and universal human rights. We come
together in the belief that the broad spectrum
of opinion among the Jewish population of
this country is not reflected by those
institutions which claim authority to
represent the Jewish community as a whole.
We further believe that individuals and groups within
all communities should feel free to express their views
on any issue of public concern without incurring
accusations of disloyalty.
We have therefore resolved to promote the
expression of alternative Jewish voices, particularly
with respect to the grave situation in the Middle East,
which threatens the future of both Israelis and
Palestinians as well as the stability of the whole region.
We are guided by the following principles:
expression of alternative Jewish voices, particularly
with respect to the grave situation in the Middle East,
which threatens the future of both Israelis and
Palestinians as well as the stability of the whole region.
We are guided by the following principles:
1. Human rights are universal and indivisible and
should be upheld without exception. This is as
applicable in Israel and the occupied Palestinian
territories as it is elsewhere.
should be upheld without exception. This is as
applicable in Israel and the occupied Palestinian
territories as it is elsewhere.
2. Palestinians and Israelis alike have the right to
peaceful and secure lives.
peaceful and secure lives.
3. Peace and stability require the willingness of all
parties to the conflict to comply with international law.
parties to the conflict to comply with international law.
4. There is no justification for any form of racism, including anti-Semitism, anti-Arab racism or Islamophobia, in any circumstance.
5. The battle against anti-Semitism is vital, and it is
undermined whenever opposition to Israeli government
policies is automatically branded as anti-Semitic.
undermined whenever opposition to Israeli government
policies is automatically branded as anti-Semitic.
These principles are contradicted when those who
claim to speak on behalf of Jews in Canada and
other countries consistently put support for the
policies of an occupying power above the
human rights of an occupied people.
The Palestinian inhabitants of the West Bank and Gaza
Strip face appalling living conditions with desperately
little hope for the future. We declare our support for
a properly negotiated peace between the Israeli
and Palestinian people, and we oppose any
attempt by the Israeli government to impose
its own solutions on the Palestinians.
claim to speak on behalf of Jews in Canada and
other countries consistently put support for the
policies of an occupying power above the
human rights of an occupied people.
The Palestinian inhabitants of the West Bank and Gaza
Strip face appalling living conditions with desperately
little hope for the future. We declare our support for
a properly negotiated peace between the Israeli
and Palestinian people, and we oppose any
attempt by the Israeli government to impose
its own solutions on the Palestinians.
It is imperative and urgent that independent Jewish
voices find a coherent and consistent way of asserting
themselves on these and other issues of concern.
We hereby reclaim the tradition of Jewish
support for universal freedoms, human rights
and social justice. The lessons we have learned
from our own history compel us to speak out. We
therefore commit ourselves to make public our views
on a continuing basis and invite other concerned Jews
to join and support us.
voices find a coherent and consistent way of asserting
themselves on these and other issues of concern.
We hereby reclaim the tradition of Jewish
support for universal freedoms, human rights
and social justice. The lessons we have learned
from our own history compel us to speak out. We
therefore commit ourselves to make public our views
on a continuing basis and invite other concerned Jews
to join and support us.
Statement adopted by the
Alliance of Concerned
Jewish Canadians
Alliance of Concerned
Jewish Canadians
at its organizational conference in Toronto,
March 30, 2008.
March 30, 2008.
"NO TIME TO CELEBRATE:
Jews Remember the Nakba"
Jews Remember the Nakba"
This May, Israel will mark 60 years of statehood.
In cities across the U.S. and Canada, established
Jewish organizations will sponsor celebrations
of "Israeli Independence Day". Meanwhile,
Palestinians around the world will mourn 60 years
since the Nakba – Arabic for "catastrophe" –
of 1948. Sixty years ago, Zionist militias
destroyed over 500 Palestinian villages and
made more than 800,000 Palestinian people
refugees in order to create a Jewish state in
a land where the majority was not Jewish. This
does not deserve to be celebrated.
In cities across the U.S. and Canada, established
Jewish organizations will sponsor celebrations
of "Israeli Independence Day". Meanwhile,
Palestinians around the world will mourn 60 years
since the Nakba – Arabic for "catastrophe" –
of 1948. Sixty years ago, Zionist militias
destroyed over 500 Palestinian villages and
made more than 800,000 Palestinian people
refugees in order to create a Jewish state in
a land where the majority was not Jewish. This
does not deserve to be celebrated.
Today the Palestinian Nakba continues. In order to
maintain Israel's artificial Jewish majority, the
Israeli government has continued campaigns of
ongoing displacement, violence, and occupation.
Inside of the 1948 borders of Israel, Palestinian
citizens are denied equal rights to Jews under
the law. And Palestinians in Gaza, the West
Bank, and East Jerusalem are denied access to
land, water, healthcare, and other basic resources.
Palestinians throughout historic Palestine
experience international isolation, economic
devastation aided by the erection of a
730-kilometer Wall, and continued closures and
invasions including the current horrific siege of
Gaza. And today there are more than 6 million
Palestinian refugees around the world, all of
whom are denied their internationally recognized
Right of Return to their homes and land. Meanwhile,
we are invited to go and live on that same land simply
because we are Jewish. We renounce this "right" to
"return" given to us by Israeli law.
maintain Israel's artificial Jewish majority, the
Israeli government has continued campaigns of
ongoing displacement, violence, and occupation.
Inside of the 1948 borders of Israel, Palestinian
citizens are denied equal rights to Jews under
the law. And Palestinians in Gaza, the West
Bank, and East Jerusalem are denied access to
land, water, healthcare, and other basic resources.
Palestinians throughout historic Palestine
experience international isolation, economic
devastation aided by the erection of a
730-kilometer Wall, and continued closures and
invasions including the current horrific siege of
Gaza. And today there are more than 6 million
Palestinian refugees around the world, all of
whom are denied their internationally recognized
Right of Return to their homes and land. Meanwhile,
we are invited to go and live on that same land simply
because we are Jewish. We renounce this "right" to
"return" given to us by Israeli law.
In addition to 60 years of occupation and dispossession,
this anniversary marks decades of Palestinian resistance
to Israel's violence. With this statement, we support
their struggle, which is so often ignored or vilified in
the U.S. media.
this anniversary marks decades of Palestinian resistance
to Israel's violence. With this statement, we support
their struggle, which is so often ignored or vilified in
the U.S. media.
As Jews committed to justice, we imagine an
"independence" that does not depend on an
ethnically or religiously exclusive state or on the
displacement of indigenous people. As North
American Jews, we refuse to celebrate the ongoing
colonization and dispossession of Palestinian lives
and communities funded by U.S. foreign aid. There
has never been Jewish consensus around Israel:
not in 1897, not in 1948, and not today. We
reject the notion that we have been chosen to
displace others. We support Palestinian people's
right to return, individually and collectively, to the
homes they lost in 1948 and in the violent decades
since then.
"independence" that does not depend on an
ethnically or religiously exclusive state or on the
displacement of indigenous people. As North
American Jews, we refuse to celebrate the ongoing
colonization and dispossession of Palestinian lives
and communities funded by U.S. foreign aid. There
has never been Jewish consensus around Israel:
not in 1897, not in 1948, and not today. We
reject the notion that we have been chosen to
displace others. We support Palestinian people's
right to return, individually and collectively, to the
homes they lost in 1948 and in the violent decades
since then.
In response to these historical events and a call
from Palestine to mark their significance, we
refuse to celebrate "Israel 60". We will take
actions to make our shared position clear and
visible, in cities across the U.S. and Canada.
from Palestine to mark their significance, we
refuse to celebrate "Israel 60". We will take
actions to make our shared position clear and
visible, in cities across the U.S. and Canada.
Statement by Diana Ralph, Ph.D.
- representing
- representing
the Alliance of Concerned
Jewish Canadians
Jewish Canadians
and Not In Our Name .
613-321-2765, dianar@magma.ca
March 9, 2008
Each Shabbat, when I go to my synagogue,
I join in prayers affirming our obligations, as
Jews, to "perform acts of love and kindness,"
to "welcome the stranger," and to "make peace
when there is strife." Because of the Holocaust,
I, like many other Jews have vowed that I will work
to assure that "never again" will any peoples,
Jewish or otherwise, be subjected to human
rights abuses and genocide.
I join in prayers affirming our obligations, as
Jews, to "perform acts of love and kindness,"
to "welcome the stranger," and to "make peace
when there is strife." Because of the Holocaust,
I, like many other Jews have vowed that I will work
to assure that "never again" will any peoples,
Jewish or otherwise, be subjected to human
rights abuses and genocide.
Today, I join many other Jews across Canada
and the world, who are revolted and ashamed by
what many consider the Israeli government's
atrocities, war crimes, and violations of
international law against
Palestinian people.
and the world, who are revolted and ashamed by
what many consider the Israeli government's
atrocities, war crimes, and violations of
international law against
Palestinian people.
Israel has condemned the people of Gaza, in
particular, to collective punishment for the "crime"
of legally electing a government of which Israel
disapproves. The 1.4 million people of Gaza, 59%
of whom are children, are now suffering from severe
shortages of food, potable water, medicine, and
sewage treatment. Almost all Gazans were
self-supporting before the occupation. Now 4 out of
5 starve without food aid; aid which is almost
completely blocked by the siege. Children's growth
is stunted and they are traumatized by sonic booms,
aerial bombing, and targeted assassinations. Israel
recently carried out a 5 day military assault on the
people of Gaza, based on flimsy excuses of "security",
which killed 116 Palestinians, including many civilians
and 25 children.
particular, to collective punishment for the "crime"
of legally electing a government of which Israel
disapproves. The 1.4 million people of Gaza, 59%
of whom are children, are now suffering from severe
shortages of food, potable water, medicine, and
sewage treatment. Almost all Gazans were
self-supporting before the occupation. Now 4 out of
5 starve without food aid; aid which is almost
completely blocked by the siege. Children's growth
is stunted and they are traumatized by sonic booms,
aerial bombing, and targeted assassinations. Israel
recently carried out a 5 day military assault on the
people of Gaza, based on flimsy excuses of "security",
which killed 116 Palestinians, including many civilians
and 25 children.
Now, Israel threatens even more horrors for the
people of Gaza. Last week, in an act of appalling
candor, Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai
threatened to impose what he, himself called a "shoah,"
(a Holocaust) on the people of Gaza. The government
has announced its plans to follow through on the 5 day
military assault with a full-scale ground offensive of
genocidal proportions. Israeli Defence Minister
Ehud Barak is seeking legal permission to "transfer"
Gazan civilians from their homes in northern Gaza to
the already dangerously over-crowded south of Gaza,
and Security Minister Avi Dichter is calling for
Arabs to be moved from Jerusalem to the West Bank.
These constitute illegal ethnic cleansing, reminiscent
to the way the Nazis forced European Jews from their
homes into concentration camps. The people of Gaza,
who constitute half the Palestinian population, already
live imprisoned in a virtual concentration camp.
It is particularly horrific that Israel, which claims to
represent the world's Jews, should perpetrate such
crimes.
people of Gaza. Last week, in an act of appalling
candor, Israeli Deputy Defense Minister Matan Vilnai
threatened to impose what he, himself called a "shoah,"
(a Holocaust) on the people of Gaza. The government
has announced its plans to follow through on the 5 day
military assault with a full-scale ground offensive of
genocidal proportions. Israeli Defence Minister
Ehud Barak is seeking legal permission to "transfer"
Gazan civilians from their homes in northern Gaza to
the already dangerously over-crowded south of Gaza,
and Security Minister Avi Dichter is calling for
Arabs to be moved from Jerusalem to the West Bank.
These constitute illegal ethnic cleansing, reminiscent
to the way the Nazis forced European Jews from their
homes into concentration camps. The people of Gaza,
who constitute half the Palestinian population, already
live imprisoned in a virtual concentration camp.
It is particularly horrific that Israel, which claims to
represent the world's Jews, should perpetrate such
crimes.
The Alliance of Concerned Jewish Canadians
will not allow these acts to be carried out in our
name. These are acts antithetical not just to
international law and human rights, but to Jewish
ethics.
will not allow these acts to be carried out in our
name. These are acts antithetical not just to
international law and human rights, but to Jewish
ethics.
The Alliance of Concerned Jewish Canadians
calls on the Canadian government to:
calls on the Canadian government to:
- Condemn the latest Israel aggression against the Palestinians in Gaza,
- Demand an immediate halt to all Israeli brutal use of military force against the Palestinians which is taking a serious humanitarian toll on civilians,
- Lift the blockade on the Palestinian people and allow all living essentials, food, medicine and energy to enter the territories without any delay.
- Allow an independent international tribunal to enter the Palestinian territories to investigate Israel's war crimes in the Gaza Strip,
- And call upon the international community and Canada in particular to renew the call to the High Contracting Parties of the Fourth Geneva Convention to fulfill their responsibility under Article 1 of the Convention, to ensure that it is respected under all circumstances. We affirm that Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) violations are considered war crimes under Article 147 of the Convention and under its first protocol.
We ask MPs and other elected representatives to join the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and international human rights groups in condemning the Israel government blockade, military assaults, and targeted assassinations.
Monthly report on Israeli violence against Palestinians in March 2008
The National and International Relations Department
at the Palestine Liberation Organization issued a report
on Monday documenting the Israeli violations against the
Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza during March 2008.
at the Palestine Liberation Organization issued a report
on Monday documenting the Israeli violations against the
Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza during March 2008.
According to the report, the Israeli army killed 121
Palestinians during the month of March 2008; among those
killed were six children and one political detainee in Israeli
detention facility who died from the lack of medical care.
Palestinians during the month of March 2008; among those
killed were six children and one political detainee in Israeli
detention facility who died from the lack of medical care.
The report also shows that 470 Palestinians were injured
by Israeli army fire during and among those were 47 children.
by Israeli army fire during and among those were 47 children.
Additionally the report stated that 12 Palestinians died in Gaza after the army prevented them from leaving the Palestinian coastal region for life-saving medical care.
Regarding the daily kidnappings, the report stated that the Israeli army kidnapped 465 Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank in March of 2008 alone, thus the number of Palestinians kidnapped by the Israeli army is currently 11,000 political prisoners.
Regarding the settlement activity, the National and International Relations Department report shows that the Israeli government has intensified settlement activity in the West Bank in addition to inside the city of Jerusalem. Accordingly, the Israeli army demolished 27 Palestinians homes in the West Bank, which includes the city of Jerusalem.
The report also added that 776 dunams (= 194 acres) of Palestinian privately-owned land in the West Bank was illegally annexed by the Israeli government for the purpose of settlement construction.
Palestinian Canadian National Voice - Founding Conference - May 30-June 1, 2008 - Montreal
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