Media Reports on Bates Write-in Campaign |
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Jewish Weekly reports on campaign, see it here.As you can see, this campaign has gained some attention, and this is welcomed. In her piece on the website, Ms. Wall includes the charge by the Israeli authorities that ISM abets terrorism. There is no basis in fact for that assertion. This charge is again repeated by a letter writer to Jewish Weekly, and you can see his letter here. I would like to address that issue now.
Response to allegations of "abetting terrorism"First, a copy of a letter to the editor I sent in to Jewish Weekly, published Jan 16th: Dear Editor, In the Jan 2nd issue of J, there was a letter regarding that claims that the International Solidarity Movement (ISM) supports terrorism. There is no basis in fact for that assertion. I would encourage readers to read the full article referenced by Mr. Gertz. [see it here] It is a plea to consider the power of a non-violent resistance to a brutal occupation. It is the Israeli military that admits to shooting ISM volunteer Tom Hurndall in cold blood, leaving him brain-dead. And more recently, to shooting Israeli peace activist Gil Na'amati with live ammunition. And now Kate Raphael, a Jewish activist from Berkeley, faces deportation, who was arrested while “armed” only with a video camera. They were not "human shields" but instead act as witnesses to occupation. It must anger the authorities greatly to know that despite running over us with bulldozers, shooting us, deporting us and slandering us that we still come, that we still stand for human rights, for the possibility of peace and justice. We simply refuse to give up hope. ************************* Further facts to consider: The false claims of the Israeli authorities, taken together, amount to harassment of human rights activists and media. This has been condemned by human rights groups. “We fear that such unsupported allegations are intended to intimidate local and international human rights defenders, and to prevent them from carrying out their daily work,” the organizations said. See this full statement from Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and other groups here. Sadly, the harassment does not end with false allegations, but also includes violence against activists and media. We sadly note the shooting death of James Miller of BBC by the Israeli military as another example, besides the ones mentioned above. Clearly, there is a campaign of killing and intimidating the witnesses. There have been no instances of ISM volunteers doing any violent activity. We do not carry guns, we carry cameras. We do not have bombs, we have cell phones to call media and to negotiate with Israeli authorities. The Israeli authorities have retracted statements that a member of the Palestinian resistance was armed when he was arrested in an ISM office in March of 2003 (it was not known that he what his political affiliation was when he entered the office), yet this story still circulates. Likewise, the authorities tell a story regarding the British men who carried out a bombing in Tel Aviv (April 30, 2003), and saying that somehow the International Solidarity Movement facilitated their act, a charge that is also bogus. ISM activists who came in brief contact with these men did not know of their intentions. Presumably, the Israeli border guards who talked to them and let them into Israel did not know their true intentions either. We can be sure that these men did not announce to the border officials that they were with ISM (which would have been a false statement), as they would have surely been denied entry. For further info, see the full press release regarding the allegation here. |
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