I, a woman, I’m going to Palestine
Non Violent Interposition in Defence of Palestinian Civilians
For the Right to Life, Land and Freedom of the Palestinian people
For Peace between Israelis and Palestinians
The right and the need of Palestinian women, men and children to freely live in justice and peace in a state of their own without suffering the aggression of the Israeli military occupation, directly call to anyone of us.
Their upheaval is the response to the injustice and the violence of Israeli military occupation.
Every day, since September 27th, Palestinians are being killed by an invading army and brutal settlers living in land confiscated from Palestinian municipalities and peasants. Every day guns and rockets are being used. Bombings and tortures are being practised. So far, more than two hundred Palestinians have been killed, among them children, boys, girls, women and men. More than 7,000 people have been wounded, someone will be crippled for ever.
Palestinians demand and call for the presence of UN forces on their territories in order to be defended against the onslaught. Palestinian women’s committees are addressing an appeal to the world to wake it up from its silence while Israeli soldiers are shooting to kill young boys throwing stones.
No country among those which call themselves democratic and civil, and nor the UN, because of the US veto, have listened to this appeal and undertaken effective actions in order to defend the Palestinian people. The powerful are looking on, in compliance, the onslaught of those who claim their right to life, land and freedom.
We, Italian women, who believe in peace, want to answer their appeal and go and see with our very eyes, show our solidarity in the places where basic human rights are being violated.
We are going to Palestine to do what the UN should do but do not want to do : to interpose ourselves peacefully in defence of the helpless and to try to stop violence.
We want to keep on building relationships with women and men, Palestinians and Israelis who work for a just peace: that is, for the recognition of the Palestinian State within the 1967 borders, the coming back of refugees to their homes, the dismantling of Israeli settlements, Jerusalem as a city to share and capital of the two states.
We demand the respect and the defence of international law.
We demand it from Italy, from Europe, from the UN and any country in the world. Israel cannot be beyond any judgement. The implementation of the law is the only possible way for peace in the Middle East. It is the only way to let Palestinians and Israelis finally live in peace.
From Saturday the 2nd of December on and during a week, groups of women will go in turn to Palestine and meet womens’ associations, visit hospitals, villages, bombed places, accompany peasant women under settlers’ threat and pick olives with them, stop at military check points and participate in many other actions.
Women in Black and not only
Tel. +39 06 69950217 fax +39 06 69950200
e-mail : lmorgantini@europarl.eu.int