[E-rundbrief] Info 1023 - Israel Gush Shalom supports Gaza-Flottille
Matthias Reichl
info at begegnungszentrum.at
Sa Jun 25 11:12:45 CEST 2011
E-Rundbrief - Info 1023 - Beate Zilversmidt (Gush Shalom, The Other
Israel, Tel Aviv): Peace seekers whose audacity inspires hope. Support
for the Gaza “Freedom Flotilla II - Stay Human”.
Bad Ischl, 25.6.2011
Begegnungszentrum für aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
www.begegnungszentrum.at
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Peace seekers whose audacity inspires hope
Beate Zilversmidt (Gush Shalom, The Other Israel, Tel Aviv)
Blog, 24.6.2011
In Athens a boat is preparing to sail to Gaza. On this boat are a lot
of American friends with whom I corresponded through the years, as
they supported the struggle of the Israeli peace camp against the
occupation and were eager for every bit of information. Now they have
become themselves center stage, and I am the one following from Tel
Aviv their action to break the siege of Gaza.
That they felt they have to do this makes me aware of our failure.
True, we protested the collective punishment of the siege and made
efforts to get truckloads of food and medicines into Gaza. Gush Shalom
at one occasion even succeeded to get the materials actually through.
And there are the good people of 'Other Voice', living in the Qassam's
reach - in Sderot and the kibbutzim surrounding the Gaza Strip - but
nevertheless open to how much more the Palestinians of Gaza suffer and
maintaining contact by phone.
With that all we didn't succeed to change the policy of siege and
though the polls point out that we succeeded to convince our fellow
Israelis of the two-state solution, this did not at all translate into
their voting for political parties which would implement it.
So, now I read in Haaretz that the "celebrated poet and novelist Alice
Walker" will be on the boat and wrote a piece for CNN. Alice Walker! I
know that name. I remember how a few years ago she was among those
who sent money to buy olive saplings when we made a campaign of
replanting uprooted trees. I didn't know that she is well-known.
An email which came today contains all the 36 passengers, and there
are many more whose name is very familiar; some I met in person. The
majority of them are decades-long peace seekers. In their press
release they express disappointment with their own government. The
State department issued this week a "travel advisory" urging
Americans not to participate in the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, reminding
that previous attempts to enter Gaza by sea "have been stopped by
Israeli naval vessels and resulted in the injury, death, arrest, and
deportation of U.S. citizens."
"Apparently, the State Department subscribes to the view that Israel's
anticipated violence against unarmed protesters is an immutable act of
nature," complains Hagit Borer, a professor of Linguistics at the
University of Southern California and, yes, a passenger on the boat.
It is indeed strange, such a "don't travel" advise and warning for the
violence expected of a US ally, the one of the special relationship.
Or perhaps it isn't so strange. After all, these American activists
dare to confront this ally, something which their government doesn't.
The boat is not a very big one, and has a very fitting name: "Audacity
of Hope".
http://beatezilversmidt.blogspot.com/2011/06/peace-seekers-whose-audacity-inspires.html
Matthias Reichl:
P.S. The Austrian ministry for european and foreign affairs
distributed a similar "travel-warning" on their homepage - and have
sent it by letter to us too.
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Matthias Reichl, Pressesprecher/ press speaker,
Begegnungszentrum fuer aktive Gewaltlosigkeit
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