Friday, March 5, 2004

Israel-Palestine, Tel Aviv, NOT IN OUR NAME! - a Critical Mass against the apartheid wall 05/03/04

About 20 people - anarchists and others did a whistling mini critical mass in downtown Tel Aviv. Half of us where on wheels with various placards and half on feet - distributing leaflets on the route - which at its end we joined the Friday vigil of women in black. The leaflet:
Not in our name! Not from our money! - How much this occupation cost us?
From October 2000 till the end of January 2004 were killed 2,376 Palestinians amongst them 445 minors, and 600 Israelis amongst them 74 minors.
In the last 3 years more than 500 kids below age 18 were killed in the region. The violent Israeli occupation, the illegal settlers project (paid for by the Israeli government from the taxes), and the atrocities against the civil population in the occupied Palestinian territories, brought about harm to the [Israeli] civilian society within the Green Line [1967 borders]. The harsh conditions cause despair, frustration, and to taking extreme steps.

The Israeli government found a "solution": Building a twisting wall of 8 meters and barbed wired fence supposedly partition between the Palestinian and Israeli populations, but in reality the fence not just separate between us and our neighbors... The fence, which is more than double in length than the Green Line and been built deep in the occupied territories, separate many villages from the near-by towns and other villages and separate also between the villagers and hospitals, children from their schools, and between the villagers and their fields and work places.

Within the green line the building of the wall [because the taxes money is wasted on the wall] also separate between old people and appropriate care, between children and food and proper education, and between us and our security... because of "budget deficit". More than all, The wall separate between us and peace, justice and security.

Lack of budget??
Third of Israel children are below the poverty line. more than half a million people are hungry. More than 13% of the population of Gaza strip suffer from malnutrition. More than 50% unemployment among the Palestinian population of the West bank and Gaza strip.

The cost of the separation wall is about 2.2 million US$ for kilometer- about 1.4 milliard dollars for the whole fence. Every shekel for the building of the fence and the settlement means one shekel less for food, education, health care and development. THE FENCE IS NOT SECURITY! it is aimed to annex territory and expanding the settlement project! NOT IN OUR NAME!
We demand live with dignity and security - for us and for our Palestinian neighbors!

It is important to stress that there is a continuos nonviolent of Palestinian people against the occupation and the prolonged lack of justice. We have to cooperate with them in the struggle against the atrocities WITHOUT HARMING THE INNOCENTS and with no walls! Just in the last week, in the village Bidu, Israeli soldiers killed 4 demonstrators and tens were wounded when Israeli-Palestinan joint protest activity against the building of the wall on their land!

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