Human Rights Watch report describes Israeli "Separate but unequal" policies toward Palestinians in West Bank

Human Rights Watch has just released a very hard-hitting and factual report on Israel's policies toward Palestinians in the West Bank - particularly those in the part of the West Bank known as "Area C".

Israel/West Bank: Separate and Unequal

Under Discriminatory Policies, Settlers Flourish, Palestinians Suffer

DECEMBER 19, 2010

Palestinian Bedouin school children walk towards their tents on September 15, 2010 at their Bedouin camp outside the Israeli West Bank settlement of Ma'ale Adumin. Israel does not recognize the Bedouins’ property claims and has demolished homes and schools in the area.

© 2010 Getty Images

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Separate and Unequal

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More Human Rights Watch Reporting on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Preview Video Clips that Accompany This Report

Palestinians face systematic discrimination merely because of their race, ethnicity, and national origin, depriving them of electricity, water, schools, and access to roads, while nearby Jewish settlers enjoy all of these state-provided benefits. While Israeli settlements flourish, Palestinians under Israeli control live in a time warp - not just separate, not just unequal, but sometimes even pushed off their lands and out of their homes.

Carroll Bogert, deputy executive director for external relations at Human Rights Watch

(Jerusalem) - Israeli policies in the West Bank harshly discriminate against Palestinian residents, depriving them of basic necessities while providing lavish amenities for Jewish settlements, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The report identifies discriminatory practices that have no legitimate security or other justification and calls on Israel, in addition to abiding by its international legal obligation to withdraw the settlements, to end these violations of Palestinians' rights.

The 166-page report, "Separate and Unequal: Israel's Discriminatory Treatment of Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories," shows that Israel operates a two-tier system for the two populations of the West Bank in the large areas where it exercises exclusive control. The report is based on case studies comparing Israel's starkly different treatment of settlements and next-door Palestinian communities in these areas. It calls on the US and EU member states and on businesses with operations in settlement areas to avoid supporting Israeli settlement policies that are inherently discriminatory and that violate international law.

"Palestinians face systematic discrimination merely because of their race, ethnicity, and national origin, depriving them of electricity, water, schools, and access to roads, while nearby Jewish settlers enjoy all of these state-provided benefits," said Carroll Bogert, deputy executive director for external relations at Human Rights Watch. "While Israeli settlements flourish, Palestinians under Israeli control live in a time warp - not just separate, not just unequal, but sometimes even pushed off their lands and out of their homes."

SEE THE WHOLE REPORT AT:
http://www.hrw.org/en/news/2010/12/18/israelwest-bank-separate-and-unequal

Palestinian Doctor from Gaza sues Israel over loss of his daughters

You will remember that heartbreaking story about Dr. Dr. Izzeldin Abu Elaish, a Gaza doctor whose house was shelled by Israeli tanks during the attack on Gaza last year. Before his very eyes, and while he was talking by phone to an Israeli journalist, his 3 daughters were slaughtered. It was awful.

Dr. A has subsequently come to Canada and practices in Toronto. He has written a very powerful book "I Shall Not Hate" in which he argues that Israelis have to recognize the Palestinians national rights, and Palestinians have to recognize Israeli fears.

He has been claiming compensation for his losses from the Israeli government and wants to set up a foundation in the name of his dead daughters. The Israeli government has refused.

With the help of sympathetic Israeli lawyers he has now launched a court case against the Israeli government.

See 2 clips on the Real News Network.

http://therealnews.com/web3/emailtemplate1.php?thisid=1197

Israeli Military Demolishes Wells and Cisterns in the hilly and arid South Hebron Hill

This is the latest message I have received from a group of Christians (Christian Peacekeepers Team) who monitor Israeli actions in the West Bank. They are located in several areas, including around Hebron, where Israeli settlers, backed by the Israeli military are trying to take over the area, and drive the Palestinians out. When will it end? When will Canada do something?

SOUTH HEBRON HILLS, Occupied West Bank – The Israeli military demolished three water cisterns and two wells in the Khashem Ad Daraj - Hathaleen region on Tuesday, 14th December. The military gave no reason for the destruction of the wells and cisterns.


The demolitions follow a pattern of destruction of Palestinian property by the Israeli military in Area C, as defined by the Oslo Accords.  


Rather than delivering the demolition orders to the residents of the villages in the area, the Israeli army instead left the orders under a stone two days earlier.


The demolished cisterns and wells supplied drinking water to the villagers as well as their sheep and goats. The wells were up to 300 meters deep and over 70 years old, pre-dating the 1967 occupation of the Palestinian Territories. The Israeli military claims that it does not destroy structures created before 1967.


The villages are in the southern West Bank, less than 15 km from the Dead Sea, and are approximately 10 km east of At-Tuwani and 26 km south-east of Hebron/Al-Khalil. This hilly region is arid, and receives an average yearly rainfall of between 150 – 250 mm ^^2


Shepherding of sheep & goats is the primary source of food and income for the villages in this area. The destruction of the water wells & cisterns directly impacts their livelihood.

Kenny's claim of "rising anti-semitism" rebuffed by University testimony

University Administrator and Police Quotes on the supposed danger of rising anti-Semitism

Last year, Canadian University Presidents and Police Chiefs were invited to present testimony to the Canadian Parliamentary Coalition to Combat Antisemitism (CPCCA) about "the growing problem of antisemitism at Canadian Universities" and to "explain to the panel what can be done about it" (CPCCA News Releases, November 12 and 19, 2009). 

However, a lot of the testimony received did not go in the direction that Harper, Kenney and Cotler wanted. They were told quite clearly that there is no evidence to support the claim that Anti-Semitism is on the rise on Canadian campuses, but a real concern about stifling free speech. A report of the CPCCA's findings, scheduled for Spring 2010, has yet to be released, and a follow-up conference of the Inter-parliamentary Coalition for Combating Antisemitism, held in Ottawa in November 2010, was closed to the public.

 See some quotes below

Mr. Robert Steiner, Assistant Vice-President, University of Toronto

[Start: 04:56] There is no evidence of generalized anti-Semitism on U of T’s campuses. There is no evidence of Jewish students being systemically harassed and intimidated on our campuses. There is no evidence that it is dangerous to be a pro-Israeli student, faculty member, or staff member on our campuses—in fact, quite the opposite. [End: 05:13]

Sources

Audio: http://www.cpcca.ca/hearing4a.MP3

Transcript: http://www.cpcca.ca/09.11.24transcript-E.pdf

Prof. Patrick Monahan, Vice-President Academic and Provost, York University

[Start: 11:13] We look for political leaders, such as you, community leaders, and community organizations to show leadership, balance, and moderation in their expression of views, as opposed to taking extreme positions that are not supported by evidence. [End: 11:35] … [Start: 12:44] That is a concern we have. Obviously, I speak as a representative of this university. We would hope that your report and the work of your committee would not in any way contribute further to it. [End: 13:07]

Sources

Audio: http://www.cpcca.ca/hearing4b.MP3

Transcript: http://www.cpcca.ca/09.11.24transcript-E.pdf

Dr. Morton Mendelson, Deputy Provost of Student Life and Learning, McGill University

[Start: 22:49] Accepting and protecting another's right to express a point of view does not preclude our right to express our own opposing opinion. But there is a crucial difference between expressing disagreement and preventing others from presenting their views in the first place. Keeping others from speaking, or otherwise stifling debate or exploration, violates the concept of free speech that is fundamental to a university, and thereby attacks the very core of the academy. [End: 23:21]

Sources

Audio: http://www.cpcca.ca/hearing9a.MP3

Transcript: http://www.cpcca.ca/10.01.25transcript-E.pdf

Dr. Jack Lightstone, President and Vice-Chancellor, Brock University

[Start: 39:52] We can't look into the soul of someone and say, “Your criticism of Israel is really based on your anti-Semitic sentiments.” We can't do that as a people, as a government, or as a society, nor should we. [End: 40:06]

Sources

Audio: http://www.cpcca.ca/hearing9a.MP3

Transcript: http://www.cpcca.ca/10.01.25transcript-E.pdf

Chief Clive Weighill, Chief of Police, Saskatoon Police Service

[Start: 23:43] It would be my opinion that in the city of Saskatoon the probable flash point for racism or discrimination will occur against a first nations or Métis community or the gay and lesbian and transgender community. We have not had any incidents at a Jewish religious function or a Holocaust memorial. [End: 24:01]

Sources

Audio: http://www.cpcca.ca/hearing10d.MP3

Transcript: http://www.cpcca.ca/10.02.08transcript-E.pdf

Sergeant John Burchill, Winnipeg Police Service

[Start: 35:24] Unpopular, distasteful, and even offensive expressions are not criminal. Clearly, an expression must go a long way before it qualifies as hateful in the criminal sense. [End: 35:34]

Sources

Audio: http://www.cpcca.ca/hearing10d.MP3

Transcript: http://www.cpcca.ca/10.02.08transcript-E.pdf

Looking for a concrete way to support Justice in the Middle East?

One thing I have done is join the National Council on Canada Arab Relations (NCCAR).

NCCAR is focused on developing a better understanding of the Arab world - from Morocco to Iraq - in Canada. In the current climate of fear and "islamophobia" NCCAR has a lot of work to do. (Support for Palestinians is only part of its mandate.)

I support NCCAR, and have agreed to be a member of its board.

NCCAR is a Canada-wide organization. To find out more about NCCAR visit its website at http://www.nccar.ca/.

Joining NCCAR costs $100 per year (although you can contribute more if you want).

See President David Comerford's appeal for financial support at http://hosted.vresp.com/374893/ae9072a901/1610001498/4026db219a/

Will Canada ever "criminalise" criticism of Israel?

Friends,

Speaking at the recent Interparliamentary Coalition for Combating Anti-Semitism, Prime Minister Harper claimed that criticizing Israel is the “new form of Anti-Semitism”. This is ridiculous, of course.

But some supporters of Human Rights for Palestinians are worried that if Harper has his way, he would actually make it a crime to criticize Israel. This would effectively silence dissent.

He might want to, but it won’t happen. Why not?

Simple. There are too many Jews, in Canada and elsewhere, who are starting to criticize Israel. Can you imagine Canada putting Avi Lewis, or Gerald Kaplan, or Mordechai Briemberg, or Andrew Cohen or Norman Finckelstein, or Gideon Levy on trial for “anti-Semitism”? How about any of the dozens of other prominent Jews who have become increasingly critical of Israel? What a spectacle that would be!!

Here are 4 references for those who are interested in some of the debate among Jews in Canada and elsewhere.

1. In “Canada-Israel: The other special relationship”, reporter Avi Lewis (son of Stephen Lewis) interviews players in both the Pro Israel and Pro Palestinian camps. Interestingly, there are prominent Jews on both sides.  His excellent short video critically examines how the Canadian government has evolved from being an “honest broker” in the Middle East to “giving up any pretence of neutrality”. By the way, Lewis’s video includes a short clip about the anti-Semitism (real anti-Semitism) he faced as a young Jew growing up in Scarborough in the ‘70’s. This does not stop him from being critical of Israel, however. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oQ2MY58RunM

2. In “A Mideast reading list for Tories willing to learn”, Globe and Mail Columnist Gerald Caplan suggests that the overly ideological tories need to do their homework.  Quoting Avraham Burg’s thought-provoking book, The Holocaust is Over: We Must Rise from its Ashes, Caplan notes that Burg (a former speaker of the Israeli Knesset) accuses his fellow Israelis of deliberately exploiting the Holocaust as an excuse to treat Palestinians deplorably. “Present-day Israel and its ways contribute to the rise in hatred of Jews.” In Burg’s hard words: “Jews and Israelis have become thugs.” According to Caplan, the Harper government needs to hear Mr. Burg’s idealistic perspective as he calls for universal solidarity, a theme with a long and glorious tradition in Jewish history. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/a-mideast-reading-list-for-tories-willing-to-learn/article1688215/

3. In a recent column “Saving the Canadian Jewish Congress”, in the Ottawa Citizen, Andrew Cohen also reminds us about Canada’s recent history of anti-Semitism. (His father was admitted to McGill under a “quota” system, for example, in which the number of Jews admitted to the university was strictly limited.) Cohen argues that there is a role in Canada for an organization like the CJC to defend the rights of Jews in Canada. However, he criticizes a move which is afoot to amalgamate CJC into a larger umbrella organization “The Canadian Council for Israel and Jewish Advocacy”.  This development would tend to subordinate the defense of Jews in Canada – a legitimate activity - to the defense of Israel – a quite different proposition. Not all Canadian Jews agree with this proposal. http://www.ottawacitizen.com/life/Saving+Canadian+Jewish+Congress/3903473/story.html

4. The debate among Jews is also heating up in the United States. In a recent op-ed in the New York Times, Roger Cohen a frequent columnist and also a Jew) attacks the notion that somehow those who criticize Israel are not “real” Jews.  A visit to Israel is a real eye-opener for some idealistic American Jews. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/10/opinion/10iht-edcohen.html?emc=eta1

Of course Israel should not be exposed to unfair criticism. But legitimate criticism continues and continues to grow. It cannot be criminalised and cannot be stopped.