round-tables at the w.s.f.,news from palestine

international | rights, freedoms and repression | opinion/analysis Monday January 05, 2004 00:55 by caoimhe butterly - IPSC masasa73 at hotmail dot com

mumbai,16-21 jan.,caoimhe butterly

general information on different events at the world social forum,update on situation in nablus

there are a few people from ireland who will be travelling to india to participate in the world social forum, including mary kelly and myself. while there we will be participating and speaking at various seminars,plenaries and round-tables. mary kelly,as posted, will be testifying at the world court on war as a crime which has been organised by a broad coalition of grassroots human rights organisations. the court at this w.s.f. and others that have proceeded it (the concept of a peoples' court has been widely practised around asia,the middle east and central america since the 1980s around such issues as honour killings , the bhopal disaster, and sanctions ), provide a forum in which the personal and political are blended- a process in which the-often silenced- narratives of those affected by warfare in all of it's forms- state-sponsored violence,poverty- are given space to be heard and validated.
this process, a re-evaluation and challenging of the dominant narrative within the mainstream human rights' "industry" is educative,therapeutic and empowering for all those involved.
i will be participating in the court and will speak at a round-table "u.s. hegemony and the arab street" on the 18th and at a seminar about international accompianment (both the positive and negative things it brings to communities) in palestine on the 20th.from the w.s.f. i'll be travelling around india and kashmir for a month, giving talks and public meetings about palestine to indian activist groups and at universities.
if anyone is interested in talking about what went on at this year's w.s.f. when i get back in mid-feb., we can try to get any irish people, or people based in ireland, together to do a talk-maybe in dublin.
if interested (or with donations towards a very expensive plane ticket!) , contact me on masasa73@hotmail.com (no spam or hate letters please,avi h.)
the old city in nablus and balata refugee camp have been under almost relentless siege since dec.25th. there's a very compelling call to action posted on www.electricintifada.net, by a nablus resident. with house to house searches and demolitions, a large number of people wounded and over ten killed,the use of collective punishments( a suffocating curfew, the blocking of medical relief crews and of humanitarian aid) and what amounts to weapons of mass destruction when unleashed on a captive,mainly civilian, population- tanks,a.p.c.s, apaches,high-velocity bullets, racism,impunity- the situation is desperate.
palestinian blood has been cheapened to the point that this siege is not being covered by the mainstream media.instead the potential of dialogue (between a corrupt,incapable,complicit p.a. and the israeli govt.-that uses their own particularly well-planned form of state-sponsored terrorism as a negotiating tool- the brutalisation and humiliation of palestinians until they capitulate seems to be sharon's bottom line) is making the headlines.this is only a distraction,that serves to normalise an occupation that is illegal and blatantly unjust.

action needs to be taken.contact the media,contact your local politicians,organise direct actions,demos.,vigils,anything- it,very slowly and painfully!- does make a difference.
i was told a quote recently that seems so very applicable to these times(and probably plenty that have proceeded them):
" the psychotic text has overtaken reality. we need therefore to search for the vocabularies of the sane."
finding the language of the sane, of emancipation, that can access people, is the first step. the next is living it. reclaiming the words liberation,dignity ,solidarity and living them. pushing our own comfort and fear levels to the point we can break through the apathy to accompany the millions of women and men on this planet struggling to live with the most basic of rights.
here's hoping that 2004 and the years that follow it bring us all closer to that point. fox t.v. is the alternative,not us!
que siguen luchando.
support the catholic workers, mary kelly and fintan lane - raising one's head above the parapet is an isolating experience; it shouldn't be.
con carino,
caoimhe