[GushShalom] 'Democratic Occupation' , A-Ram demo report

[Gush Shalom (Israeli Peace Bloc)]

GUSH SHALOM - pob 3322, Tel-Aviv 61033  www.gush-shalom.org/

[] "Let them go to school" - joining the A-Ram protest (a report)
[] Promotion of Palestinian democracy the Israeli way
			~~~
[] "Let them go to school" - Israelis joined A-Ram protest (a report)

[Hebrew versions soon at the site //òáøéú á÷øåá áàúø ]

More then a thousand schoolchildren, boys and girls from 6 to 14, wearing 
their school uniforms and carrying bags, demonstrated today (Monday, 
13.9) at the wall that is being built in a-Ram. The pupils carried 
posters demanding: “Let Us Study!”

150 Israeli activists of Gush Shalom, Ta’ayush, Bat-Shalom, Rabbis for 
Human Rights and others joined the protest. 

Throughout the demonstration, giant cranes continued to lift concrete 
slabs into place, and a strong force of the Border Police was deployed 
along the path of the wall. “They are waiting for one boy to throw a 
stone, in order to attack us with tear gas and rubber-coated bullets, 
like last time,” Uri Avnery remarked. However, the teachers succeeded all 
through the demonstration, with the help of mayor Sirkhan Saleimeh, in 
preventing even one stone being thrown, though the distance between the 
pupils and the Border Policemen was only a few yards. After most of the 
demonstrators had already dispersed, some children threw stones and the 
policemen promptly stormed forward and used tear gas.

Since the Israeli Supreme Court permitted the government to build the 
wall in this particular sector, the wall has been going up at great 
speed. Only a few “holes” remain. When the wall will be finished, it will 
cut the children of a-Ram off from their schools which are located on the 
“Israeli” side of the wall, at a distance of a few dozen meters. Some of 
the schools will have to be closed and their pupils will roam the 
streets, because the remaining schools, already overcrowded, will not be 
able to absorb them. Haaretz reports today that a similar situation 
exists in near-by al-Issawiyeh.

This is only one of the problems caused by the wall, which is cutting off 
a-Ram residents from their businesses and working-places, hospitals, 
universities and even their cemetery.

Photo's soon on the site: www.gush-shalom.org


[] Promotion of Palestinian democracy the Israeli way

[Gush Shalom ad to be published in Ha'aretz, Sept. 15 ]

				Democratic Occupation

The day before yesterday, the Sharon government closed several offices in 
East Jerusalem, accusing them of working for the elections of the 
Palestinian Presidency and Parliament.

According to the Oslo agreements, the Palestinian population of East 
Jerusalem has the right to vote for the institutions of the Palestinian 
Authority, and it did in fact take part in the last elections, under the 
personal supervision of President Jimmy Carter.

This act proves that the Sharon government is determined to prevent 
democratic elections for the Palestinian Authority – elections that are 
anyhow almost impossible under occupation. Sharon will simply remove by 
“targeted eliminations” candidates he does not like and prevent free 
movement of all others.

But Sharon and Bush will continue to prattle on about “promoting 
democracy in the Arab world” and complain about the “undemocratic 
character” of the Palestinian Authority and its elected President, Yasser 
Arafat.

~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-

WELCOME

To the five who protested against the occupation and refused to serve in 
the occupied territories, who where sentenced to one year’s imprisonment 
and who are to be released today, on New Year’s Eve.
~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-
Gush Shalom: 
~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~~-
 
     
# Selected articles from THE OTHER ISRAEL September issue at:
  http://otherisrael.home.igc.org/

# Truth against Truth - opposite views on the history of the conflict
  in 101 steps 

Hebrew / òáøéú
http://www.gush-shalom.org/Docs/Truth_Heb.pdf

English
http://www.gush-shalom.org/Docs/Truth_Eng.pdf


# Boycott List of Settlement Products (newly updated)
  Now also with list of settlements
   
Hebrew / òáøéú
http://gush-shalom.org/Boycott/boycheb.htm

English
http://gush-shalom.org/Boycott/boyceng.htm

--
http://www.gush-shalom.org/ (òáøéú/Hebrew)
http://www.gush-shalom.org/english/index.html (English)
http://www.gush-shalom.org/arabic/index.html (selected articles in Arabic)

with
\\photos of recent actions 
\\the weekly Gush Shalom ad 
\\the columns of Uri Avnery 
\\Gush Shalom's history & action chronicle  
\\position papers & analysis (in "documents")
\\and a lot more

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