PSNA Newsletter No 105 - October 3 2023
3 Whiringa-ā-nuku 2023
3 October 2023
Newsletter No 105
Kia ora koutou,
Local bodies – a call to action on Palestine!
Last week PACC and PSNA wrote to all Mayors, Chair and Councillors of our local bodies around the country asking them to apply United Nations Security Council resolution 2334 in their procurement policies.
Here is the letter we sent:
Kia ora koutou,
Request for to apply UNSC2334 in its policies and practices
Background
In December 2016 the United Nations Security Council passed resolution 2334 (UNSC2334) in a 14–0 vote (with the US abstaining).
This resolution was co-sponsored by the New Zealand government – we occupied a seat on the security Council at the time – under National Party leadership with Bill English as Prime Minister and Murray McCully as Foreign Minister.
Through this resolution the United Nations Security Council stated that, in the occupied Palestinian territories, Israeli settlements had “no legal validity” and constituted “a flagrant violation under international law”. It said they were a “major obstacle to the achievement of the two-state solution and a just, lasting and comprehensive peace” in the Middle East.
The full text of UNSC2334 is included as an appendix to this letter.
Current Situation
There has been no progress by the Security Council enforcing UNSC2334 because some states with the power of “veto” have prevented the United Nations putting in place accountabilities for Israel’s refusal to accept UNSC2334.
The current Aotearoa New Zealand government supports UNSC2334, as does the National Party which co-sponsored the resolution.
Why does this matter now?
In December 2022 Israel elected its most extreme ethno-nationalist government ever and as well as stepping up their brutal repression of Palestinians and making clear they will not negotiate with Palestinians on a peace plan or the formation of a Palestinian state, they have said their “top priority” is to push ahead with more illegal Jewish-only settlements on Palestinian land. In the last week of June 2023 Israel’s leaders announced plans to build more than 5,000 additional houses in these illegal settlements on Palestinian land.
Meanwhile the United Nations Human Rights Council has just updated its database of companies complicit in illegal Israeli settlements. The updated database is here in a pdf.
Request to _______ Council
With this background we are asking _________ Council to take steps to implement UNSC2334 and in particular paragraph 5 which states:
5. Calls upon all States, bearing in mind paragraph 1 of this resolution, to distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967;
Implementing this resolution at local authority level means developing policy and practices to distinguish between Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories. It means ensuring the council does not purchase any goods or services provided by Israeli companies or foreign companies which operate in illegal settlements on Palestinian land.
Our proposed draft Resolution
“That the _______ Council declares it will support Aotearoa New Zealand government policy, as expressed through UNSC2334, and will develop its own policy to ensure it distinguishes between goods and services produced by Israel and goods or services produced in illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. In particular the ____________ Council will refuse to purchase goods and services produced in illegal Israeli settlements.”
We are very happy to provide further information to explain the proposed resolution and assist in its implementation.
Some local body councillors may suggest the resolution should be left to the government to implement at a national level. However, leaving this to central government overlooks the dynamic role local government organisations play in developing their own purchasing policies for goods and services and does not take account of the moral and ethical questions that arise in dealing with Israel and its illegal settlements.
We thank you for your consideration of this request and we look forward to hearing from you.
Ngā mihi.
Nā,
Maher Nazal John Minto
Palestinians in Aotearoa Co-ordinating Committee Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa
Something you can do now with just a few clicks…
Gisborne District Council
Find your local body Mayor, Chair and Councillor email details here and copy and paste this message to them in an email.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Kia ora Mayors, Chairs and Councillors,
I’m writing to you as a local citizen asking that you take action in support of the letter sent to you last week by the PACC (Palestinians in Aotearoa Co-ordinating Committee) and the PSNA (Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa)
It is very important the council follows through and takes action wherever we can to support the struggle for human rights. In this case it is the Palestinian struggle and we can all do something simple and meaningful by applying United Nations Security Council resolution 2334 in local body procurement policies. Remember UNSC2334 has bi-partisan support in New Zealand.
The New Zealand government already has procurement rules which take into account human rights issues. Rule 44 for example says the government may exclude a service provider for
“human rights violations by the supplier or in the supplier’s supply chain”
We are asking all local bodies to do the same in relation to companies which are helping build and maintain illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian land. Please refer to last week’s letter (from PACC and PSNA) for more details.
Please get back to me as soon as you are able.
<your name>
Labour Party refuses to recognise Palestine – even after 104 years
After the Labour manifesto released on Sunday implied the next Labour government would recognise Palestine, Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson yesterday confirmed Labour has no such intention.
PSNA put out this media release in response:
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2 October 2023
Labour refuses to recognise Palestine – even after 104 years
PSNA supporters are livid Labour is refusing to recognise the state of Palestine a full 104 years after the first Palestinian calls for an independent state.
“It’s a disgraceful decision, both unprincipled and cowardly” says PSNA National Chair John Minto.
Deputy Prime Minister Grant Robertson confirmed this decision today answering questions here. Scroll through to 18 minutes in.
Q - <indistinct> about the Palestinian Representative in Australia to present his credentials here. That was announced formally
Grant Robertson - There is a formal Foreign Policy part of the manifesto. We're sticking with the long standing Bi-Partisan approach to a 2 state solution in the Middle East and what we are doing is working with the Palestinian representative on closer discussions but that doesn't make a change to a formal recognition. It just means that we open that dialogue up.
Q - So no formal recognition?
GR - Not until there is a state to recognise. But we have long stood for a 2 state solution and what we have said is that we want to have more open and regular dialogue with Palestinian Representatives.
Yesterday Labour implied in their manifesto release that they would recognise the state of Palestine although the wording was unclear and ambiguous. What is clear now is that the slippery wording was deliberately meant to mean all things to all people.
The disingenuous wording in the Labour manifesto says:
Labour is committed to an enduring and just two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, based on the right of Israel to live in peace within secure borders internationally recognised and agreed by the parties, and reflecting the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinian people to also live in peace and security within their own state.
A re-elected Labour government will:
Invite the Head of the General Delegation of Palestine to present their credentials as an Ambassador to New Zealand.
138 other countries have recognised Palestine as a state and haven’t had the “problem” of recognition that Grant Robertson has manufactured for Labour.
“It seems Labour has once more buckled to pressure from a tiny pro-Israel lobby group within the party. They are allowing these anti-Palestinian racists to veto any meaningful steps to support the Palestinian struggle for human rights.”
“It’s an indelible stain on Labour’s integrity”
Background to the 104 years:
After 1918 when the Ottoman Empire collapsed at the end of the First World War, each of the countries of that empire gained independence – except Palestine. The first Palestine National Congress was held in 1919 and called for independence from Britain which held the League of Nations mandate for Palestine. Britain however refused independence and in the 104 years since, western countries, including New Zealand, have colluded with Britain, then Israel and the US, to deny a Palestinian state or even equal rights for Palestinians who are citizens of Israel. Western countries turned a blind eye to Israel’s ethnic cleansing of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in 1947 – 49 and look the other way today as Palestinians continue to be driven out of their homes and off their land by Israeli settlers, backed up by the Israeli military.
Something you can do now with just a few clicks…
Copy and paste this email to Grant Robertson
Kia ora Mr Robertson,
I was disgusted to see you making pathetic excuses for Labour refusing to recognise Palestine as a state – even after 104 years.
When will Labour grow some principles and stand up to the pro-Israel lobby which promotes anti-Palestinian racism?
It’s a disgraceful, unprincipled and cowardly decision which repeats Israel’s pathetic lies.
138 other countries have recognised Palestine and have not needed the absurd excuses you have used.
As things stand there is no meaning whatever in the Labour manifesto regarding Palestine.
Your interview yesterday was a shameful performance.
<your name>
PSNA National meeting 2023 – 25/26 November in Wellington
Our 2023 national meeting will be in Wellington on Saturday 25th November and the morning of Sunday 26th November. The venue is Thistle Hall, 293 Cuba Street, Wellington.
We would love everyone to come and we are happy to help with the cost of you getting there. (Make sure you don’t let the cost of travel stop you from coming!)
We will be arranging billets for the Friday and Saturday nights for people coming from outside Wellington.
To register to come please email our National Secretary Neil Scott at secretary@PSNA.nz to let him know you are coming and if you need help with travel costs or billets for the Friday/Saturday nights.
A huge amount has happened this year – mostly good news! We will consider all this and help plan for the coming year. Bring your ideas and your energy!
Hope to see you all in Wellington next month!
Can you help complete this compelling documentary – a message from the Palestinian Human Rights Campaign - $20,000 target!
Join us in completing a compelling documentary showcasing the extraordinary power of people uniting across age, nationality, background, religion, and culture to provide unwavering support to a nation on its quest for hope and independence amidst enduring hardships.
THE STORY
Since 2001 Kiwi cardiac surgeon Dr Alan Kerr with his wife Hazel have made many voluntary missions to Palestine to help set up paediatric cardiac services for Palestinian children. This work has been supported by the Palestine Children's Relief Fund, "a secular, non- profit, non-political organisation dedicated to healing the wounds of war, occupation and poverty in the Middle East, regardless of their nationality, religion, race or gender."
Alan was often joined by a strong team of medical professionals from Aotearoa New Zealand. Their mission was to support locals to create their own cardiac unit for their children, including training local staff. A fully independent department is now functioning at the Makassed Hospital in East Jerusalem, treating 2-300 children annually from West Bank and Gaza, and a further unit is currently being developed in Ramallah, the administrative centre of the West Bank.
Renowned film director Paula Whetu Jones and team began a self-funded documentary to follow their work first in 2007, later in 2016, so the world can share in this powerful story of people helping each other and some who have gone on to survive numerous conflicts in the area.
In 2023 Dr Alan planned to make a final trip to see his friends, reconnect with former patients, get an update on the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund’s work and to receive an award of gratitude from Palestinian Government. A serious accident in Auckland prevented Dr Alan from making the trip but his daughter went instead. In the documentary we’ll see her discover firsthand the impact her parents made during their many trips to the Middle East.
THE PROJECT TO DATE:
The post-production editing is almost complete, but progress has been slow while the voluntary team have had to take on paid work.
Paula and team use an observational, candid look at subjects through personal interviews, on-the-go footage, as well as 3D-look inspired graphics to illustrate the geography and the archival stills. There is partially edited footage, drone footage and still photography that capture the beauty, as well as the juxtapositions and the unpredictability of the environment. The colours, the textures, the sounds and the scenery are captured, and material that draws attention to the shortcomings and challenges of the medical facilities, logistics and treatment available for Palestinian children in the region.
Importantly, the documentary shows the spirit of Palestinians and their collective goal to not be seen as victims, but rather as makers of their own path. Dr Kerr’s efforts inspire younger doctors to follow his example and save and heal many children, educate local staff, and leave a permanent, positive mark on the whole community. Hazel’s contributions in empowering young Palestinians through performing arts is another example that age is no barrier to helping those in need.
The focus on ‘ordinary’ Palestinians humanise the faces and the voices of those who live in this currently volatile region. The portrayal of the complexity and the politics of this region, by the mainstream media, often does not pay enough attention to the human beings living under these challenging circumstances.
The theme of this documentary is about people reaching out to help and support one another regardless of age, country of origin, background, religion and culture and the impact it makes.
Renowned film director Paula Whetu Jones has been writing and directing for film and television and produced a range of works over the last 20 years. See https://www.paulawhetujones.nz/
For more on Dr Alan Kerr’s work see https://www.pcrf.net/news/dr-alan-kerr-the-father-of-pediatric-cardiac-surgery-in-palestine.html
For more on Palestine Children’s Relief Fund please see https://www.pcrf.net/
THE ASK:
The documentary needs final editing and with your financial help, can be completed by the end of 2023.
Please help raise the $20,000 needed.
Donations can be made by sending to the account of PHRC (Palestine Human Rights Campaign) 06 0145 0045138 00 Please provide surname as a reference and send advice to phrcfundraiser@gmail.com
Please Note - Donations will be receipted fully but do not qualify for rebate as PHRC does not have charitable status.
$2,000 has been pledged already but we need a super charged effort to raise the remaining $18,000 by November 30th 2023.
Any help you can give to spread the word and encourage contributions from your friends and networks is much appreciated! Together we can bring this inspiring untold story of hope, compassion and healing to the world.
Janfrie Wakim and Marjory Lewis PHRC Auckland
Tell Bruno Mars – Don’t play in apartheid Israel
Add your name today to the international petition for Bruno Mars to withdraw from his concert engagements in apartheid Israel.
South Africa Announces Visa-Free Travel for Palestinians: Why not Aotearoa New Zealand?
The Aotearoa New Zealand government provides visa-free travel to young Israelis wanting to come to New Zealand but it refuses point blank to provide visa-free travel to young Palestinians despite its declared support for the now-impossible “two-state solution”
This discrimination is par for the course for successive government here but in South Africa the government has just announced visa-free entry to Palestinians visiting South Africa.
South Africa's Minister of Home Affairs Dr Aaron Motsoaledi meeting with Africa4Palestine, Chief Mandla Mandela (MP), and Palestinian Ambassador Jarrar on the issue in 2020
You can read the full release here
One for the night owls…
This webinar will be on at 3am Monday 8 October (New Zealand time) It will be well worth the time for the night owls amongst us…
Watch out for this man promoting racism and apartheid
Here he is – the Israeli ambassador – watch out for him around Aotearoa New Zealand – if you hear of any planned appearances or speaking engagements please contact us urgently: Email apartheid-Israel@PSNA.nz or text 027 4 APARTHEID or 027427278.
Israeli ambassador Ran Yaakoby
Important stories from the Web
General
At UN Netanyahu says Israel is at the cusp of a Saudi deal while brandishing a map that erases Palestine here
Netanyahu promotes normalisation with new map erasing Palestine here
Saudi Arabia Palestine statehood unclear: Crown Prince interview here
The shifting geopolitics of the Middle East here
Oslo after thirty years – a paradigm beyond partition here
When will Israel seek forgiveness for its crimes against Palestinians? here
Normalisation and co-resistance here
Saudis step up love-fest with Palestine but will it last? here
The crime of apartheid beyond Southern Africa: a call to revive the apartheid conventions group of three here
It was one of Morrison's most contentious foreign policy moves: Michael Pezzullo wanted to help here
Palestinian negotiators sceptical over potential Israel-Saudi deal here
Saudi envoy seeks to reassure Palestinians amid Israeli talks here
PSC resolution declaring Israel an apartheid state here
Bad faith, duplicity and cynicism: Britain’s Palestine mandate 100 years ago here
How Britain broke international law to stop Palestinian independence 100 years ago here
Palestine
The pogroms are working – the transfer is already happening here
West Bank raid: Israeli forces kill two here
Israel kills six Palestinians in 24 hours including a teenager here
An Israeli pilot refusenik reflects on the state of Israeli fascism and apartheid here
The Palestinian Authority's Revolving Door with Alaa Tartir here (a podcast from Al-Shabaka)
Jewish settlers stole my house – it’s not my fault they are Jewish here
Palestinians continue to be haunted by the ghosts of Oslo here
Palestinian officials say one killed in Gaza and three in West Bank here
Israel closes main border crossing with Gaza after protestor fatally shot here
The revolutionary youth fighting on Gaza’s border fence here
Revolutionary youth suspends Gaza border protests amid regional mediation here
Israel
Palestinians must not have veto over Arab-Israeli deals Netanyahu tells UN here
Immigrant pop star and supreme court judge who will decide fate of Israel’s justice system here
What Israel’s new Kahanist government really wants here
US
Kahanism and American politics – the Democratic Party’s decades-long courtship of racist fanatics here (pdf file)
AIPAC tries to distort and damage US foreign policy beyond the Middle East here
Civil rights group sues US government as Biden accepts Israel into visa-waiver programme here
Biden’s Israel policy is scripted by Saban here
I was harassed by Zionists and fired for it twice – inside the culture of fear that runs Jewish institutional life here
Reminder: Dates for Palestine Solidarity in 2023
Israel apartheid week has been added to the dates for likely local and national Palestine solidarity activity this year.
28 Mar – 4 Apr Israel Apartheid Week
30 Mar Land Day Palestine
5 Apr Palestinian Childs Day
9 Apr Deir Yassin massacre - Irgun Terrorism - 107-120 Palestinian men, women and children massacred
17 Apr Palestinian Prisoners Day
11 May World Kufiya Day
15 May Nakba Day – marking the mass ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Palestine in 1948
5 Jun Nakba Day - Start of 1967 War - Land Grab – Invasion of Jerusalem, West Bank, Gaza, Egypt and Syria - 5 June 1967 – 10 June 1967
20 Jun Attack on Gaza - 6–21 May 2021 (2 weeks and 1 day)
16-18 Sep 40th anniversary of the Sabra and Shatila massacres
28 Sep Second Intifada - 28 Sept 2000 – 8 Feb 2005
2 Nov Balfour Declaration
29 Nov United Nations - International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People
8 Dec First Intifada - 8 Dec 1987 – 13 Sept 1993
Are you able to donate a cup of coffee a month to the campaign?
We will need some serious money to make our campaign as effective as possible. For example, we will need somewhere in the vicinity of $25,000 to bring speakers to New Zealand over the next year and organise large public meetings to help spread the message.
You can help. Are you able to donate a cup of coffee a month to the campaign? In other words, can you afford to make an automatic payment of $5 per month to support the Palestinian struggle? (If you can afford more that would be great!)
Our account details are:
Account name: Palestine Solidarity Network
Account number: 38-9015-0849542-00
We are happy to provide a receipt upon request (however, we are not a registered charity so this is not tax-deductible)
In Occupied Palestine daily newsletter – an invitation to subscribe from Leslie Bravery
Because of mainstream news media complicity, daily headlines and commentary only occasionally ever mention the relentless Israeli violence in Palestine, not even the frequent air strikes!
However, daily news and statistics regarding the violence Palestinians are forced to live under are regularly reported on in the “In Occupied Palestine daily newsletter”, sourced and compiled for easy reading and correlation chiefly from the Palestinian Monitoring Group's daily situation reports.
The In Occupied Palestine daily newsletter continues to be circulated, by email, worldwide to subscribers only, as it has been over the last two decades.
Please contact lesliebravery@icloud.com if you also wish to become a subscriber.
Merchandise for sale
We have Merchandise you can buy including T-shirts from our website.
Go here - https://www.psna.nz/shop
More ways you can get involved
Forward this Newsletter – If you know people who may be interested in this movement, please forward this Newsletter to them.
Join in local activities in your area monthly Rallies - In Auckland at 2.00 pm on the first Saturday of every month. Please consider doing the same in your community. Contact Secretary@PSNA.nz if you would like to know where and how to get Flags and Banners
Help set up a Students for Justice in Palestine groups on your campus
Tell Your MP your opinions on Divestment and Sanctions of Israel.
Write Letters to Newspapers – Call Talkback Radio
Keep in touch with the campaign on social media
o NZ Palestine Solidarity Network website: https://www.PSNA.nz
o NZ Palestine Solidarity Network Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/671376706283605/
o NZ Palestine Solidarity Network email: Secretary@PSNA.nz
The Palestine Human Rights Campaign produces the In Occupied Palestine newsletter. It is a regular daily newsletter on the daily situation in Palestine, compiled by Leslie Bravery and emailed to subscribers. If you would also like to become a subscriber, please contact Leslie at “lesliebravery @ icloud .com” (remove the spaces to use as an email address) for further information.
Keep Updated on our Facebook pages and websites (listed below)
Human rights for Uyghur refugees - In line with our support for human rights for the people of Palestine we have added our name to the petition in support of human rights for Uyghur refugees so they can be included in the government’s refugee quota. PSNA members who wish to also sign this petition can do so here - https://our.actionstation.org.nz/petitions/open-letter-let-s-show-compassion-to-the-uyghur-community
PSNA Groups
PSNA National Committee
Website: www.PSNA.nz
Chair - John Minto: Chair@PSNA.nz
Secretary - Neil Scott: Secretary@PSNA.nz
Regional Groups
Bay of Islands PSN Bay of Islands (Email)
Whangarei PSN Whangarei (Facebook)
Auckland PSN Auckland – Tamaki Makaurau (Website)
Hamilton Palestine Human Rights Campaign Waikato (Facebook)
Tauranga Tauranga Moana 4 Palestine (Facebook)
Napier/Hastings Aotearoa Standing with Palestine (Facebook)
Palmerston North PSN Palmerston North (Email)
New Plymouth PSN Taranaki (Facebook)
Wellington PSN Wellington (Email)
Nelson Te Tau Ihu (Nelson) Palestine (Facebook)
Christchurch PSN Christchurch (Facebook)
Dunedin Dunedin for Justice in Palestine (Facebook)
Invercargill PSNA Invercargill (Email)