PSNA Newsletter No 20 - April 15 2020
1 April 2020
Newsletter No 19
Kia ora PSNA Supporter
We are halfway through lockdown…
But as we said in the last newsletter – we can all be digital human rights warriors for Palestine during the lockdown!
One quick thing you can do right now…
April 25th in the next international day campaigning against PUMA so we are inviting our supporters to send an email to Silver Ferns CEO Jenny Wylie at mediainfo@netballnz.co.nz requesting the Silver Ferns to end their sponsorship agreement with PUMA because PUMA is a sponsor of the Israel Football Association. (See the PUMA logo matched with the silver fern on the uniforms above)
PSNA has written to Jenny Wylie three times but she has refused to answer our emails. It’s time we got serious and so we are asking our supporters to reinforce the message. Why the boycott call? Here are extracts from the letter PSNA sent which outlines to issues with PUMA sponsorship.
PUMA is a sponsor of the IFA (Israel Football Association) The IFA includes football clubs based in illegal Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land and despite many appeals from human rights organisations, in Israel and around the world, it has refused to dissociate itself from these illegal settlements.
Meanwhile PUMA is continuing to sponsor the IFA, Puma is its only international sponsor, which helps legitimise the IFA’s actions and the associated appalling Israeli policies towards Palestinians.
It’s important to understand that the issue of settlements goes to the heart of the Israeli government’s racist, apartheid policies towards the indigenous people of Palestine. The establishment and expansion of these settlements, illegal under international law, involves driving Palestinian families from their homes and off their land. This is an ongoing part of the Nakba (“catastrophe”) under which Palestinians have suffered ethnic cleansing every day since 1948.
The settlements are an integral part of Israel’s military occupation which robs Palestinians of natural resources and denies them their right of movement.
In contrast to the behaviour of the IFA in recognising sports teams from illegal settlements, Palestinian sportspeople are often forced to abandon practices, games and tournaments due to Israeli Defence Force harassment at checkpoints and Israeli government policies to make them refugees in their own land.
When young Palestinians protest to demand an end to the theft of their land many have been murdered by Israeli snipers and many more lose their legs, also from sniper fire, and the chance to play sport. Many young Palestinians have had their sports careers ended in this way over the years.
For these reasons we are requesting the Silver Ferns end their sponsorship deal with PUMA until PUMA ends its support for the IFA.
Gaza’s looming human catastrophe – the government replies…
Many of you will have signed the letter to the Prime Minister calling for New Zealand to speak out and call for Israel to abandon its 12 year blockade of Gaza to allow Palestinians to bring in the medical supplies, equipment and personnel they need to tackle Covid 19. The letter and its main signatories are at www.PSNA.nz/petition
(If you haven’t signed the letter yourself it’s not too late – please sign now and forward to any friends or family who would be interested)
Last week we received this response from the government:
From: Rt. Hon. Winston Peters <Winston.Peters@parliament.govt.nz>
Sent: Tuesday, 7 April 2020 12:15 p.m.
To: 'johnminto@orcon.net.nz' <johnminto@orcon.net.nz>
Subject: FW: Response sought to urgent letter to the PM
Dear John Minto
Thank you for your letter dated 20 March and your subsequent email of 31 March 2020. Your emails and letter to the Prime Minister, Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern, have been referred to me, as the issues you raise fall within my portfolio responsibilities.
New Zealand recognises the serious strain the outbreak of COVID-19 is having in the Middle East region, and the particular healthcare vulnerabilities in the West Bank and Gaza. New Zealand’s current focus will remain on providing support to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in New Zealand and the Pacific.
New Zealand made its annual contribution of NZ$1M to United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in March 2020. This brings our total contribution to UNRWA to NZ$6M since 2017. New Zealand is a long-standing supporter of UNRWA, committing NZ$1M in core funding each year. As you know, this is a significant humanitarian mission, but also supports peace and security between Israelis and Palestinians, as well as stability in regional host countries.
New Zealand believes the situation in Gaza is unsustainable, and has consistently called for improved access for humanitarian and other essential supplies into Gaza, including at the United Nations.
There are no plans to change New Zealand’s position on key Middle East issues, including our long-standing support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. As you are also aware, successive New Zealand governments have condemned Israeli settlements. They are a violation of Israel’s international obligations and have negative implications for the peace process.
Yours sincerely
Rt Hon Winston Peters
Minister of Foreign Affairs
The positive aspect of the government’s response is that, despite lobbying from the US to promote Trump’s so-called “deal of the century” which aims to destroy the Palestinian national identity, the New Zealand government is continuing to hold firm to its policy positions. The negative aspect of the response is that the government does not have the courage to turn its policy into effective political pressure on Israel. Instead New Zealand is a largely passive observer of Israeli brutality and Palestinian suffering.
It's not good enough! Silence is not an option. We are continuing to pressure the government over this and you will receive more information on this from us shortly.
Kiwisaver update – another provider in the clear
We have had another Kiwisaver provider, Milford Asset Management, confirm that they do not have investments in any of the 112 companies which the United Nations Human Rights Council has identified as being complicit in illegal settlement building or settlement maintenance on occupied Palestinian land. We are encouraging any providers with such investments to transfer their investments elsewhere rather than in assisting in Israel’s blatant abuse of international law and oppression of Palestinians.
The UNHRC media release and link to the full report are here.
The Kiwisaver providers which do not have investments in the 112 companies are:
Milford Asset Management
Amanah Kiwisaver (www.amanahnz.com/)
Christian Kiwisaver (https://christiankiwisaver.nz/)
Caresaver Kiwisaver (caresaver.co.nz/)
Juno Kiwisaver (www.junokiwisaver.co.nz/
New website is up and running
Our new website is at www.PSNA.nz and is slowly being “populated” with campaign material.
Have a look and feel free to send feedback to secretary@PSNA.nz
Palestinian rights pledge for general election candidates
We have begun working on an election pledge for all candidates for this year’s general election scheduled for September. The pledge will commit candidates to taking effective political action in support of Palestinian human rights. While we have successive governments which “vote the right way” at the United Nations, they have not been prepared to put political pressure on the Israeli government to abide by international law and United Nations resolutions. This has to change.
We will be publishing the results of our approaches to election candidates before the election.
At home with PSNA Chair John Minto
On 7 April PSNA Chair John Minto featured in the “At home with…” section in the Stuff national weekend magazine. The online version is here.
The main picture has John pictured in his living room at home in his Palestine solidarity T- shirt. If you check the other pictures you will see then wrist bands that we have for sale on our website.
Two new books provide great reading during the lockdown
Dances with Death - A new book by Palestinian New Zealander – Tuma Hazou
“Written without rancour, Tuma Hazou’s account of his wartime reporting experiences is an engaging, authentic and rare Palestinian account of recent Middle-East events and of nerve-wracking personal trauma” - Janfrie Wakim - Auckland
Tuma is a Palestinian New Zealander. He was planning to attend book launches around the country but that’s not possible. You can purchase a book from Tuma at gandthazou@gmail.com
Still Lives – Marilyn Garson
Canadian-Kiwi Marilyn writes of her experiences working in GAZA under the Israeli blockade from 2011 to 2015. It’s a great book and has been accepted for the Auckland Writers Festival.
Order your eBook here or order a physical copy at www.marilyngarson.com
Guidelines for engaging on social media
Our national committee recently discussed the best ways for us to engage in supporting Palestine in social media – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram etc and we came up with these guidelines for PSNA supporters. We would welcome feedback to secretary@PSNA.nz
PSNA Online Policy Guidelines
Social media is an unregulated space where there are many opportunities to get clear pro-Palestinian messages out to a wider audience than through traditional mainstream media. We need as many voices as we can muster speaking out on all social media platforms. Our goal is to amplify the Palestinian side of the issue which has previously been lost in a sea of pro-Israeli lies which has so often dominated media reporting. However, there are potential dangers to avoid. Keep these guidelines in mind when you engage with social media:
When we encounter pro-Israeli trolls on social media we should attack their views rather than attack them personally – stick to the issues and avoid being side-tracked. Be assertive but stay on track.
Remember the real target is the wider social media audience. We won’t convince individual pro-Israeli trolls to support the Palestinian struggle but those reading and watching an exchange are our real audience. We must keep them as the real target for our social media activism.
Calling out racism in all its forms, such as white supremacy, Islamophobia or anti-Semitism builds consistency with the messages of support for Palestinian rights and places into context the fundamental racist premise on which the state of Israel is founded.
People in leadership or spokesperson roles within PSNA and its affiliates should be especially careful in social media interactions because as we become more effective in advocating for Palestine we will face more vitriolic, personal attacks from elements of the extremist pro-Israeli lobby who will look for ways to undermine our kaupapa by undermining us.
New Merchandise
T shirt Free Palestine End Israeli Occupation medium size only $22
Kaffiyeh 110 x 110 $44 + postage
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 Networt
Account number: 38-9015-0849542-00
Or Pay Pal account: admin@palestinesolidaritynz.net
We are happy to provide a receipt upon request (however, we are not a registered charity so this is not tax-deductible)
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 mailto:admin@palestinesolidaritynz.net?subject=Flags and Banners 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: http://PalestineSolidarityNZ.net/index.html
o NZ Palestine Solidarity Network Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/671376706283605/
o NZ Palestine Solidarity Network email: admin@PalestineSolidarityNZ.net
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)
Regional Branches and Affiliates
Regional
Bay of Islands PSNA Bay of Islands
Whangarei PSNA Whangarei
Auckland PSNA Auckland – Tamaki Makaurau
Hamilton Palestine Human Rights Campaign Waikato
Tauranga Tauranga Moana 4 Palestine
Napier/Hastings Aotearoa Standing with Palestine
Palmerston North PSNA Palmerston North
Wellington Wellington Palestine
Nelson Te Tau Ihu (Nelson) Palestine
Christchurch PSNA Christchurch
Dunedin Dunedin for Justice in Palestine
Invercargill PSNA Invercargill
New Zealand Affiliates
Boycott Divestment and Sanctions NZ
Kia Ora Gaza
Letters for Palestine
Auckland Peace Action
Global Peace and Justice Auckland
Preserved Identity (Palestinian Goods)
Auckland – Students for Justice in Palestine
Massey University- Students for Justice in Palestine