PSNA Newsletter No 43 - March 31, 2021
31 March 2021
Newsletter No 43
Kia ora PSNA Supporter
A small thing you can do right now…
Copy and Paste this cartoon onto your social media pages and email a copy to the Prime Minister j.ardern@ministers.govt.nz and Foreign Minister n.mahuta@ministers.govt.nz and your local MP.
There is no need to write anything with it – everyone will know what you mean.
PSNA National Meeting – 27/28 March in Auckland
Thanks to everyone who helped make the Palestine Solidarity National Meeting last weekend such a great success!
We had an outstanding turnout from around the country and were delighted with the energy and passion which our members and supporters brought to the meeting.
We were able to celebrate several important campaign “wins” and more importantly what PSNA National Chair John Minto described as the “forward momentum” we are generating in the campaign for Palestinian human rights.
In his address to the conference John thanked the members of the national committee, our local representatives and the entire membership whose commitment, engagement and donations has made our progress possible.
The meeting re-elected John Minto as National Chair and Neil Scott as National Secretary and has brought in several new faces as representatives of local centres around the country.
A very special thanks to the Palestine Community who provided a marvellous Palestinian meal which we all enjoyed on the Saturday night.
Some of the major decisions made at the meeting which will guide our work over the next year include:
A national tour by PSNA Chair John Minto to mark the 40th anniversary of the 1981 Springbok Tour protests against apartheid in South Africa and at the same time to help build the fight against Israel apartheid and the oppression of Palestinians.
Here is the schedule for the tour which will include public meetings in each centre along with talking to community groups, media and schools. If you can help organise an event in one of these centres then please write to secretary@PSNA.nz
Organising a series of mini-film festivals around the country using some of the excellent films that have be made in Palestine recently.
Engaging unionists, religious organisations and student groups in solidarity actions with Palestinians and organising tours of Palestinian union activists to New Zealand.
Developing and broadening our campaign against investments in the 112 companies the United Nations Human Rights Council has identified as complicit in illegal settlement building and maintenance.
Continuing our support for the Gaza Centre for Human Rights as it processes complaints for the International Criminal Court.
Supporting the next Flotilla to try and break the siege of Gaza.
Two pics from the national meeting
At the end of the national meeting we held a protest on Great North Road in Grey Lynn to mark Palestine land Day (March 30) where we gathered on all four corners of the main intersection. There was a huge positive response from cars honking their horns in support and solidarity.
At the end of the national meeting we held a protest on Great North Road in Grey Lynn to mark Palestine land Day (March 30) where we gathered on all four corners of the main intersection. There was a huge positive response from cars honking their horns in support and solidarity.
This picture is from the political panel held on the Sunday morning with Labour MP Duncan Webb on the left and Green MP Golriz Ghahraman speaking. On the video screen, zooming in from Australia is former New South Wales Premier and former Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr. It was a stimulating discussion which canvassed ways to encourage MPs and ministers to be more vocal against Israel’s apartheid policies as our parliamentarians were in the case of apartheid in South Africa back in the 1970s and 80s.
Other activity from around the country recently
A stall at the recent Clubs and Societies day at Auckland University.
Handing out leaflets at the recent Palestine Land Day protest in Christchurch (March 30) Can you spot the word Palestine on the Bridge of Remembrance in the background?
Interview with Njimah Ali
Earthwise interview with Njimah Ali on Monday 5 April, 9pm on Plainsfm96.9 also live https://plainsfm.org.nz/ repeated Wed 07 Apr at 9:30am. Njimah Ali, a graduate student at the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies in Otago, is a Palestinian Israeli (never called that by the Israelis, instead they say Arab Israeli) about living in Israel, including the significance of Palestine Land Day, (Remembering the killing of unarmed protestors on 30 March 1976)
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
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)
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 PSNA Bay of Islands (Email)
Whangarei PSNA Whangarei (Facebook)
Auckland PSNA 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 PSNA Palmerston North (Email)
New Plymouth PSNA New Plymouth (Email)
Wellington PSNA Wellington (Email)
Nelson Te Tau Ihu (Nelson) Palestine (Facebook)
Christchurch PSNA Christchurch (Facebook)
Dunedin Dunedin for Justice in Palestine (Facebook)
Invercargill PSNA Invercargill (Email)