This is a press release from ‘Progressive Christian Voice’ (Australia). Yes, there is an alternative Australian Christian perspective to that offered by the ‘Australian Christian Lobby’ (ACL).
I find it frankly refreshing to see the church speaking out on the situation in Palestine and not being restricted to issues of family and sexuality.
Father Dave
Bishop Peter Catt – founder of ‘Progressive Christian Voice’ (Australia)
A Progressive Christian Voice Urges the Australian Government to Abandon its Support for the Illegal Israeli settlements in the Palestinian Occupied Territories.
Australian media reported on Monday, 25 November, 2013, that Australia’s newly elected government, without any public discussion of its policy, was “giving tacit approval to controversial activities including the expansion of Jewish settlements in the occupied territories”. [1]
According to The Jerusalem Post [2] the Australian ambassador to Israel, David Sharma said that Canberra does not want to single out Israel for condemnation in international forums. As regards the aspect of singling out of Israel, international forums have been prepared to condemn other countries such as Syria, North Korea.
As regards any singling out of Israel, what is singular about Israel is that no country in the current international community has continued the military occupation of foreign territory for 46 years.
Australian media reports noted, “many within the international community regard the expansion of Israeli settlements as an act of hostility towards Palestinians, hampering the likelihood of peace”. [3]
As a letter writer in The Sydney Morning Herald [2] noted, there is a contradiction in the Australian government’s position. That government asserts that it supports a two state solution. Yet it tacitly condones settlement construction which threatens to destroy any hope of the establishment of a Palestinian state.
During a speech at the United Nations Security Council’s Open Debate on the Middle East on the 16 October, 2012, the U.S. Permanent Representative to the UN, Ambassador Susan Rice emphasized that the U.S. “does not accept the legitimacy of Israeli settlement activity, and will continue to oppose any efforts to legalize outposts.” [4]
A Progressive Christian Voice (Australia) Inc believes that Australia’s action, therefore, raises a number of valid questions:
1.Which of the two contradictory policies noted above does the Australian government actually endorse – a two state solution or support for illegal Jewish settlements? The Australian Foreign Minister, Julia Bishop, has stated hat “the (Australian) government’s concern (was that) Middle East resolutions should be balanced”. How does the government, then, balance these two contradictory positions?
2.What values influences the Australian government to give tacit approval for the building of more illegal settlements on Palestinian territory?
3. Does the Australian government oppose the American government’s view when the latter contends that continued settlement activity is illegal?
_____________________________________________________________________________________
1. Jonathan Swan, “Abbott shifts UN position to back Israeli setllements” The Sydney Morning Herald, Monday, November 25, 2013, p.9.
2. Herb Keinon, “Australia says it won’t mechanically vote against settlements in UN” The Jerusalem Post 11/25/2013.
3. SMH, Tuesday, November 26, 2013, p.16.
4. The Jewish Week – New York 10/16/12 _____________________________________________________________________________________
For more information contact either:
Rev’d Dr Peter Catt – President of A Progressive Christian Voice (Australia) Inc (Email: pcatt AT stjohnscathedral.com….au) or
Rev’d Dr Ray Barraclough – Secretary of A Progressive Christian Voice (Australia) Inc at (Email: dorray AT westnet.com….au)
Filed under israel and palestine articles by on Dec 2nd, 2013. Comment. 
This is a significant breakthrough! According to this article that appeared in the Jerusalem Post, both Fatah and Hamas are agreed upon the need for a non-violent intifada.
In point of fact, Palestinians have been using non-violent means to pursue their goals for the greater part of their struggle, despite popular perceptions to the contrary – protests, hunger strikes, boycotts, etc. Even so, this is the first time though that both Palestinian factions have publicly agreed on this as a matter of policy.
Father Dave
source: www.jpost.com…
Abbas and Mashaal agree on peaceful intifada
By KHALED ABU TOAMEH
PA president says he hopes US would play larger role in peace talks, adds Washington can’t ignore UN upgrade of PA status.
PA President Mahmoud Abbas at PLO meeting in West Bank, January 29, 2013. Photo: REUTERS/Mohamad Torokma
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said over the weekend that he was in favor of a peaceful and popular resistance and that he and Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal have reached agreement on the need for a peaceful intifada.
The two met in Cairo during a recent conference of Islamic countries.
Speaking during an interview with Al-Arabiya TV, Abbas said that he fully supported demonstrations against the security barrier and settlements, as well as Palestinian attempts to establish outposts in the West Bank, but stressed his opposition to violent measures.
“Armed resistance is banned,” he stressed. “This is a law and it is forbidden. It is also forbidden in the Gaza Strip.”
Abbas said that even Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad supported his call for peaceful protests.
The PA president said that the PA security forces in the West Bank have been arresting Palestinians who smuggle weapons from Israel.
“They smuggle weapons from Israel, including M-16 rifles and explosives,” he claimed. “These weapons could destroy my country. What am I going to do with all these Israeli weapons?” Turning to the prospect of negotiations with Israel, Abbas said that he did not expect a new government to change Jerusalem’s policy toward the peace process.
Abbas said he still did not know when US President Barack Obama would visit the region.
However, Obama’s visit to the region was a “significant indication that could revive the peace process, which has been completely frozen over the past four years,” he said.
The PA president said that the US would not be able to ignore the recent UN vote in favor of upgrading the Palestinians’ status to non-member state.
“America can’t say now that it does not recognize the UN vote,” Abbas said.
The Palestinians, he added, do not expect any change in the Israeli government’s policy in wake of last month’s general elections.
Abbas said that the Arab Spring has distracted attention from the Palestinian issue. Nevertheless he said, there was still a chance to achieve peace in the Middle East.
Commenting on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s decision to entrust MK Tzipi Livni, head of The Tzipi Livni Party, with the task of negotiating with the Palestinians, Abbas said: “The question is whether he [Netanyahu] personally believes in the peace process? I hope that things have changed now. I also hope that the US will play a larger role than before.”
Abbas claimed that Netanyahu, unlike his predecessor, former prime minister Ehud Olmert, had refused over the past four years to discuss final-status issues with the Palestinians.
Abbas said he dispatched a Palestinian delegation to Washington to exchange views with US administration officials ahead of Obama’s planned visit to the region. He said the delegation would hold talks in Washington about the settlements and about Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails.
Abbas said the Palestinians wanted the Americans to know that these were their demands for the resumption of the peace talks with Israel
Filed under israel and palestine articles by on Feb 25th, 2013. Comment.
Father Roy writes: Avigdor Lieberman is irate that the EU is calling for the destruction of the state of Israel. Tzipi Livni sees no resemblance between the EU’s policy towards Israel and Hitler’s policy towards Jews. Peace, Roy
Tzipi Livni
source: www.haaretz.com……
Livni to Lieberman: EU policy on Israel bears no resemblance to Holocaust
Foreign Minister on Tuesday rebuked Europe for ‘once again ignoring calls to destroy the state of Israel’; Livni: Israel’s policies must change.
By Barak Ravid
Opposition leader and Hatnuah Chairwoman Tzipi Livni on Wednesday blasted Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman for comparing the European Union’s policy toward Israel on the Palestinian issue to the behavior of European countries toward the Jews during the period of the Holocaust.
“Comparing Israel’s situation today to the Holocaust is contempt for the Holocaust,” Livni said during a conference organized by the Jerusalem Post in Herzliya. “It’s an incorrect comparison, and incomprehensible. There is absolutely no similarity between the situation of Israeli citizens today to that of European Jews then. Not everybody is against us, and not everyone is anti-Semitic.”
The fact that the international community criticizes the policies of the current government does not mean that the world does not accept Israel as a state, Livni added.
“I think this policy must change,” said Livni, “not as a favor to the world, but because it is in Israel’s basic interest.”
“Renewing negotiations with the Palestinians won’t just maintain Israel’s value as a Jewish and democratic state, but will also stop the erosion, and will give Israel back the legitimacy for military action when necessary, and for preserving its security interests,” added Livni.
In an interview to Israel Radio on Tuesday, Lieberman was asked to react to the EU foreign ministers’ decision on Monday to condemn Israel for advancing the plan to build in E-1.
Interviewer Aryeh Golan also mentioned the report in Newsweek magazine to the effect that United States President Barack Obama intends to let Europe apply pressure to Israel on the issue of the peace process with the Palestinians. “Are you satisfied with this?” Golan asked Lieberman.
In reply, the foreign minister launched into a fierce, and perhaps, unprecedented attack on the EU. “I can tell you what I am not satisfied with,” said Lieberman. “I am not satisfied with the position of Europe, which once again in history is ignoring calls to destroy the state of Israel … Europe is keeping silent. The call yesterday [Monday], what we saw, is not a condemnation of Hamas statements but rather a call to the heads of Hamas to refrain from incitement. We have already been through this with Europe at the end of the 1930s and in the 1940s.”
In his remarks Lieberman related to the speeches by Hamas political bureau head Khaled Meshal this weekend in Gaza, during the course of which he called for annihilating Israel. Contrary to Lieberman’s statement, along with the condemnation of Israel the European foreign ministers did in fact condemn Meshal’s remarks. “The EU finds inflammatory statements by Hamas leaders that deny Israel’s right to exist unacceptable,” they declared.
The radio interviewer asked Lieberman whether he is accusing the EU of anti-Semitism. “It isn’t an anti-Semitic motive but rather it’s a narrow motive of interests,” replied Lieberman. “They [the EU] are sacrificing all values in favor of interests. Then too, back in the 1940s. They already knew by the start of the 1940s exactly what was happening in the concentration camps, what was happening with the Jews and didn’t exactly act. Today they admit that even in the 1930s they prevented Jews for coming to the land of Israel.”
Filed under Israel and Palestine, israel and palestine articles, israel and palestine conflict by on Dec 13th, 2012. Comment.
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