International Conference for a Just Peace in Palestine and Israël, Keulen
Op deze Conferentie, die op 5 juni 2004 in Keulen is gehouden, pleit Gretta Duisenberg opnieuw met kracht voor sancties tegen Israël om dat land te dwingen een eind te maken aan de bezetting van de Palestijnse gebieden en zich terug te trekken achter de grenzen van voor juni 1967.
International Conference for a Just Peace in Palestine and Israël
Cologne, 5 June 2004
Introductory Statement
by
Gretta Duisenberg, Chair Stop the Occupation , Netherlands
Ladies and gentlemen,
On 25 May The Birzeit University called on the international community to join them and support them in calling for action, not only words, in striving for peace in Israël and Palestine and ending the occupation of Palestinian territories by Israël. This is what I want to do here and now, largely in their words, expressing the solidarity of the Stop the Occupation movement in the Netherlands with the Palestinian people.
The European Union has condemned the destruction in Rafah by the Israëli Occupation Army. The United Nations Security Council has adopted a resolution condemning the killing of Palestinian civilians in Rafah and calling on Israël to stop the demolition of Palestinian homes. Amnesty International and other international human rights agencies have recognized that Israël is guilty of war crimes and grave breaches of humanitarian law, international human rights law and the Fourth Geneva Convention.
Of course, I commend the international community for their condemnation of Israël's atrocities against the people of Rafah. But I also wish to remind you that since 1948 history has been replete with international condemnations and Security Council resolutions and yet the Palestinians are still extremely vulnerable and their path to justice is still long. The international community continues to fail the Palestinian people after 56 years of dispossession and violence, because no punitive action against Israël has ever been taken.
Governments of the now 25 Member States of the European Union, words of condemnation have become vividly insufficient while the European Union maintains its position as Israel's major trading partner and continues to forge ever-closer links through agreements such as the recent EU Scientific Cooperation Agreement with Israël.
The European Union's Association Agreement with Israël is expressly contingent on Israël observing basic human rights laws and yet these clauses have never been invoked. Until Israël complies with the European Unions's principles of respect for human and civil rights, as outlined by the 'Copenhagen Criteria', all agreements and relations with Israël should be suspended.
It is time to suspend all agreements and relations between Israël and the European Union and to impose full sanctions - similar to those imposed on South Africa - to isolate Israël internationally until it complies with the EU principles, international law and UN Security Council resolutions. Imports from and exports to Israël of weapons or component parts thereof should be prohibited. Landing rights of Israëli airlines and shipping lines should be suspended.
It is time to bring an international protection presence to the occupied Gaza and the West Bank to ensure the safety of the Palestinian civilian population living under occupation.
It is time to hold accountable those persons responsible for the war crimes committed in Rafah and other areas in the occupied Palestinian territories by bringing them before the International Court of Justice.
I and my movement Stop the Occupation, and I urge you here to join us, call upon the European Union to place the necessary pressure on Israel to unconditionally halt all military operations against the Palestinian civilian population. But, of course, the only way to ensure a permanent end to Israeli war crimes and atrocities against the Palestinian people is
BACK BEHIND THE BORDERS OF 1967 AND
STOP THE OCCUPATION !!!
