When even Audrey Young can see it…
Sympathy for Israel is shrinking as the horrors of what is happening to civilians in Gaza are streamed around the world, and accusations of genocide begin to look more credible. It is a term many have been reluctant to use against Israel because of its associations with the Holocaust, and many of those who have made it have been labelled anti-Semitic.
New Zealand, while having a policy of recognising Palestine at some time in the future, is sending mixed messages.
On paper, New Zealand joined 14 other countries, including Australia, in a strongly worded statement to “reiterate our unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution where two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, live side by side in peace within secure and recognised borders”, and described themselves as countries that “have already recognised, have expressed or express the willingness or the positive consideration of our countries to recognise the state of Palestine, as an essential step towards the two-state solution and invite all countries that have not done so to join this call” ahead of the UN assembly.
That suggests a renewed vigour to use the current crisis to advance a two-state solution.
But Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Foreign Minister Winston Peters have argued that any move towards a two-state solution is not a priority and should not be part of the resolution of the current crisis.
Peters gave no hint of changing that position yesterday in a lukewarm response to questions about recognition: “We do need to see progress on some of the fundamental issues relating to a Palestinian state’s legitimacy and viability, including representative governance, commitments to non-violence, regional support, and security guarantees for Israel.”
So far, 147 of 192 members of the UN recognise Palestine, and if France, the UK, Canada and Australia do so in September, that will include three members of the G7, three members of Five Eyes, and four of the five permanent members of the Security Council.
…the horror that Israel is perpetrating upon the Palestinian people demands a global response.
Our silence to date should be a national shame but it is not too late to make a stand and put real pressure on Israel by recognising Palestine.
Such recognition would allow the UN to openly sanction Israel for war crimes against a member state as the planet scrambles to find tools to beat Israel back form their ethnic cleansing genocide.
The fear of being labelled anti-semitic for standing against Israel has been breached by the enormity of their disproportional war crimes.
Every day that passes allows Israel to kill more Palestinians.
We must stand now against this obscenity, deliver immediate supplies to Palestine, start rebuilding Palestine and begin legal proceedings against Israel
The only thing holding back most Israel apologists (who aren’t Zionists), is that they have spent so much political capital defending Israel and attacking Hamas that they can’t back away from their support.
Those moral quislings should be shown the contempt they deserve.
People of conscience must stand against the Israeli Government.
NZ must recognise Palestine – history is watching!
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Although the starvation in Gaza is an indelible stain on Israël’s conduct, let’s not overestimate who cares about New Zealand’s view.
With these announcements there is still a conditionality placed on recognition. The Palestinian Authority is widely seen as complicit in the recent Israeli attacks on the West bank refugee camps. They were also enforcing the blockade of Gaza during the first ceasefire. They were also trained by the US to suppress resistance. Without major reform focused on creating distance between it and the Netanyahu government it is likely the Palestinians will see it as imposing governance on them at the behest of Israel. Why would anyone disarm while a genocide is underway? Why should the victims have to demilitarize without security guarantees from trustworthy actors? A condition for laying down arms should be Israel’s complete withdrawal from Gaza, the Philidelphi corridor and the west bank and they should have no further control over these areas. Any interim governance arrangement should not involve the US or Israel. It must be a proper ceasefire, not like the one in Lebanon where Israel attacks at will. Also egregious is the education reforms agreed to by The PA. These will no doubt involve Israel having a say over the history curriculum. Removal of proven historical events replaced by the whitewashed version Israel teaches their children to stir up hate against Palestine. No to that! Immediate access to aid should not even be negotiable. It has been proven that Hamas are not stealing it. Bedouin gangs organized by Israel have been filmed doing it. Hamas had agreed to not be a part of the future governance before the last ceasefire collapsed. Hostages were to be released. It was collapsed by Netanyahu. This was before serious extermination stated. Why should Israel have any say over the future for its victims? Why not put the same prohibition on Netanyahu remaining part of the Israeli government? Or anyone else who openly advocated genocide? There needs to be restitution for the 60000+ dead. Return of Land to 1967 borders would be a good start. You build a huge town on it. tough tit. Hand it over. Given the farce we have witnessed over this, you really do have to question the intelligence of the so called leaders of the West.
The two state solution was strangled in the cradle long ago by Israel. Furthermore, after what Israel has done, nobody in the Levant should be required to live next door to them. Israel must be dismantled and moved to the USA.
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