2010 Jan 02: Egypt “complicit” in Israel’s Gaza blockade
Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign -- Media Release
Sat 2nd January 2010
Egypt “complicit” in Israel’s Gaza blockade
Egyptian authorities are being accused of complicity with Israel over their refusal to allow the “Gaza Freedom March” to enter Gaza on New Year’s Eve.
The international group had been set to enter Gaza at its Egyptian border, but authorities refused to let them leave Cairo. Participants later rejected Egypt’s offer to allow a symbolic group of 100 to cross the border, which came after days of protest in the capital.
“We flatly reject Egypt’s offer of a token gesture. We refuse to whitewash the siege of Gaza”, said Ziyaad Lunat, a march coordinator.
Once inside Gaza, the 1300 activists from 43 countries had arranged to join with around 50,000 Palestinians in a protest march to Gaza’s Erez border with Israel, where they were to demand the crossing point be opened and the three-year blockade lifted.
Despite the setback, Palestinian organisers were upbeat. A joint statement to participants by Haidar Eid in Gaza and Omar Barghouti in Jerusalem stressed that Palestinians could “feel your solidarity without coming to Gaza”. The statement continued, “exposing the siege against you and us may bear more fruit for us and towards ending the siege, at least from the Egyptian side.”
Mick Napier is chair of the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign, one of hundreds of organisations with delegations in Cairo. He said, “It is clearer than ever that the Egyptian dictatorship is fully complicit with Israel’s crippling siege of Gaza.“We may not have crossed the border into Gaza, but the worldwide movement of solidarity with the Palestinian people has taken a major step forward. The networks of solidarity developing here have raised the Boycott Israel campaign to a new level."
ENDS
Notes for editors:
1. The Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign started in autumn 2000 in response to the Palestinian second uprising against Israeli occupation (Intifada). The SPSC has branches and groups of supporters in several Scottish cities and universities, as well as individual members across Scotland and elsewhere.
For further information, contact:
SPSC Secretary: Sofiah MacLeod: 0131 620 0052; 07931200361
SPSC Secretary: Sofiah MacLeod: 0131 620 0052; 07931200361
2. SPSC has sent a delegation of 12 members to the march.
A blog, including participants’ details and photos, can be found here:
Interviews with participants can be arranged on request.
3. The Gaza Freedom March
The Gaza Freedom March has been organised by the International Coalition to End the Illegal Siege of Gaza, an umbrella group of individuals and organizations that share the goal of bringing an end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip. Members and/or endorsers include groups such as CODEPINK: Women for Peace, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East, and Medical Aid for Palestine. Individual endorsers include author Alice Walker, Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Maguire and Dr. Patch Adams, Howard Zinn, Gore Vidal, Arun Gandhi, Naomi Klein.
For a complete list, visit here: http://www.gazafreedommarch.org/article.php?id=5032
How likely is the march to be successful in achieving its objectives, since so many other demonstrations, etc. have not had an impact?
No one event or activity will end the siege of the Gaza Strip or the Israeli occupation overall. However, we believe we are at a critical juncture in global public opinion, with citizens and governments becoming increasingly critical of Israeli policies. The tipping point, when Israel is forced to open the borders and allow self-determination for the Palestinians, is within reach. Thus, we are designing the march and its accompanying activities to have maximum impact on decision makers in the United States, Egypt, Israel and countries around the world by: a) generating media coverage, b) educating participants so they can spread the word in their home communities and c) pressuring the countries that are enabling the collective punishment of the citizens of the Gaza Strip.
For more information on the Gaza Freedom March, visit: www.gazafreedommarch.com
The Press Room can be found here: www.gazafreedommarch.com/article.php?id=5025
A Press Pack can be downloaded here: www.gazafreedommarch.com/downloads/PRESS%20PACK.pdf