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Invest
in caring not killing!
On 14 May in London, 300 women and men from a wide range of nationalities attended a meeting to uncover the experiences of women in the face of military occupation in the West Bank, Afghanistan and elsewhere, and to cross the divides between women of different backgrounds, starting with Arab and Jewish women. Over 20 people (mostly women) took the microphone in a non-party-political speak-out. Keynote speaker Nawal El Saadawi, internationally known Egyptian feminist author spoke of the military escalation since 11 September. She said we could not equate Palestinian suicide bombers ´'who have only their bodies' to defend their communities, with the Israeli invasion using high-tech tanks. Osama Bin Laden and George Bush were two sides of the same coin, one a fundamentalist Christian, the other a fundamentalist Moslem created by the US. Selma James from the chair pointed to the importance of the movement against this Israeli holocaust and against fundamentalism of all kinds, keeping a clear distinction between Zionism and Judaism. Ghada Razuki, ex-firefighter, part of a team of volunteers sent to Palestine by the International Solidarity Movement, gave an eye-witness account. She spoke of the latest Israeli invasion in Hebron, whose population has been reduced from 10,000 to 1,500; soldiers "would shoot anyone", including older women and babies. She described the courage and solidarity of people, including women whose centre in Hebron collects supplies for those who have lost everything. Yet as soon as centres like these are created they can be destroyed by Israeli incursions. Two other eye-witness accounts described how ambulances are repeatedly held up at Israeli check-points. An account sent in by a man described the rape of his sister by Israeli soldiers. One Palestinian woman told how under siege she had to talk a young man through the last hour of his life on his mobile phone as he lay dying in a blocked off area, “just one of the experiences of a typical Palestinian family”. Both described the systematic destruction of all means of livelihood, bulldozing Palestinian homes, crops and groves of fruit trees. Israel has 80% of the land and even in Palestinian areas Israeli settlements take 40% of the land and 80% of the water. A woman of African descent and a Native American woman spoke of the holocausts against their communities preparing the ground for the holocausts in Europe, Palestine and elsewhere. Another woman said that those who experience genocide in their own countries and apply for asylum here, are treated as bogus by the government. A man from Payday men’s network reported on a secret deal which he claimed Zionists had made with the Nazis to break up the Jewish-led 1933 boycott of German goods in exchange for Jewish people and assets going to build a Jewish State in Palestine. Support statements from Israel to Ireland highlighted women's opposition to the occupation. News from wives and mothers of Israeli “refuseniks” got a great round of applause. Several people pointed out that lobbying ministers is ineffective because they are “in the pockets” of the US government. Arab governments too have a lot to answer for: they would not stop oil production in support of the Palestinians. Speakers included representatives from the Campaign for Freedom and Justice for Samar Jawad; a vigil in support of Palestine opposite Downing Street; Lawyers for Palestinian Human Rights; the NUS; a call for support of the boycott of Israeli goods; and for people to protest biased media coverage. This meeting was a first step towards uncovering facts about the immeasurable cost to women when the communities they care for are attacked. A spokeswoman for the Global Women’s Strike launched an international petition Invest in Caring Not Killing, calling for the $900 billion now spent on military budgets worldwide to be invested instead in the care and welfare of people and the planet. Opening & closing comments from the chair, Selma James |
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