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| Picture By Ruqayyah Chamseddine |
By Ruqayyah Chamseddine
Building on the Madrid, Boston, and Haifa conferences, a select group of activists from a variety of backgrounds convened last weekend in Dallas, Texas in order to implement an international project - to pass a declaration which professes the need for creating a single democratic state in what is now occupied Palestine.
The declaration is unlike anything else written; a plethora of more mainstream proposals speak in representation of the people of Palestine, neglecting to give them room to voice their grievances and necessities. For too long the Palestinians have been forced to remain bystanders, watching with hands bound as others negotiate on their behalf.
The One Democratic State in Palestine Declaration emphasizes a vital alternative, placing the occupied and subjugated people of Palestine in a position to create a new beginning for not only one another but for those who once lived amongst them as brothers and sisters, the Jewish people: “We the people of Palestine [...] call on all who value justice and peace to join us in a movement to establish one democratic state in Palestine that can serve all its people equally.”
The ODS conference in Dallas, Texas gathered within its vast walls Arabs and Jews, Muslims and Christians, Agnostics and Atheists. In league with those elsewhere we assembled in order to affirm the Declaration of the Movement for One Democratic State in Palestine and debate and agree on a plan of action.
The objectives of the One Democratic State in Palestine Movement:
● The creation of a unified one democratic state in Mandate Palestine.
● Repudiate Zionism and eliminate all forms of discrimination and segregation
and end violence, militarism, and warfare.
● Unify Jewish Israelis and Palestinians in a shared non-ethnic democratic state
in Palestine.
● Restore Palestinian inalienable rights in Palestine and to compensate
Palestinians for their pain and suffering.
● Establish an international solidarity movement, composed of individuals and
organizations, to organize and spearhead efforts to realize the objectives of
one democratic state in Palestine.
Speakers included:
Dr.Mazin Qumsiyeh, Palestinian author and expert on Palestinian refugee rights, who spoke to us via video from occupied Palestine.
Lenni Brenner, Jewish anti-Zionist author of Zionism in the Age of the Dictators.
Gilad Atzmon, Israeli-born British jazz musician and anti-Zionist political activist and writer, who spoke to us from Britain.
Paul Hershfield, co-founding member of the Campaign to End Israeli Apartheid, Southern California. Richard Falk, professor of international law at Princeton University.
Virginia Tilley, professor of political science, author of The One-State Solution: A Breakthrough for Peace in the Israeli-Palestinian Deadlock, who spoke to us from South Africa.
The Aims and Accomplishments of The conference were as Follows:
● Affirming the Declaration.
● Clarifying the principles and goals of the Declaration.
● Developing an honest discussion on the Declaration.
● Establishing a mechanism to discuss, incorporate and follow up on issues of
concern to the Declaration that have been discussed during the conference.
The conference went beyond holding a conventional dialogue on what is best for the
Palestinians and what should be done in order for them to live as they once did in the land of their ancestors - it’s aspirations included abolishing middle-man diplomacy, most commonly associated with the US led ‘peace-talks’.
Attendee of the ODS Conference Haitham Zabri, activist and head of the Palestine Online Store, expressed that it was “...inspiring and uplifting to be around this small group of committed activists who are determined to push the cause of one democratic state with equal rights for all.
This conference was the cornerstone of a movement that will inevitably snowball to build a universal consensus that all humans are entitled to equal rights and that one democratic state is the only durable solution for Palestine.”
The Movement for One Democratic State in Palestine (ODS) concluded its inaugural convention on October 24, 2010 in Dallas, Texas.
The event was a resounding success, cultivating the Movement’s three objectives:
● Adopt the Declaration of the Movement for One Democratic State in Palestine,
● Establish and launch the Movement for One Democratic State in Palestine, and
● Approve a 5 year Action Plan for the Movement.
So, as the Declaration profoundly states, “..on this platform, with our international friends and allies, we commit ourselves to restore justice to the people by establishing a unitary democratic state in Palestine in which all citizens can live in security, peace, equality and freedom.
We firmly believe that this great accomplishment will stand as a monument to humanity’s capacity to overcome the legacy of bitter strife; move all peoples of the world to reject beliefs of ethnic supremacy and separation; and inspire people everywhere to work with new hope and energy to create societies, nations and states that defend and secure equality, dignity and human rights for all.”
River to Sea
Uprooted Palestinian
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