Prime
Minister Modi makes up the first PM to visit Israel but it is reported that he
will not visit Palestinian side, against to the earlier practice of visiting
both sides which was done by our President Pranab Mukherjee and External
Affairs Ministers, Jaswant Singh in 2000, S.M. Krishna in 2012 and Sushma
Swaraj in 2016. This shift is not seen as healthy by Dr. Majdi Elkhadi, the
Diplomatic Advisor to the Palestinian President, who appeals for a ‘balanced
act of India that could bring both Israel and Palestine to settle their scores
by adopting the two nation theory.’
The
dispute between Israel and Palestine
Israelites
claim that Palestine is their ‘Promised Land by God as they are Yahweh’s chosen
people’. The Balfour Declaration of 1917 and the League of Nations resolution
in 1922 have given leverage to Jews across the world to return to Palestine as
a response to the justification of Zionist Movement
that ‘Land without people could be a Land
for People without Land’. Since, the Christian Zionists also supported this
slogan, United Nations in 1947 resolved to create a Jewish state within
Palestine. This resulted in 55% of Palestinian area was given to Jewish state,
although the Jewish population was only around 30% at that point of time, who
owned only 7% of total land. This resolution favored Jews to move in to this
state and settle there as Israelis.
While
native Palestinians were pushed to a smaller area and rejected this unjust
declarations and partition, Jews declared the formation of ‘State of Israel in
May 1948’. This ended in Palestine War between the native Palestinians and the
new Jewish settlers. Obviously, Israelis won the war with the support of US and
European Allies and conquered 78 percent of Palestine; hundreds of towns and
villages had been obliterated; around 700,000 Arabs had to flee from their
homeland as refugees otherwise known as ‘Nakba, the catastrophe’. This caused
promotion of PLO –Palestinian Liberation Organization- having Yasser Arafat as
its Leader and won international recognition as the representative of the
Palestinian people.
Despite this dispute
and the subsequent war in1967, Israel passed a law in 1980 that Jerusalem is
the ‘complete and united’ capital of Israel. However, the UN Security
Council resolution 478 of 1980 declared that the claim of Israel to keep
Jerusalem as its capital was ‘null and void’. When this being the status, East
Jerusalem where most of the Holy places of all the three religions –Judaism,
Christianity and Islam-are situated, Israelis unmindful of the UN resolution
and the voice of the international community including Palestine, still holds
this city under its armed forces – military and police.
Continued Persecution
on Palestinians
This detestable
aggression ensures favorable gains to Jews but untold miseries and violence
against Palestinians. While Israel encourages Jews anywhere in the world
to return to Israel and provides all facilities for their settlement, there is
an outright denial of right to return of the native Palestinian refugees who
flee during the time of conflicts and war; Israel confiscates the lands of
exiled Palestinians and distributes the same to the Jewish settlers;
Palestinians are forced to live in their own land as internal refugees;
While Jewish settlers get all basic amenities like water at free of cost,
Palestinians have to pay for it; the traditional religious places of worship
that are common to all three religions are forcefully brought under the control
of Israeli-military and police-and extreme restrictions are imposed on
Christian and Muslim Palestinians which amount to denial of their right to
profess their faith; Israel’s continued military occupation and confiscation of
privately owned land in the West Bank, and control over Gaza, are extremely
oppressive and the existence of Palestinians is under threat; Thousands of
Palestinian men, women, and children are held in Israeli prisons and hardly
they are able to avail fair trial and justice; Walls of separation are built in
many parts of the country and the free mobility of Palestinians are enormously
restricted and denied that amount to exclusion and discrimination; Draconian
laws are enacted to discriminate, subjugate, exploit and suppress Palestinians
and International Human Rights norms, bills, treaties, instruments and
mechanisms and even the Resolutions of UN are extensively ignored and violated.
In short, Palestinians right to live with dignity and freedom is at
stake.
India’s position on Israel
and Palestine
While International Community
has become conspicuously silent owing to the heavy pressure by the Christian
Zionists and their Governments, India is known for its unequivocal support to
the Statehood of Palestine, right from the days of PLO and Yasser Arafat.
However, recently India developed a strong business relationship with Israel
and maintains economic, technological Co-Operation besides arms trade. To the
surprise of many countries, India recently abstained from voting in UNHRC for
adopting a ‘Report of the Independent Commission of Inquiry on the 2014 Gaza
Conflict’ that condemns Israel’s brutal actions during seven week long military
operations against Hamas controlled Gaza in 2013 which killed civilians as
well. This was seen as a major shift by the Modi Govt from India’s
historical/ideological positioning.
Appeal
In the
midst of this state of affairs, our Prime Minister visits Israel but doesn’t
seem to visit the Palestinian side. The Prime Minister needs to look back the
role of India in supporting the cause of Palestinians whose land, life,
dignity, freedom, justice and peace are being thwarted by the Israeli
occupation and settlement. Indian Prime Minister should maintain India’s
tradition of Non Violence and Non-Cooperation to unjust occupation of
territories by force, militarism and extremism. When our PM is proud enough of
India’s heritage, culture and its fast economic development, he should also see
India’s name and image is sustained by lending support to the politically and
militarily oppressed nation and its people! It is just and priorities that the
Prime Minister should visit Palestine side as well and also raise the plight
and right of Palestinians with Israeli Authorities!
Rev Dr. Vincent
Manoharan PhD.,
NDCW – National
Dalit Christian Watch
No: 8/1, 3rd
Street, South Patel Nagar,
New Delhi – 110
008
Mobile:
8220593388
July,5, 2017.
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