The HCEF 13th International Conference panel, “The Long Overdue State of Palestine,” will reflect on the UN consideration of the issue of Palestinian statehood and the impact that the State of Palestine will have on the Palestinian population’s life.
The panelists will be Dr. James Zogby, President of the Arab American Institute; Dr. Shibley Telhami, the Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development at the University of Maryland in College Park; and Ambassador Maen Areikat,Chief of Mission for the General Delegation of the Palestine Liberation Organization to the U.S. The panel moderator will be Dr. Saliba Sarsar, Secretary, HCEF Board of Directors and Professor of Political Science and Associate Vice President at Monmouth University.
The Majority of Palestinians lives under Israeli military occupation, and are denied citizenship or enfranchisement of any kind, self-determination or independence. These have had a devastating impact particularly on the religious and economic life of Palestinian Christians. Another panel during the plenary session of the HCEF Conference will discuss these issues and the benefits of a Palestinian state on Christians and non-Christians alike.
In the last three years, the conditions on the Christians and non-Christians have become harsher. The inhabitants are subject to arbitrary arrest, imprisonment, and expulsion under Israeli military tribunals. This is a human rights abuse according to the Fourth Geneva Convention. Israeli prisons now hold over 10,000. Christian communities such as in Bethlehem have had their municipal lands confiscated and are surrounded by walls and guard towers. Many a Christian home has been bulldozed to make room for these barriers. They and their neighbors watch as their land is steadily colonized by Israeli settlers in violation of international law and a human rights abuse against those living under occupation
In conjunction with The 13th International Conference on the Holy Land, the 2nd Investment Business Conference and 1stYouth Conference will be held Friday, October 28, through Sunday, October 30, 2011. It is co-hosted with the National Presbyterian Church and the Washington Marriott, both in Washington, DC. The Conference Awards Banquet will be held Friday, October 28, 2011 at the Washington Marriott Hotel, 1221 22nd Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20037.
