Tuesday, March 19, Curt Goering, Elizabeth Hodgkin and David Holling of Amnesty International held a press conference here in Jerusalem. They had come to this land to investigate first-hand the escalating human rights abuses in the context of the recent Israeli incursions into Palestinian towns, villages and refugee camps. They were not only disturbed by what they saw but equally disturbed by the U.S. Vice-President Cheney and U.S. Envoy Zinni’s speechs (their visits coincided). Neither American leaders acknowledged “the link between human rights, justice and peace” despite what was happening to people here and now under the illegal occupation of Palestine.
Tuesday, March 19, Curt Goering, Elizabeth Hodgkin and David Holling of Amnesty International held a press conference here in Jerusalem. They had come to this land to investigate first-hand the escalating human rights abuses in the context of the recent Israeli incursions into Palestinian towns, villages and refugee camps. They were not only disturbed by what they saw but equally disturbed by the U.S. Vice-President Cheney and U.S. Envoy Zinni’s speechs (their visits coincided). Neither American leaders acknowledged “the link between human rights, justice and peace” despite what was happening to people here and now under the illegal occupation of Palestine.
Amnesty International clearly understood the centrality of human rights for security and lasting peace between the Palestinians and Israelis. They stated, “If General Zinni does not put human rights squarely on the table with both Israelis and Palestinians he may as well pack his bags now. Without human rights at the heart of a peace process, his efforts will be doomed to fail, and the downward spiral will degenerate even further out of control. And once again Israelis and Palestinians will pay the price for this negligence.” I believe that most internationals living here will wholeheartedly agree with this statement.
The alarming evidence witnessed by these three Amnesty International members revealed serious human rights violations committed during the March incursion of the Israeli Occupation Forces into Palestinian areas. The members noted that dozens of Palestinian civilians were needlessly killed as were six medical personnel, including two doctors. Last week medical personnel came to the conclusion that transport by taxi was safer than by ambulance since the Israeli Occupation Forces were targeting medical personnel and vehicles. During the two-week invasion over 2000 Palestinians between the ages of 14 and 45 were arrested and kept without food for the first 24 hours under deplorable conditions. Many males still remain imprisoned. The number of traumatized civilians, especially children, was deeply troubling.
While the Israeli Occupation Force was systematically sowing destruction and Amnesty International was recording the violations of human rights, I was traveling on a Palestinian bus from St. John’s Eye hospital — this hospital continues to serve the Palestinian people in East Jerusalem. Suddenly the bus was stopped by the Israeli Occupation Force and two soldiers entered it, demanding to see I.D. cards from the men. The soldiers then exited the bus with the cards and the bus could not continue when so many passengers could now be arrested for lack of I.D cards. We waited. Finally the soldiers called one Palestinian man from the bus and the rest of us braced ourselves for what might be an unpleasant scenario. In a matter of minutes the Palestinian re-entered the front door of the bus, stood in the aisle and hawked, “Identity cards for ten shekels.” His sense of humor was still intact and all of us laughed. But the bus driver insisted on not driving on until he was assured that each man had received his I.D. card. As we continued our ride toward the Old City, I couldn’t help but reflect on how resilient my travel companions were — abuses and fears had been released for the moment into laughter.
