March 24 MAWO Forum Report

On March 24th, 2010 Mobilization Against War & Occupation (MAWO) organized a forum entitled “100 Years of Palestinian Struggle Against Zionist Occupation: What We Learn and What Is at Stake.” This forum was a great opportunity to discuss the over 60 years of Israeli occupation of Palestine and how the antiwar movement needs to respond to demand the right of Palestinians to self-determination.

The evening was opened by MC Janine Solanki, MAWO Outreach Coordinator with film clips on Palestine. Through the film it showed the history and roots of Zionism not as a Jewish struggle for a homeland but as an imperialist project to further their interests in the Middle East.

Ali Yerevani, Editor of Fire This Time Newspaper for Social Justice spoke on the role of the US in the new era of war and occupation from Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran and other countries in the Middle East. He brought up important questions for people to ask, does Israel shape US foreign policy or does US shape Israeli foreign policy, or both? Can Israel survive without funding from the US Government? Why does the US support strongly Israel foreign policy and Israeli Colonial expansion? He connected this new era of war and occupation with Israel as an important part for western imperialist countries to use as a means to intervene in the Middle East and for their own economic interests in the Middle East.

Ali explained the current situation in the West Bank and Gaza and the politics of Palestinian Authority and Hamas toward the miserable condition in Gaza and what is the strategy of Israel imperialist in suffocating Palestinian people in Gaza and overall the roots and cause of popularity of Hamas in Gaza and West Bank.

Ali emphasized in order to get US and other imperialists out of the Middle East and to stop Israeli colonial expansion we must unconditionally support the self-determination for Palestinian people and support one state solution based on one person one vote in the whole historic Palestine before the formation of Israel in 1948.

He continued it has been for awhile in the last couple of years that the social justice and progressive movement have been diverting from basic supporting and fighting for self-determination for Palestine to the issues that ultimately targeting to establish two-state solution in Palestine that includes Israeli Apartheid Campaign and Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Campaign. No wonder nowadays you do not hear that much supporting for the two fundamental Palestinian rights, first unconditional self-determination for Palestine and second inalienable right of Palestinians to right of return. He explained there is no reason to bring any other issue to establish legitimatization to Palestinian struggle for their liberation or delegitimize the Zionist racist regime of Israel. The occupation of Palestinian land, mass expulsion and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in millions since 1948, imposing a racist Zionist regime-state on Palestinians, discriminate killings of Palestinians, destroying villages, farms and homes, all in all put the self-determination of Palestine and right of return of Palestinians as basic principle for dismantling Israeli Zionist racist State, to end the war and hostility between Arabs and Palestinians and finally establishing lasting peace in the Middle East.

Lively discussion followed Ali, where people wanted to continue to do more work on Palestine in Canada as well as more discussing the history of Palestine and colonization of Palestine in the last 100 years. Andrew Barry, the co-chair of MAWO promised the participants that there will be more forums and discussions on this very important issue.