Tag: Human Rights

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Musician Sonia Montez Speaks Out in Support of the Cultural Boycott of Israel

Boycott the Red Sea Jazz Festival in Israel
Boycott the Red Sea Jazz Festival
Inspirational singer and composer Sonia Montez advocates for boycott of apartheid Israel:

“When Mexico bleeds, and no one listens, who suffers. Would you play in a festival in Mexico that was supported by corrupt officials, the ones who feed into the violence epidemic sweeping Mexico? Do you not know that the Zapatistas have a history of supporting Palestinian human rights causes? You may think what is happening to the Palestinians is wrong but your willing nature to participate in celebration for their oppressors shows more of your character than your words offer. If music is beauty, what beauty lies in playing for a festival in which the native (like you are native to your country) population could not even attend because of humiliating checkpoints placed to break the spirit of said population. What if one day you were not allowed to return to Mexico because the government had taken over your land and placed more ideal residents there? Would you play for a government endorsed jazz festival. Do you think you’d be playing for the people then?”

Sonia continues on her Facebook wall:

Music, as I was taught, is a form of artistic expression and part of my being as an artist is an unwavering resolve to speak out against the bullshit my government supports.

and

music is “awesome” when the people making it behave “awesomely”

To a Zionist who attempts to smear and intimidate her, Sonia replies

I peacefully revolt for the future of mine and because I am a true mother who understand no mother should have to watch her child suffer at the hands of MY government. I will speak for the rights of your children, even if you choose to blind them in ignorant privilege. I do not want your children and my son to have to carry the burden your apathy will leave on the shoulders of future generations.

So, I hope they’re watching. I hope they see every video and link I post. You have just tried to make me fear my government, sir. I am not scared of you or they.

On Israel’s expulsion of Bedouins from the Negev under the Prawer Plan:

Right now, Israel’s Prawer Plan is displacing 70,000 Arabs from the Nagev Desert. People not allowed to enjoy your show. By playing in a government supported/endorsed cultural event, you are effectively distracting from and supporting this action.

…

Would you have played in apartheid South Africa? Would you have played for colonizers and settlers during Manifest Destiny? Stevie Wonder, Roger Waters, Elvis Costello, Chris “Daddy” Dave, and many others have joined the cultural boycott. What makes them over the top and you so correct?

…

Palestinians would not be allowed to put on such a lavish festival, just look at what they had to go through to put on a marathon. To suggest Palestine would even have enough funds to put on a music festival (because they would have to be allowed by the colonizing government to put on a music show on their own land and already live in inhumane conditions) shows mis-education on the the reality of the apartheid. I’m talking about independent and internationally recognized violations of human rights. Over 200 resolutions by the UNSC that only remind the apartheid state needs to heed the treaties they already agreed to but choose to violate at every turn.

….

You may play for people, but the government uses your silence to white-wash a very serious issue. You want to be a puppet? Fine, but then don’t get uppity when people call you a puppet. You could have joined Chris Daddy Dave and Palladino, the Matt Schofield Band, Salif Keita, Stanley Jordan… you could have become an educated artist. You could have done research and requested to visit Hebron, using activist escorts, so you could see for yourself how ridiculous the notion is that you are somehow lifting people up by playing the Red Sea Jazz Festival (which sounds like a pretty piece of propaganda from a brochure or something)

I am sure you are not watching these videos, why would you, confronting fact isn’t easy. But, in the event your curiosity and ethics grab hold, here is what you are really helping to “lift up” in a dire political situation (the dire situation isn’t political, it’s about basic human rights). You were saying “yes” to house demolitions, “yes” to peaceful demonstrators being pelted with uncovered and broken rubber bullets, “yes” to checkpoints, “yes” to ethnic cleansing with every hit. Your grooves translated into “yes” for kidnapping children in the middle of the night, “yes” to the illegal settlements (all settlements are illegal under international law), “yes” to the constant oppression and fear that Palestinians live through on a daily basis.

The reality you didn’t play for people, the amazing people of Judaic faith fighting the occupation that is being carried out in their name, you helped zionists. And, that, at the end of the day, is something you must live with. Every time Amnesty International finds a new study showing a more violations by the IDF, every time B’Tselem ???? has to demonstrate, every time a refusenick is jailed for not wanting to serve the oppressor, your name will be on the side of the system, not the people

Antonio Sanchez, whom Sonia Montez is addressing, replaced Chris Daddy Dave and the Drumhedz, who, along with the Matt Schofield Trio, cancelled performances at the Red Sea Jazz Festival held in Israel in August.

Related Links

Sonia Montez – Of Tears and Honey
A Bicycle Ride In The Park

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Nigel Kennedy’s Open Letter to the Palestine Strings

Dear Friends in the Palestine Strings,

I was so happy to see the work we did on dynamic contrast, intonation and really listening to each other being realized at such an extraordinary level. Congratulations! I am looking forward to working on Bach with you and other styles of music in which we can further progress the musical parameters we have already established. Your performance at the Royal Albert Hall was something to be proud of and demonstrated the benefits of people being treated equally as opposed to being decimated and robbed by an apartheid system.

As you have seen, there is huge support for stopping the abuse of your human rights. There are many people who are neither infatuated nor indoctrinated by the evil of Zionism.

The sequence of events as described so succinctly by my brother Roger Waters seems to imply that the Head of Radio 3 is at the beck and call of Baroness Screech (who has undermined his position with no right to do so) but we should remember that he gave us the chance to play that beautiful concert. Perhaps we should also remember, title, or no title, Baroness Screech’s opinion is no more important that yours or mine, so one would have thought that none of us should have the right to censor the BBC or the general media in any way. The myth that the BBC is too pro-Palestinian, by the way, has obviously been completely dispelled when a few relatively innocuous words from a violinist can so easily be deleted from a TV broadcast. My short comment was purely observational and humanist. It surely wouldn’t have been censored if it had been referring to the benefits of the demise of the apartheid in South Africa when playing with an African ensemble.

Many thanks however to the people mentioned above and everyone else for giving a world platform to the important discussion concerning Zionist apartheid.

I hope life is treating you ok. We all miss you over here. I’m sorry to hear that the “normal” treatment of Palestinian people by the Israeli authorities led to you being detained for twelve hours. I am looking forward to playing with you again soon and to the days when we can play on a level playing field in Palestine and throughout the world.

Love and respect,

Nigel Kennedy

PS Mostafa – I really look forward to playing Melody in the Wind with you in Hyde Park on September 7th. See you at rehearsals on the 5th

On Haaretz (Hebrew)

Nigel Kennedy, Palestine Strings, Members of Orchestra of Life, Gwilym Simcock, Krzystof Dziedzic and Yaron Stavi.
Vivaldi’s Four Seasons and more.
Live at The Proms Festival at Royal Albert Hall.

Related Links

Official Statement from Nigel Kennedy on BBC Censorship
BBC to censor violinist Nigel Kennedy’s statement about Israeli apartheid from TV broadcast

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On Orientalism, Islam and Feminism

Runnig toward destinyOn World Bulletin, Levent Basturk provides analysis on the role of orientalist western disciplines on development within islamic countries, and how this phenomena serves capitalism, noting that:

“The Orientalist viewed Asiatic society as a society whose social structure was characterized by the absence of civil society. In other words, a network of institutions mediating between the individual and the state is absent. The conditions for Oriental despotism were created as a result of the absence of these institutions because the individual was exposed to the arbitrary rule of the despot. The absence of civil society simultaneously explained the failure of capitalist development outside Europe and the absence of democracy. Such an absence fortified the Orientalist explanation of Muslim psychology.
…
England was characterized by Marx as “the unconscious tool of history in bringing about … revolution.[19]

In light of this view, the societies of the Orient could only be changed and transformed by exogenous forces because of their internally static condition. This exogenous force is the destructive effect of capitalist imperialism and colonialism. What can be inferred from this belief is that the struggle of colonized nations against the historical growth of the capitalist mode of production was, by definition, a reactionary struggle. Like other major figures of sociology and political economy, Marx and Engels concluded that the economic backwardness of the Middle East resulted from the combination of social and political causes, of which the absence of a middle class of entrepreneurs was especially important.”

As a result of the information ‘revolution’, the insertion of the orientalist point of view is deepened because it is elites largely who have the access to the information network. What happens when knowledge and access to the net becomes further diffused? The Orient is strengthening its voice, regardless of impact by western capitalism.

With the rejection of the orientalist western Femen movement, for example, feminists within Islam assert the primacy of their narrative. As the Frustrated Arab highlights:

Simply stating that you are in solidarity, that you support a woman’s right to don the headscarf, remove it, cover/uncover etc. is in no way dubious. It is when aforementioned solidarity crosses the red line and veers into the seizure of native voices and the tokenization of these voices does this become intensely problematic, ineffective and perverse.

Also it has long been chronicled that women of colour are often left out of mainstream feminist discourse, unless it is by means of humanitarian imperialism channels where they are simply tokenised. Bell Hooks (Gloria Jean Watkins), a feminist, social activist, does a magnificent job describing this in much of her work.

In terms of the mounting questions in regards to how one is to raise awareness in light of such groups as FEMEN: you raise awareness by highlighting native voices, not co-opting them. It is your duty to amplify, not commandeer.

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Official Statement from Nigel Kennedy on BBC Censorship

A spokesperson for Nigel Kennedy said:

“Nigel Kennedy finds it incredible and quite frightening that in the 21st century it is still such an insurmountable problem to call things the way they are. He thinks that once we can all face issues for what they really are we can finally have a chance of finding solutions to problems such as human rights, equal rights and even, perhaps, free speech. His first reaction to the BBC’s censorship & imperial lack of impartiality was to refuse to play for an employer who is influenced by such dubious outside forces.

Mr Kennedy has, however, reminded himself that his main purpose is to provide the audience with the best music he can deliver. To withdraw his services would be akin to a taxi driver refusing to drive their customer due to their political incorrectness. He, therefore, is not withdrawing his services that he owes to his audience, but is half expecting to be replaced by someone deemed more suitable than him due to their surplus of opportunism and career aspirations.

Mr Kennedy is glad, however, that by censoring him the BBC has created such a huge platform for the discussion of its own impartiality, its respect (or lack of it) for free speech and for the discussion of the miserable apartheid forced on the Palestinian people by the Israeli government supported by so many governments from the outside world.

Mr Kennedy believes his very small statement during his concert was purely descriptive and not political whatsoever.”

If you are a British TV licence holder with a British postcode, you can sign the petition calling on the BBC to reverse their decision.

Related Links

Why won’t BBC let Nigel Kennedy denounce Israeli apartheid?
Virtuoso violinist Nigel Kennedy hits out at BBC for censoring his Palestine comments at the 2013 Proms

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One Proper Vision – One Secular Democratic State Called Palestine : Haidar Eid

Dr. Haidar Eid
Dr. Haidar Eid (Photo: Palestinalibre.org)
Dr. Haidar Eid speaks about opposition in Gaza to the renewed peace negotiations, the need for Palestinian self-critique concerning current political events, waning support for Hamas and the situation in Gaza.

“What is happening now in Gaza is a slow genocide.” – Dr. Haidar Eid

Dr. Haidar Eid is Associate Professor in the Department of English Literature, Al-Aqsa University, Gaza Strip, Palestine. Dr. Eid is a founding member of the One Democratic State Group (ODSG) and a member of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel.

The world looks to a new round of negotiations under US Secretary of State Kerry – where is Gaza in those talks?

Gaza is diverse and I cannot speak for Gaza as one, but clearly most here are opposed to negotiations. Hamas laid out its official position on Tuesday with officials expressing their dismay at the resumption of talks. Most organizations within the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) – among them the Popular as well as the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP and DFLP) – oppose the talks. Only some members of Fatah have fallen for the lie that negotiations might bring a viable solution.

Speaking for myself, as an advocate for one democratic state of Palestine, I oppose the talks, which aim at a two-state solution. We believe that creating two states is no true solution but a racist one. Two viable states have become impossible to achieve – mainly because Israel has created facts on the ground that subvert the whole concept.

But more than that – the two state solution does not guarantee even a minimum of rights for the Palestinians. There is no talk anymore of the right of return for those refugees from villages and towns that were ethnically cleansed in 1948. 75-80% of Gaza’s population are refugees and international law provides for their return – what is there for them?

The Oslo accords never incorporated international law. And most importantly: they never dealt with Israel’s racist measures and apartheid system against Palestinians.

What alternative would you favor?

Fatah is the only force officially supporting negotiations. When I oppose them, I do not represent only Gazans but the majority of Palestinians. Our alternative? Stick to the call supported by most organizations in 2005: Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS)! The campaign calls on the international community to boycott Israel, divest from its economy and impose sanctions until Israel complies with international law. Then, when there is pressure, we can negotiate.

In South Africa the ANC did not negotiate before it had substantial backing. We cannot negotiate about basic rights at present, and equal rights must be the basis for negotiations about any kind of state. The only just solution is one like in Northern Ireland and South Africa, meaning a secular, democratic state for all.

How can this be achieved?

The first step is serious self-critique. Palestinians have to consider publicly what the leadership of PLO and Hamas have done to the Palestinian cause since the Oslo accords were struck. The past 20 years have led us nowhere. Instead, settlements have expanded and Gaza has been transformed into the largest concentration camp on earth.

Serious self-critique will, secondly, lead to dismantlement of the PA. The institution of the PA gives the wrong impression to the international community of an equality between the sides, as if Palestinians had an also army and occupied another people! We as Palestinians should have a local administration to organize daily life and the resistance, not to undermine it.

Thirdly, we have to forget about the two-state solution. It is a complete waste of time and energy. We should all be talking about one democratic state, because the two state option is a fiction.

What is the situation in Gaza like at the moment? How isolated is the population?

The situation has deteriorated. Israel has tightened its closure. Things have turned worse since last days of Morsi’s government in Egypt, when it decided to destroy all tunnels [on the Egyptian-Gazan border] that are vital for the supply of all basic goods here. After Morsi was ousted the destruction of tunnels continued, and now most are closed.

Furthermore, the only official crossing to Egypt, Rafah, is frequently closed, for example today. Rafah is vital! As all crossing points to Israel are virtually closed, Rafah is the bottleneck out of Gaza.

Hamas first renounced the Syrian regime and Hezbollah, now it lost the Muslim Brotherhood as a mighty ally in Egypt. What does this mean for the Hamas government?

Hamas is in a limbo now. It lost its most important strategic alliances with Iran and Hezbollah, which it gave up for closer relations with the Muslim Brotherhood and Qatar. Now that the Muslim Brothers are deposed from the government in Egypt, Hamas is left hanging in the air. And the new Emir in Qatar is showing a new style of diplomacy, increasing pressure on Hamas.

Hamas, as a matter of fact, does not have a clear-cut political vision. You keep hearing different, contradictory positions from various officials. This has also affected talks for reconciliation with Fatah in the West Bank, which have effectively come to a halt.

Gaza is controlled by Hamas, yes, but Hamas is no more than the leading prisoner among the 1.7 million prisoners of Gaza.

What are the current topics of Gaza’s internal politics?

First is the need to end this deadly, medieval siege imposed on Gaza in 2006. A slow genocide is happening here that has already caused the death of about 2,000 people who did not receive vital medical treatment in time. The rate of malnutrition in Gaza is the highest worldwide.

The end of this siege will only come within a political solution to the Palestinian question as a whole. When we talk about negotiations, we are talking about Gaza’s fate as well. That is also why we, activists in Gaza, promote BDS so strongly.

We are highly affected by what is happening in Egypt. We are holding our breath right now. We want Egypt to open the Rafah crossing permanently and unconditionally. It is our only option right now so as to not make us utter hostages to Israel’s will.

And how much support does Hamas enjoy in Gaza today?

Hamas has lost a lot of its popularity as it resorted to repressive tools and tactics against its opponents. Most people who voted for Hamas did so not because they were for Hamas, but because they were against the corruption of the PA and the concept of a two-state solution. As such, Hamas was the only option.

Now people are questioning everything that Hamas said before the election. It promised resistance, but in fact since the ceasefire with Israel in Dec 2012, it does not allow any kind of independent and popular resistance anymore.

Is there a vision for Gaza?

For me, there is one proper vision – a solution for Palestine as a whole that implements UN Resolution 194 which calls for the right of return for all refugees and compensation for their decades in exile. Gaza should become part of one secular democratic state called Palestine.

Israel has another vision – it wants to get rid of Gaza. It wants Gaza to become part of Egypt like it was before 1967 to end all its Gaza problems. The Egyptians do not want and will not allow that. Instead, what is happening now is a slow genocide in Gaza.

Edited in consultataion with Haidar Eid, and reblogged from his interview with Lea Frehse, AIC