Hi Peter Billerbeck,
I received a letter from Congressman Moulton dated February
6, 2017, in which he explains why he voted in favor of House Resolution 11.
Let me tell you why I strongly disagree with the contents of
this letter..
The letter limits the charges against Israel to its
expansion of settlements and attempts to set up some equivalency between that
and the sporadic violence of Palestinians.
This is an incredibly narrow view of what Israel has done.
You and the Congressman have letters and emails from me
describing 50 years of Israel’s oppression and violations of Palestinian human
rights in the occupied territories including not only the illegality of the
occupation and the settlements but also: distributing
water unequally denying Palestinians fair access to minimal water while
allowing ample water to squatters for irrigation and pools, stealing land and
taking control over 40% of the West Bank; destroying over 48,000 homes and
other structures since 1967 (very few for security reasons); building a wall,
85% inside the green line separating families from their lands, schools and
businesses; overlooking squatters and the IDF destroying 800,000 olive trees;
illegally establishing one (military) law for Palestinians and another
(Israeli) law for squatters; failing to enforce criminal laws against squatters
while punishing Palestinians for the same actions; illegally restricted
movement by constructing many checkpoints and physical barriers (many unrelated
to security concerns resulting in difficulty in getting to jobs and medical
assistance); holding thousands of Palestinians, sometimes more than a
year, without ever charging them with a crime. In addition Israel has on four
occasions since 2006, chosen to invade Gaza, using excessive force, including
in 2014, killing over 2000 Palestinians, mostly women and children and
two-thirds civilians, and destroying or damaging over 96,000 houses and
structures.
The
letter states that the shared goal is reaching resolution between the parties
of this two-sided conflict. The solution is NOT a resolution between only the
two parties. In this case where one side has been an oppressor for 50 years and
has been the subject for 50 years of condemnation from the UN, often supported
by the US, the solution is world pressure on Israel (including especially the
BDS movement) to cease and desist from violating the human rights of
Palestinians.
In
addition the letters states that the H. Res. 11 “correctly emphasizes that the
only path to a lasting peace between the Israeli and the Palestinian people is
a durable two-state solution where both sides can safely live side-by-side.”
Wrong again! There is increasing acknowledgement (including an op-ed by Thomas
Friedman) that because of Israel’s 50 year illegal settlement policy, the
two-state solution is dead. It is time to explore possible structures for one
democratic state, such as a federation, where all residents have equal
rights.
I
apologize for the delay in responding to the letter but I was vacationing until
yesterday in southern Arizona. While there I had the opportunity to visit the
Tohono O’odham reservation and its cultural center as well as other museums
created by American Indians. One learns or is reminded of the cruel
treatment of them by non-American Indians including: maps showing the small
fraction of land given to them after most of it was stolen; the forced marches,
including the “trail of tears”, endured as they were evicted from their lands
and sent to reservations (refugee centers?); the attempted forced “civilization”
of the “savages” by shipping off children to boarding schools hundreds of miles
from their homes in order to help them forget their culture; and many other
violations of American Indian human rights. The results can be seen today in
the sad picture of poverty, alcoholism and diabetes on most reservations. There
are also, of course, stories about the violence of American Indians such as
Geronimo against newly arrived immigrants to their lands.
I
mention that, obviously, because there is a great similarity between what the
Israelis have done to the Palestinians and what “we” did to the American
Indians.
We are
today enlightened, perhaps, and would not have so easily have justified the
violations of American Indians human rights by saying their violence was the
same as our taking of their lands to build towns for our settlers from Europe
and elsewhere.
Nor is
it likely, except in some parts of the country, to say today that the two
parties – American Indians and Europeans should have met and established two-states,
one for the American Indians and one Christian state for the non-American
Indian settlers..
I would
ask Congressman Moulton to consider these thoughts the next time he is about to
take a position on an issue involving the conflict between the Palestinians and
the Israelis.
I am
also concerned, based on the letter I received, that the Congressman may not be
taking full advantage of a number of individuals, both constituents and others
in the Boston area, who can provide him with a wealth of facts about the
Palestine/Israel conflict.
I invite
you to contact me at your convenience so that I can provide you with contact
information about some of them.
Thank
you and the congressman for your efforts for peace with justice.
Ron Fox
Marblehead
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