Archive for July, 2014

The World Condemns Israel

Wednesday, July 30th, 2014

Israel’s Slaughter of

Civilians in Gaza!

“Children killed in their sleep; this is an affront to all of us, a source of universal shame. Today the world stands disgraced.” —Pierre Krähenbühl, Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees

Last night, children were killed as they slept next to their parents on the floor of a classroom in a UN designated shelter in Gaza. Krähenbühl voiced outrage over the behavior of the Israeli military, who he says was repeatedly given the coordinates of the school:

The precise location of the Jabalia Elementary Girls School and the fact that it was housing thousands of internally displaced people was communicated to the Israeli army seventeen times, to ensure its protection; I condemn in the strongest possible terms this serious violation of international law by Israeli forces” Krähenbühl said. http://commondreams.org/news/2014/07/30/world-stands-disgraced-israel-bombs-another-un-designated-shelter-gaza

Intl Law Experts Condemn “Collective Punishment” of Gaza’s Civilian Population
Joint Declaration signed by nearly 150 legal scholars and human rights experts say no justification exists for mass killing of innocent people who have no means of escape   
http://alturl.com/j88tn  [Common Dreams]

An Open Letter for the people in Gaza
We are doctors and scientists, who spend our lives developing means to care and protect health and lives. We are also informed people; we teach the ethics of our professions, together with the knowledge and practice of it. We all have worked in and known the situation of Gaza for years. On the basis of our ethics and practice, we are denouncing what we witness in the aggression of Gaza by Israel. http://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(14)61044-8/fulltext Nobel peace laureates and celebrities call for military embargo on Israel

A group of Nobel laureates and high profile artists and academics have issued a statement condemning Israel’s “inhumane and illegal” assault on Gaza and calling on governments to implement a military embargo on Israel

Amnesty International on Israel War Crimes http://malu-aina.org/?p=2602

Israel is a Terrorist State”
http://news.yahoo.com/bolivia-declares-israel-terrorist-state-184920411.html

Bolivia President Evo Morales said “we are declaring (Israel) a terrorist state,” Morales said the Gaza offensive shows “that Israel is not a guarantor of the principles of respect for life and the elementary precepts of rights that govern the peaceful and harmonious coexistence of our international community.”

Stop All the Rockets,

Bombs, Shells and Missiles:

End the Carnage NOW!

1. Mourn all victims of violence. 2. Reject war as a solution. 3. Defend civil liberties. 4. Oppose all discrimination, anti-Islamic, anti-Semitic, anti-Hawaiian, etc. 5. Seek peace through justice in Hawai`i and around the world.
Contact: Malu `Aina Center for Non-violent Education & Action P.O. Box 489 Kurtistown, Hawai`i 96760.
Phone (808) 966-7622. Email:ja@malu-aina.org  http://www.malu-aina.org

Hilo Peace Vigil leaflet (August 1, 2014 – 671st week) – Friday 3:30-5PM downtown Post Office

Silence is Consent!

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2014

Master War Propaganda:

KEEP CALM

AND

BLAME SOMEONE

ELSE

Israel flagAmerican flag#2

There are no flags big enough to

cover lies and the killing of

innocent people.

Sign the petition telling the Obama Administration and Congress to stop the violence and lift the blockade of Gaza.
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/gaza-end-war-end-blockade

1. Mourn all victims of violence. 2. Reject war as a solution. 3. Defend civil liberties. 4. Oppose all discrimination, anti-Islamic, anti-Semitic, anti-Hawaiian, etc.  5. Seek peace through justice in Hawai`i and around the world.
Contact: Malu `Aina Center for Non-violent Education & Action P.O. Box 489 Kurtistown, Hawai`i 96760.
Phone (808) 966-7622. Email:ja@malu-aina.org  http://www.malu-aina.org

Hilo Peace Vigil leaflet (July 25, 2014 – 670th week) – Friday 3:30-5PM downtown Post Office

REMINDER: Ohana Ho’opakele support needed on Wednesday

Monday, July 21st, 2014

Reminder!!!! Press Release on State’s Motion for Summary Judgment for the reactivation of Kulani Correctional Facility (KCF) set for hearing  9AM, Wednesday, July 23, 2014 in Hilo Circuit Court before Judge Glenn S. Hara

Further contact: Ohana Ho’opakele President, Palikapu Dedman (home) 959-4930, Treasurer, Ronald Fujiyoshi (home) 959-9775; (cell) 345-9688, Also see www.ohanahoopakele.org and Ohana Ho`opakele on Facebook

     Ohana Ho’opakele and supporters will gather outside Hilo Court House at 8AM on Wednesday, July 23, 2014. The message is strong and clear: Pu’uhonua NOT Prisons; Justice for Hawaiians; Hawaiian Misery is Not a commodity and Stop using Hawaiians against Hawaiians. At 9AM there is a hearing before Judge Glenn Hara on the State’s Motion for Summary Judgement regarding the reactivation of Kulani prison.

     Ohana Ho’opakele president, Palikapu Dedman said “Ohana Ho’opakele is looking for legal support for appeal. We are reaching out to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Office of Hawaiian Affairs (OHA), Native Hawaiian Legal Corporation (NHLC), Earth Justice or any legal firm for assistance. There are key issues involved.

GENERALLY:

  1. What is the standard for circuit court review of a Final EA and Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI)?
  2. Is a prison a permissible use of Crown Lands?

SUBSTANTIAL LEGAL ISSUES:

  1. Final Environmental Assessment (EA) does not adhere to Act 117: “The department of public safety, in cooperation with Ohana Ho’opakele and other restorative justice groups, is directed to prepare a plan for the creation of a pu’uhonua, or wellness center. On lands owned or controlled by the State. The public land development corporation shall assist in determining an appropriate site for the center; provided that the site formerly used as the Kulani correctional facility on the island of Hawaii shall be given preference, unless another site will provide a greater possibility of success.”
  2. Crown Lands should be used for the betterment of native Hawaiians not for the general public.

FUNDAMENTAL UNDERLYING ISSUES:

               1. Disproportionate number of native Hawaiians in prison.

               2. A Hawaiian Pu’uhonua is best model for healing (rehabilitation).

               3. The present prison system (punitive justice) is not succeeding.”

      Ohana Ho’opakele President Palikapu Dedman was critical of Judge Hara’s handling of the case. Dedman said: “By punting the ball to appeal, instead of making a substantial decision at the Circuit Court level affecting the disproportionate number of Native Hawaiians in prison, Judge Hara is wasting tax payers money and suppressing Hawaiians. Judge Hara is following the same old pattern of shrinking from his responsibility as he did in the fencing case decision. It’s time for Judge Hara to stand tall and do the right thing.”

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Israel – U.S. War Crimes in Gaza

Monday, July 21st, 2014
July 21, 2014  Israel war crimes 002

Amnesty International on Israel War Crimes

Monday, July 21st, 2014
Press Release  July 21, 2014   Israel/Gaza: Attacks on Medical Facilities and Civilians Add to War Crime Allegations

Contact: Mandy Simon, asimon@aiusa.org, (212) 633-4162, @AIUSAmedia

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – The continuing bombardment of civilian homes in several areas of the Gaza Strip, as well as the Israeli shelling of a hospital, add to the list of possible war crimes that demand an urgent independent international investigation, said Amnesty International.

The third floor of the Al-Aqsa hospital in Deir al-Balah was struck by Israeli shelling, killing four people and wounding dozens, according to the Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson.

“Today’s attack on the Al-Aqsa hospital is the latest in a series of attacks on and near medical facilities in Gaza, which have been struggling to cope with thousands of injured people since the Israeli offensive began on July 8,” said Philip Luther, Director of the Middle East and North Africa Program at Amnesty International.

“There can be no justification for targeting medical facilities at any time. Attacks on medical facilities underline the need for a prompt, impartial international investigation mandated by the U.N.”

Last week, the al-Wafa rehabilitative hospital in Shuja’iyyeh was severely damaged after being attacked twice by Israeli forces.

With the Israeli ground invasion in its fourth day and the death toll in Gaza exceeding 550 people, the majority of them civilians, there is an urgent need for the parties to agree to periodic pauses in the fighting to facilitate the evacuation of the dead and wounded. Additionally, with as many as 1.2 million people without water or sewage services, municipal workers and relief organizations need to carry out emergency repair work to prevent a public health catastrophe.

From Saturday night to Sunday morning, intense Israeli bombardment of Shuja’iyyeh killed more than 60 people, including at least 17 children and 14 women. More than 200 people are reported wounded, and civilians were forced to flee under fire. At least 13 Israeli soldiers were also killed overnight, the majority of them in Shuja’iyyeh.

Hamas has also continued to fire hundreds of indiscriminate rockets into Israel in violation of international law, killing two Israeli civilians and injuring others.

The Israeli military said that Shuja’iyyeh, a densely populated area with some 92,000 residents east of Gaza City, had been targeted because it was a “fortress” housing rockets, tunnels and command centres. Israeli military and government officials have repeatedly said that civilians were warned to evacuate the area days before it was attacked.

However, many civilians in Shuja’iyyeh and other areas did not evacuate because they had nowhere to go. All the UNRWA schools and other facilities opened as shelters are overflowing. Issuing warnings to evacuate entire areas does not absolve Israeli forces of their obligations to protect civilians under international humanitarian law.

“The relentless bombardment of Shuja’iyyeh and other civilian areas in the Gaza Strip, as well as the continuing indiscriminate rocket attacks on Israel, demand urgent international action to prevent further violations. The U.N. should impose an arms embargo on all sides, and all states should immediately suspend transfers of military equipment to Israel, Hamas, and Palestinian armed groups in the Gaza Strip,” said Luther.

Amnesty International is a Nobel Peace Prize-winning grassroots activist organization with more than 3 million members in more than 150 countries campaigning for human rights worldwide. The organization investigates and exposes abuses, educates and mobilizes the public, and works to protect people wherever justice, freedom, truth and dignity are denied.