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<DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Below is a letter from Gila Svirsky, an
Israeli<BR>long-time peace activist and member of Jerusalem Woman<BR>in Black.
Her writing is always compelling and clear<BR>about what needs to be done. This
week, she is one of<BR>the many prophetic voices calling us to act
in<BR>whatever ways we can. Below her letter is the text of<BR>our flyer for
this week. Following that are 2 other<BR>messages about local events to protest
racial<BR>profiling of immigrants.<BR><BR>With hope for a just peace,<BR>Elise
DeGooyer<BR>****************<BR><BR>Date: Tue, 09 Apr 2002 18:58:02 +0200
<BR>From: Gila Svirsky <BR>Subject: After the Outrage and Tears <BR><BR>Friends,
<BR>I just returned to Israel from 2 weeks abroad, and<BR>took 2 more days to
get a perspective on what I see<BR>and hear, which I would now like to share
with you: <BR><BR>First, the overwhelming picture before us is of death<BR>and
destruction wrought by the Israeli army in the<BR>Palestinian cities, Jenin
above all. In addition to<BR>the hundreds killed and thousands wounded, we
have<BR>irrefutable evidence that the Israeli army has barred<BR>ambulances from
evacuating the dead and wounded, has<BR>bulldozed homes in large numbers
(sometimes with the<BR>families still inside), and has withheld access
to<BR>water, electricity, and phone communication for<BR>periods of a week and
more. Can you imagine life with<BR>no water, while men, women, and children are
bleeding<BR>to death around you? And finally having to bury the<BR>corpses in an
empty lot nearby, after days of keeping<BR>them at home? <BR><BR>These go well
beyond the ongoing acts of brutality,<BR>mass arrests, vandalism, theft, and
humiliations,<BR>which are also rampant. A senior officer was quoted
in<BR>Ha'aretz today as saying, "When the world sees<BR>pictures of what we have
done there, it will cause<BR>enormous damage to us." It's no wonder that the
media<BR>are not given access. Listening to the report from the<BR>field at the
emergency board meeting of B'Tselem last<BR>night, I was not the only one with
tears in my eyes. <BR><BR>This is no time for analysis, although I have much
to<BR>say: About the complicity of Peres, about the<BR>appalling anti-Semitism
unleashed internationally by<BR>legitimate anger at Israeli, and about how
horrifying<BR>terrorism in Israel and the so-called "war against<BR>terrorism"
in the US have given license to what is<BR>happening. Introduce
Bush-Cheney-Rice-Sharon-Mofaz,<BR>and the recipe for Violence-Begets-More
Violence is<BR>complete. Today's killing of 13 Israeli soldiers in<BR>Jenin only
drives home the tragic futility of Israel's<BR>military might. <BR><BR>Rather
than analyze, this is a time to act. Here in<BR>Israel, the peace and human
rights movement is working<BR>tirelessly on every imaginable front. Soldiers
who<BR>refuse to serve the occupation are going to jail;<BR>convoys of food and
medical supplies hastily collected<BR>have been distributed and more are being
collected;<BR>human rights workers are risking their lives to<BR>monitor action;
peace activists have braved hailstorms<BR>of teargas and stun grenades in facing
army<BR>checkpoints; foreign activists have served as human<BR>shields
throughout the territories. In my history of<BR>activism, I recall no parallel
sense of urgency, in<BR>which lives and daily bread are being set aside
to<BR>pursue a cause. But I also recall no parallel feeling<BR>that a calamity
of our own making is unfolding before<BR>our eyes. <BR><BR>I implore you to take
action of your own. Contact<BR>relevant officials (some addresses are given
below).<BR>If you're Jewish, make a point of saying that. Tell<BR>them: <BR>1)
International monitors must be dispatched to the<BR>region at once to end the
terrible violence. <BR>2) The root cause of the conflict is the
Israeli<BR>occupation of the territories. This must come to an<BR>end. <BR>Other
things you can do, even if you have limited<BR>time: <BR> If you
have just 1 minute to give, forward<BR>this letter to others on your list.
<BR> If you have 10 minutes to spare, write a<BR>check to the
organization of your choice (see the<BR>links at <A
href="http://www.coalitionofwomen4peace.org">www.coalitionofwomen4peace.org</A>
for a few<BR>suggestions). <BR> If you have 20 minutes, call,
fax or write<BR>(make it brief!) any of the officials below.
<BR> If you have an hour, write a letter to the<BR>editor of
your local newspaper (brief and from the<BR>heart). <BR> If
you have more time, get involved. See<BR>"Get Involved - Find an Organization
Near You" at<BR><A href="http://www.junity.org">www.junity.org</A> for some
suggestions. <BR> If you're an American Jew, join the
Tikkun<BR>Community (<A href="http://www.tikkun.org">www.tikkun.org</A>) or the
newly formed Brit<BR>Tzedek v'Shalom - Jewish Alliance for Justice &
Peace<BR>(<A href="http://www.jppi.org">www.jppi.org</A>). <BR><BR>Whatever you
can do is valuable. <BR><BR>Finally, I can't help but note that Israel
marked<BR>Holocaust Memorial Day today. When will we finally<BR>extricate
ourselves from this trauma and apply<BR>ourselves to instilling its true lesson,
that of<BR>tolerance? <BR>Shalom / Salaam from Jerusalem, Gila
Svirsky<BR>___________________________ <BR><BR>OFFICIALS TO CONTACT: Note: If
you have time, print<BR>out and fax a letter (or make a phone call), as
those<BR>are more effective than e-mail. <BR>President George W. Bush Phone:
(202) 456-1414 Fax:<BR>(202) 456-2461 E-mail: <A
href="mailto:president@whitehouse.gov">president@whitehouse.gov</A><BR>Secretary
of State Colin Powell Phone: (202) 647-4000<BR>(202-647-5150) Bureau of Near
East Affairs Fax: (202)<BR>261-8577 E-mail: <A
href="mailto:secretary@state.gov">secretary@state.gov</A> <BR>Ms. Mary Robinson
United Nations High Commissioner for<BR>Human Rights <A
href="mailto:webadmin.hchr@unog.ch">webadmin.hchr@unog.ch</A> <BR>Mr. Kofi Annan
Secretary General of the UN Phone:<BR>(212) 963-5012 Fax: (212) 963-4879
<BR>Mr.Terje Rod Larsen Representative of the UN in<BR>Palestine Tel: + 972 8
282 2914 Fax: + 972 8 282 0966<BR><A
href="mailto:unsco@palnet.com">unsco@palnet.com</A> <BR>Council of the European
Union<BR><A
href="mailto:public.info@consilium.eu.int">public.info@consilium.eu.int</A><BR><A
href="mailto:karin.roxman@consilium.eu.int">karin.roxman@consilium.eu.int</A>
<BR>Javier Solana - EU special envoy:<BR><A
href="mailto:javier.sancho-velazquez@consilium.eu.int">javier.sancho-velazquez@consilium.eu.int</A>
<BR><BR>see Coalition of Women for a Just Peace:<BR><A
href="http://www.coalitionofwomen4peace.org">http://www.coalitionofwomen4peace.org</A>
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