[DEBATE] : LALIT strongly condemns Israel aggression against Palestinians | Links

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    LALIT (Mauritus) strongly condemns Israel aggression against
    Palestinians

To

Hon. Navin Ramgoolam

Prime Minister

Republic of Mauritius

December 29, 2008


Dear Sir,

We write to you as Prime Minister in view of the brutal air strikes by 
the Israeli army against Gaza, which according to the Red Cross have 
caused 300 deaths, most of them civilians, and 950 wounded amongst the 
Palestinians since last Saturday.

LALIT strongly condemns this military aggression by the Israeli army 
against the Palestinians living inside the Gaza Strip. It is both 
disproportionate and indiscriminate. We are particularly concerned about 
the fate of the 1.5 million ``imprisoned'' Palestinians of Gaza living 
under the murderous siege imposed by the Israeli government since June 
2007 and suffering the effects of economic sanctions that are backed by 
the US and its European allies.

This siege and the economic sanctions are together responsible for 
denying Palestinians access to medical treatment and causing shortages 
of food, fuel and electricity to Palestinians. Together they constitute 
a grave act of collective punishment. The current international economic 
blocade against Palestine has resulted in a spiralling humanitarian 
disaster, with the spread of disease, malnutrition and chaos in both the 
West Bank and Gaza. This new military attack by Israel is further 
aggravating the situation of the Palestinian people.

The illegal occupation and colonisation of Palestine is, in fact, 
benefiting the Israeli economy. Israel is making enormous financial 
gains from its control of all essential services for the Occupied 
Territories, including water, electricity and telephone services. Some 
10 % of Israel’s income (or 46.651 new Israel shekels) is generated each 
year by the occupation of Palestine. It is the Israeli military 
industrial complex that has been the primary beneficiary. It is using 
the occupied territories for ‘field trials’ for new weapons systems.

In 2004 the export of this weaponry was worth US$4.5 billion, or around 
10% of the total military expenditure in the world according to Shiv 
Hever and the Israeli-Palestine Alternative Information Centre (AIC). 
Companies like Caterpillar, Volvo, Daewoo are also making huge profits 
from the occupation, all three are supplying equipment to Israel, 
specially to the military. The D9 armoured bulldozers, supplied by 
Caterpillar are often used for the demolition of Palestinians’ houses. 
Since 2000, according to the UN, more than 4500 Palestinian homes have 
been demolished. The Israeli Committee Against House Demolition 
estimates that Israel has demolished more than 12,000 Palestinian homes 
since 1967.

The ``security barrier'' or Apartheid Wall that Israel is building is 
also making profits for Israeli and foreign companies. The wall is in 
fact designed to steal Palestine’s natural resources (such as water and 
land). The ``seamline'' zone between the 1967 Green Line and the 
Apartheid Wall is now being used by Israeli capitalists to super-exploit 
Palestinian workers who are forced to work as cheap labour in this 
“free” zone, a zone where companies do not have to abide by Israeli 
labour or environmental laws.

The continued military attacks and war waged by Israel on Palestine are 
motivated by the economic interests and political agenda of the 
capitalist business class of Israel, US and Europe and their respective 
States.

Through this letter we would like to re-iterate the call that LALIT and 
former President Cassam Uteem made to your government in a letter in 
November 2006. We therefore call again on your government

(i) to freeze its diplomatic relations with Israel,

(ii) to call for an arms embargo on Israel, and

(iii) to initiate a boycot of Israeli products.

Your government should simultaneously use its influence in regional and 
international forums to take the initiative to prepare a collective 
statement demanding an immediate stop of Israel military action in Gaza 
and to follow suit in the three actions above. All must be done to force 
the present Israeli regime to act according to international law and to 
put an end to the suffering of the Palestinian people. The 40 years of 
illegal occupation and 60 years of colonisation of Palestine are 
reminiscent of the violence of colonisation in past centuries, now 
universally condemned as having been totally unacceptable plunder often 
bordering on genocide. It must stop.

LALIT also expressed its total solidarity with the people of Palestine, 
in particular with the inhabitants of Gaza, who are facing another harsh 
and disastrous end of the year. We are actively supporting groups in 
Palestine and in Israel engaged in resistance actions against military 
occupation and colonisation.

Yours sincerely,

Alain Ah-Vee

For Lalit


Copy to: Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Cassam Uteem, Palestine 
Solidarity Committee, the Press.