Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-05-15-Speech-3-143"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20020515.7.3-143"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, High Representative, Commissioner, many of us here today visited Israel and the Palestinian territories during the last part-session. For some Members, it was their first visit.
When one is on the ground and is able to listen to the evidence of the long-suffering populations, to assess the scale of the physical destruction and to guess how deeply the moral scars run, one can gain a better understanding of the meaning of the news that is now coming from the region. One can also grasp the significance of the vast demonstration that took place in Tel Aviv at the end of last week. Once again, ten of thousands of people assembled, which, given the size of the entire population of Israel, is an impressive gathering. They put forward very firm demands relating to conditions that must be met, namely the end of military occupation, of colonisation and of the despicable crimes committed by an army of a country that aspires to be a great democracy.
At the end of April, we met the representatives of most of these movements in Tel Aviv. I feel that their work does Israel great credit. These groups, like the Israeli political leaders taking part in the coalition for peace led by the former Labour minister Mr Beilin, in conjunction with the Palestinian minister Mr Rabbo, embody the hope that things may in future change in Israel.
The renewed strength of this current is, without doubt, the manifestation of some more profound changes which are surfacing within a section of Israeli society that seems to have strong misgivings about using the policy of force as a method of promoting Israeli security. There seems to be a greater degree of questioning, especially after the terrible revelations in relation to Jenin, about the consequences of the military offensive against Palestinian towns and camps in terms of Israel’s image around the world, and even about the possibility of international legal proceedings against Israeli leaders.
Lastly, there is great interest in favour of the historic proposal from neighbouring Arab countries to return to good relations with Israel in exchange for a withdrawal from the occupied territories. It is most certainly in response to these signs that the extreme Israeli right wing members are behaving increasingly aggressively in order to reaffirm, in a deliberately provocative manner, their opposition to any prospect of a Palestinian State. This extremely dangerous policy is one that the Likud is stating in its resolutions and one that Sharon is exercising on the ground. His staunch opposition towards the Palestinian Authority and Chairman Arafat, his decision to systematically destroy the infrastructure and assets of the embryonic State established by the Oslo Accords, the construction, according to Peace Now, of 35 new settlements and the organised dividing up of Palestinian territories leave no doubt whatsoever as to the strategy being pursued, unfortunately with complete impunity. It is in this context that the European Union is gambling its credibility.
I urge the Fifteen to consider this appeal from a young girl living in the Jenin refugee camp to a visitor who came to express his solidarity. ‘I do not want aid’, she said to him, ‘can you give me justice?’ Justice, of course, means reconstruction but it also means the end of impunity by the occupier and the end of the occupation, respect for international law, recognition of the two States and the guarantee of security of both peoples. This is the clear message that, on behalf of our peoples and the majority of the House, an official delegation made up of Members from Parliament’s highest level, should now take to Israel and Palestine."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples