11 - 17 April 2002
Issue No.581
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 11 - 17 April 2002 Issue No.581 |
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From Ramallah to Yorkshire
Mukul Devichandspoke to the leaders of pro-Palestinian demonstrations in Britain about their success in bringing the Palestinian plight to public attention
Hebden Bridge is a long way from Ramallah. But last Sunday, this small town in the English county of West Yorkshire -- hitherto known only as a backwater on the A646 road from Bradford to Blackpool -- hosted a vigil in solidarity with the Palestinian Intifada.
The Yorkshire townsfolk did not manage a grand affair. But their efforts served to remind that it is not only Arabs and Muslims who are angered by the suffering of Palestinians under Israeli invasion.
All across the European continent, "there is a growing realisation of the reality and a major increase in support," Zahid Noor, head of Britain's Palestine Solidarity Campaign, told Al-Ahram Weekly.
And many of them are showing it. In Britain, "there have been pickets, vigils and demos, organised by everyone everywhere," said Noor, himself a British-Asian from South Wales.
"In the past, protests had been held in London and a few other cities. But since the latest incursions, they have been held in Brighton, Cardiff, Bristol, Newport, Glasgow, Hull, Swansea, Oxford, Cambridge..."
A sizeable proportion of these have taken place far from urban centres. Britain's big cities are home to liberal- minded middle-class communities and vociferous Muslim populations, both of which have long voiced solidarity with the Palestinians. But with protests as far afield as the rainy Welsh town of Aberystwyth, perched on cliffs above the Irish sea, it seems recent pictures of Palestinian suffering have penetrated British minds further than ever before.
Have the gruesome events in the West Bank finally achieved the impossible and persuaded Westerners that Palestinian suffering must end?
In intellectual circles, maybe. "Most informed opinion is now supportive of the cause. The left is clearly now supportive of the Palestinians," said Noor. "Several trade unions have recently affiliated with us and we have even had the affiliation of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND)." The CND had previously refused to support the Intifada because it used violent methods.
Still, the silent majority remain unaffected by the new sentiment. "Certainly the support for the Palestinians has increased drastically as a result of Israel's recent war crimes but I would not say this is majority," said Noor. "Or even a sizable part of public support. Too many people are ill-informed by the media."
Not all pro-Palestinian voices in Britain come from the progressive or left-wing political stables, however. The more extreme elements of Britain's one-million-strong Muslim community are also speaking up loudly against Israeli action.
"We support the suicide bombings, which we see as martyrdoms, and we are asking Muslims to continue the struggle," Abur-Rehman Salim of British Islamist group Al-Muhajiroun told Al-Ahram Weekly. Al-Muhajiroun is continuing its "moral support," through "conferences, rallies and lectures," he said.
"Actually, we are focusing our attention against Arab regimes like Egypt, who we think are part of the problem for Palestinians," Salim told the Weekly. "Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah's peace plan is an aberration because it involves giving Believers' land to Jews. Abdullah should be renamed Abdul-Bush, in our opinion."
The anti-Jewish sentiment of groups like Al-Muhajiroun is being used by the pro-Israel lobby as an antidote to the rush of sympathy for Palestinians under occupation. This is especially true in France where support for the Intifada, especially amongst the country's huge Arab community, is being blamed for attacks on Jewish cemeteries, schools and synagogues.
In Paris, for example, a pro-Palestinian march on Saturday was followed by a 50,000-strong protest against anti-Semitism on Sunday. Clashes broke out between the groups and riot police was let loose with armoured cars and tear gas.
The Israel lobby's claim that to be pro-Palestinian is to be anti-Semitic has not washed nearly as well in Britain, however. "It's no problem for us," said Zahid Noor. "We oppose all forms of racism, including both anti-Semitism and the apartheid nature of the Israeli state."
"The Israeli lobby has not held any demonstrations in the UK," he added. "I think it reflects a sense of insecurity in their own position, and popular opposition that has emerged to past events, like Zionist Federation meetings."
The success of pro-Palestinian rallies in Britain may come as a surprise to many outside the country, who quietly noted how Prime Minister Tony Blair sided -- as is his habit -- with the US administration's unresponsive stance.
For Zahid Noor, this reflects problems in Britain's democratic system. "It is very difficult to affect government opinion in this country, more difficult than ever before," he lamented. "Even when a position is popular and has the support of the majority, the government can be slow to act."
"To be honest I would say we have had little if any effect on Blair," he told the Weekly.
This does not dishearten him, however. "People go to events for a variety of reasons. Perhaps they want to show support for the Palestinians, to speak out against Israeli war crimes, to raise public support or to show Palestinians they have supporters," he reassured me. "It's not necessarily to influence Blair."
The Palestine Solidarity Campaign does count Tony Blair's recent airing of the idea of peaceful international observers in the area as a victory, however. "It's a point we have been campaigning and lobbying on for over 15 months," said Noor.
As long as Israeli violence continues, and the aims of the Intifada go unfulfilled, it seems that big protests -- like the one in Rome on Saturday which involved 50,000 people -- and small ones -- like the vigil at Hebden Bridge -- will continue across Europe.
Britain's biggest rally yet will be held on 18 May in London. Before that, however, there are other ways to protest. Boycotting Israeli-made goods is one of them, with the first trans-European "day of boycott action" scheduled for 10 May.
In the meantime, the idea of boycotting Israel is gaining popularity. Last Friday, 120 distinguished university academics from across Europe sent a letter to Britain's Guardian newspaper.
"Odd though it may appear, many national and European cultural and research institutions, including especially those funded from the EU and the European Science Foundation, regard Israel as a European state for the purposes of awarding grants and contracts," says the letter. It goes on to ask: "Would it not, therefore, be timely if at both national and European levels a moratorium was called upon any further such support?"
A boy sits beneath a huge Palestinian flag during a pro-Palestine demonstration in Naples, Italy; anti-Israeli protest in Brussels, poster reads: "Sharon - war criminal still active." (photos: AFP)
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