End the Occupation

By George B. Sahhar,
Public relations & Development officer at Bethlehem University

April 4, 2001
 
For far too long, Palestinians are enduring under the oppressive and brutal Israeli Occupation.  Today this is the only foreign rule existing worldwide.  This situation is an affront to the values of the civilized world, a violation of the dignity of Palestinians, and stands as hindrance to regional stability and peace.  If we are talking about new prospects for the Middle East, then the Occupation will have to come to an end.  If we are talking about security for Israelis, the Occupation will have to come to an end.  The Occupation is the source of all evil. 

Since Palestinians fell under Occupation, the only growth they see around them is that of illegal settlements.  The sanctity of human life does not apply to them; only the life of their oppressors is sacred.  What Palestinians are going through is unimaginable; beyond the capacity of expression.  It is simply overwhelming to talk about the pain and suffering which Palestinians are enduring under this evil.

More so since 1967, for 34 long years, the intensity of the injustice became like a festering wound.  Palestinians were called cockroaches, grasshopper and terrorists, while other members of the superior race, those suffering from moral amnesia, claimed that there is no such thing as the Palestinian people.

Unfortunately, this message is not getting across to Israelis, because while Palestinians are talking about freedom, truth and justice, Israelis are too busy with Orwelian interpretations and self-fulfilling prophecies. 

Yes this is the truth after almost 34 years of this horrible experience called Occupation.  Yet what gives momentum to Palestinians is the conviction in the righteousness of their cause, their yearning to that lost paradise called Palestine, and their belief in the human values of freedom, justice, and dignity for all. 

As opposed to the Palestinian stance there is the Occupation, which is an illogical concept, therefore all its components are illogical as well.  Palestinians in the Bethlehem area can be deprived from water during the summer, because it is diverted to swimming pools in the settlements.  The life of Palestinians in Hebron is turned into a nightmare because of 400 settlers.  Palestinians are shot and killed by snipers and helicopter gun-ships so that peace will prevail!  The oppressor’s propaganda implies that in order to have peace, Israelis do not have to end the Occupation but instead Palestinians must give up their claims to freedom. 

History will register that Palestinians, at the beginning of the 21st century, carried the torch of liberty on behalf of human civilization; that they refused to succumb to foreign rule, and exposed to the world the true face of the Zionist enterprise. 

History has a unique characteristic.  It does not accommodate anyone.  The time will come and the world will feel the shame and guilt caused by having abandoned Palestinians while they were demanding freedom.  Some will claim they did not know, but that will not relieve them from the responsibility.