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Palestinian Schoolgirl Expelled from Speech Contest Grand Final May 30 2016 / 8:28 pm Leanne Mohamad has been expelled from Speech finals. (Photo: Muslimgirljournal.com) Leanne Mohamad, the 15-year-old student at Wanstead High School in London, who won a regional final of the Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge on her stories of the Nakba, has been expelled from the competition. Leanne Mohamad, won the Speak Out Challenge with her speech 'Birds not Bombs', in which she details the historical and current reality for Palestinians under Israeli occupation. However, her speech was met with antagonism and opposition by anti-Palestinian blogger Edgar Davidson. The CEO of Speakers Trust, Julie Holness said that they took Davidson's "concerns very seriously", and their verdict was that Mohamad would not compete in the next stage of the contest, and "will not be speaking at the Grand Final." Leanne Mohamad, won the Speak Out Challenge with her speech 'Birds not Bombs', in which she details the historical and current reality for Palestinians under Israeli occupation. The decision made to expel Mohamad from the Grand Final was based on her breaching two rules: that "the speech must have a positive and uplifting message", and that "a speaker should never inflame or offend the audience or insult others." Mohamad's response to the news was in a tweet that saw irony in a "Speak Out Challenge" which intended to silence her. Speakers Trust has since removed the speech from their website and YouTube Channel. Davidson is notorious for his pro-colonial stance and his blog's 'Key Readings' includes an article that states "Palestinians are a fake creation." (MEMO, PC) |
| EDITORIAL | The Reductionist View of an Intifada May 31 2016 / 4:58 pm (Image Credit: Niño Jose Heredia, Gulf News) Associating the ongoing Palestinian intifada (uprising) with the number of stabbings or alleged stabbings carried out by Palestinian youths was a mistake from the start. An intifada is a collective movement, not individual acts of violence, no matter how frequent. The current intifada dates back to last October, when a large number of Palestinian youths began staging protests and clashing with Israeli occupation soldiers in various parts of occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank. One aspect of the intifada was an increase of Palestinian reciprocal attacks, often involving youths wielding knives. They targeted occupation soldiers, armed colonists and also Israeli civilians. Many reported incidents of such attacks were contested by Palestinian and certain Israeli groups as fabrications, which often led to the death and injury of Palestinian civilians. In contrast to commonly-held views, a recent assessment by Israel's internal intelligence, the Shin Bet, indicates a palpable decrease in the number of stabbings in April, compared to earlier months. To some, this reported decrease has led to the conclusion that the Intifada is dying. However, the real reason behind the decline in Palestinian retaliatory attacks is unclear. One theory argues that Palestinians in general are increasingly finding such attacks of no practical use. Another, as argued by Adnan Abu Amer in Al-Monitor, suggests that "security coordination between the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) and Israel has been an important factor behind the possible decline. "On May 5, Shin Bet chief, Yoram Cohen, said that the PNA security services have been thwarting attacks soon after receiving intelligence from Israel, praising the security coordination's role in the efforts," Abu Amer wrote. This has been corroborated by Palestinian officials themselves. Head of the Palestinian General Intelligence Service, Majid Farah, said in an interview with DefenseNews last January, that his agents managed to thwart "200 potential terror attacks against Israel", as phrased in Israel's YNet News. While Farah spoke of arresting over 100 Palestinians in cooperation with the Israeli army, Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, told Israel Channel 2 last March that his security forces are cracking down on Palestinian school children. Apart from apprehending suspected Palestinian resisters, the security coordination includes searching school children's bags for knives, according to the Palestinian leader. "Our security forces are entering schools and checking if students are carrying knives. In one school, we found 70 students with knives, and we told them that this was wrong. I told them I do not want you to kill someone and die; I want you to live and for others to live, too," he said. Yet, reducing a historic event as popular as the intifada to knives allegedly hidden in schoolbags is a major misrepresentation of what is taking place in the Occupied Territories. The issue is much larger than that, and is unlikely to be quelled by Abbas's henchmen or Israeli occupation forces. The nature of the current uprising in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem is testament to a pent-up anger of an entire generation that grew up behind walls and checkpoints. They are fighting two separate enemies - the occupation army and their own oppressive leadership. Previous uprisings were massive in their mobilisation, clear in their message and decisive in their delivery. They were willed by the people and, within days, imprinted themselves on the collective consciousness of Palestinians everywhere. The current uprising is different, particularly because it is yet to have a clear sense of direction - a leadership, a political platform, demands, expectations and short and long-term strategies. At least that is how the 1987-93 intifada played out and, to a lesser extent, the 2000-2005 Al Aqsa intifada as well. But is it not possible that the outcomes of these previous Intifadas are what is making the current uprising different? The first intifada metamorphosed into a worthless peace process which eventually led to the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993. A year later, the leadership of the Palestine Liberation Organisation was reproduced into the emasculated form of the PNA. Since then, the latter has served largely as a conduit for the Israeli Occupation. The second Intifada had less success than the first. It quickly turned into an armed rebellion, thus marginalising the popular component of revolt that is required to cement the collective identity of Palestinians, forcing them to overcome their divisions and unify behind a single flag and a distinct chant. That intifada was crushed by a brutal Israeli army: Hundreds of activists were assassinated and thousands were killed in protests and clashes with Israeli soldiers. It was a watershed moment in the relationship between the Israeli government and the Palestinian leadership in Ramallah and between the Palestinian factions themselves. Mahmoud Abbas was elected President of the PNA in 2005, shortly after the death of Yasser Arafat. Abbas's greatest achievements include the cracking down on civil society organisations, ensuring total loyalty towards him - personally - and towards his branch within the Fatah faction. Under Abbas, there has been no revolutionary model for change, no 'national project'. In fact, no clear definition of nationhood to begin with. The Palestinian nation became whatever Abbas wanted it to be. It consisted, largely, of West Bank Palestinians, living mostly in Area A, loyal to Fatah and hungry for international handouts. The more the Abbas nation agreed to play along, the more money they were allowed to rake in. Until October of last year, when the current uprising slowly began building momentum, the situation on the ground seemed to be at a standstill. In the West Bank, occupation was slowly normalised in accordance with the formula: Occupation and illegal colonies in exchange for money and silence. Gaza, on the other hand, stood as a model for barbarity that was regularly meted out by Israel as a reminder to those in the West Bank that the price of revolt is besiegement, hunger, destruction and death. It is against this backdrop of misery, humiliation, fear, oppression and corruption that Palestinians rose. They were mostly young people born after Oslo - those who became politically conscious after the 2006 Fatah-Hamas clash, and were raised in the conflicting worlds of their own leadership coexisting with the Occupation, on one hand, and clashing with other Palestinians on the other. This is a generation that is the most educated, yet, most politically savvy and, thanks to the huge leaps in digital media technology, the most connected and informed of the world around it. The ambitions of these youth are huge, but their opportunities are so limited; their earth has shrunk to the size of a single-file queue before an Israeli military checkpoint, where they are corralled on their way to school, to work and back home. And, like the Israelis who shot at anyone who dared protest, Abbas imprisons those who attempt to do so. The current intifada is an expression of that dichotomy, of a generation that is so eager to break free, to define itself, to liberate its land, yet which is resisted by an Old Guard unremittingly holding on so tightly to the few perks and dollars they receive in the form of allotments every month. It matters little whether stabbing incidents are on the decline or not. An intifada is not sustained by such acts anyway. The latter is merely an expression of angst, pain and anger. What has become clear since October is that the new generation in Palestine is ready to effect a paradigm shift, and that the current situation of a quisling leadership and a belligerent occupation is simply unsustainable. The outcome of this tension will not only define this entire generation, as it defined previous generations in 1987 and 2000, but will define the future of Palestine altogether. - Dr. Ramzy Baroud is an internationally-syndicated columnist, a media consultant, author of several books and the founder of PalestineChronicle.com |
| SELECTED ARTICLES |  Two Gaza runners, Nader Al Massri and Sami Nateel have been denied a visa by the British Immigration authorities to attend a Derry Marathon, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign has revealed. The Irish Palestine Solidarity Campaign (I.P.S.C.) has branded the decision "inexplicable". "We are hugely disappointed and angered at this decision. There was a large group [...]  By Ramzy Baroud Associating the ongoing Palestinian intifada (uprising) with the number of stabbings or alleged stabbings carried out by Palestinian youths was a mistake from the start. An intifada is a collective movement, not individual acts of violence, no matter how frequent. The current intifada dates back to last October, when a large number [...]  By Palestine Chronicle Staff The Palestinian Ministry of Interior in Gaza announced today that the Egyptian authorities have informed the Ministry of its decision to open the Rafah Crossing for four days starting from tomorrow. The crossing will open on Wednesday and Thursday and shut down on Friday, and re-open again Saturday and Sunday. Some [...]  By Clive Hambidge "We must do everything to ensure they (the Palestinians) never do return ... The old will die and the young will forget." - (Ben Gurion) Considering the British Mandate of Palestine "carved out of Ottoman Southern Syria" and its favorable view of a Zionist drive for the colonization of historical Palestine, is to seek, [...]  By Zaakir Ahmed Mayet It is often easy to be absorbed by the plebeian geopolitics, the sectarian divides plaguing Syria or the outward lack of unity among various resistance movements within the Middle East and North Africa. On the face of it, the situation is particularly bleak. However, the factors often missed in these calculations are [...]  Following the expansion of the fishing zone in southern parts of the Gaza Strip by Israel to nine nautical miles last month, Israel, once again, announced reducing it to six nautical miles across the coastal enclave. Nizar Ayyash, the head of the Palestinian Fishers Syndicate in Gaza, said the Israeli authorities have informed Palestinian fishermen [...]  Two book stores, both named the Educational Bookshop, in Jerusalem, belonging to the Muna family, sell Arabic and English books and stationery which reinforce the Palestinian culture and identity. Mahmoud Muna, the bookshop manager owns two bookstores, one for Arabic and the other for English literature. Originally named the 'The Palestine Educational Bookshop', the name [...]  By Yousef M. Aljamal In collaboration with the Media Department at the Islamic University of Gaza, the Council on International Relations, held a Study Day on May 26, 2016 entitled "Palestinian Media Discourse towards Western Media", which was attended by dozens of media professionals and students. The event reflected the increasing Palestinian interest in addressing [...]  By Hawa Monier The Palestine Festival of Literature hosted its ninth gathering of literary gurus and the like who were invited to tour Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory. The authors invited to the festival this year included Nobel Prize winner for literature, acclaimed novelist and anti-apartheid South African activist, J.M. Coetzee. It was he [...]  Activist for Palestinian rights and holocaust survivor, Hedy Epstein, died on Thursday, at her home in Missouri, USA, at the age of 91. An internationally renowned, respected and admired advocate for human and civil rights, Epstein was encircled by friends who lovingly cared for her at home during her final moments. Born August 15, 1924, [...]  By Marion Kawas Ontario's Bill 202, the most direct effort so far by Zionist forces in Canada to criminalize support for the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, thankfully failed by a wide margin last week. We know we won't have long to celebrate though, as new draconian efforts are surely on the horizon. Swift [...] ![Leanne Muhammed from Wanstead High School, London [Photo: Studiobase Photography, speakoutchallenge.com]](https://www.palestinechronicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/speakout_challenge_leanna_mohd-90x65.jpg) British-Palestinian Leanne Muhammed has won the 2015-16 Speak Out Challenge held in London following a moving speech about the Nakba and its effects on Palestinian society. Leanne, from Al-Burj Al-Shamali refugee camp in Lebanon, is a student at Wanstead High School in London. She joined the Speak Out Challenge giving a speech entitled "Birds not Bombs". [...]  Yousef M. Aljamal - Gaza For the ninth year in a row, Palestinians in the city of Rafah will organize a football tournament in the memory of Rachel Corrie, a 23-year old American peace activist who was killed in the city while she was trying to protect Palestinian houses from Israeli demolition. The tournament, which [...]  Yousef M. Aljamal - Gaza A group of Palestinian youths gathered on Tuesday to discuss a people's history of the Gaza Strip. The lecture, delivered by Dr. Ismail Abushmees, was attended by dozens of Palestinian youths who came to listen about the history of their city - one of the oldest cities in the world. [...]  By Iqbal Jassat Wearing a BDS T-shirt in France is a criminal offense. This latest move by French authorities to invoke legislation which bars antisemitism in order to harass and intimidate Palestinian solidarity activists, is not only ridiculous, but borders on insanity. It follows desperate attempts by Israel to stem the tide of phenomenal growth [...]  By Ramzy Baroud Merely being in the company of hundreds of Palestinian journalists and other media professionals from all over the world has been an uplifting experience. For many years, Palestinian media has been on the defensive, unable to articulate a coherent message, torn between factions and desperately trying to fend off the Israeli media [...]  Israeli human rights organization, B'Tselem, announced on Wednesday that it will no longer continue their strategy of holding Israeli forces accountable for their crimes against Palestinians through internal military mechanisms. B'Tselem focuses on collecting information and documenting Israeli human rights violations against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. However, after 25 years of their work [...] |
| LATEST NEWS | Two Gaza runners, Nader Al Massri and Sami Nateel have been denied a visa by the British Immigration authorities to attend a Derry Marathon, the Palestine Solidarity Campaign has revealed. The Irish Palestine Solidarity Campaign (I.P.S.C.) has branded the decision "inexplicable". "We are hugely disappointed and angered at this decision. There was a large group [...]  Israel has re-mapped over 15,000 acres of land in the West Bank in an apparent attempt to expand illegal settlement construction, Haaretz reported. The re-mapping was reportedly completed in 2015 by a special team called 'Blue Line,' working under the Civil Administration. A total of 240 acres were mapped near the settlement of Nokdim, and [...] According to Palestinian refugee committees in the West Bank, The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) had suspended its services in northern West Bank for one day over an "aid distribution dispute." Husni Odeh, a spokesperson for refugee camp committees in the northern West Bank stated that UNRWA had officially notified [...] By Palestine Chronicle Staff The Palestinian Ministry of Interior in Gaza announced today that the Egyptian authorities have informed the Ministry of its decision to open the Rafah Crossing for four days starting from tomorrow. The crossing will open on Wednesday and Thursday and shut down on Friday, and re-open again Saturday and Sunday. Some [...]  Leanne Mohamad, the 15-year-old student at Wanstead High School in London, who won a regional final of the Jack Petchey Speak Out Challenge on her stories of the Nakba, has been expelled from the competition. Leanne Mohamad, won the Speak Out Challenge with her speech 'Birds not Bombs', in which she details the historical and [...] Following the expansion of the fishing zone in southern parts of the Gaza Strip by Israel to nine nautical miles last month, Israel, once again, announced reducing it to six nautical miles across the coastal enclave. Nizar Ayyash, the head of the Palestinian Fishers Syndicate in Gaza, said the Israeli authorities have informed Palestinian fishermen [...]  The Palestine Prisoners' Center for Studies (PPCS) has revealed on Friday, May 27, 2016 that the Israeli occupation authorities have issued and renewed the administrative detention orders of 729 Palestinians since the beginning of the year. Riyad Al-Ashqar, PPCS spokesman, noted that administrative detention orders increased by 35 percent compared to the same period last year. [...]  Palestinian professor and astrophysicist Imad Barghouthi is facing charges of "incitement" by Israeli authorities, despite a decision Thursday by the Israeli military appeals court to release him from custody due to lack of sufficient evidence, according to the Palestinian Prisoner's Society (PPS). In a statement released by PPS on Sunday, the group said Israeli military [...] By Yousef M. Aljamal In collaboration with the Media Department at the Islamic University of Gaza, the Council on International Relations, held a Study Day on May 26, 2016 entitled "Palestinian Media Discourse towards Western Media", which was attended by dozens of media professionals and students. The event reflected the increasing Palestinian interest in addressing [...] By Hawa Monier The Palestine Festival of Literature hosted its ninth gathering of literary gurus and the like who were invited to tour Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory. The authors invited to the festival this year included Nobel Prize winner for literature, acclaimed novelist and anti-apartheid South African activist, J.M. Coetzee. It was he [...] |
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