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| American Task Force on Palestine NEWS Holy Land prepares for papal visit Two days before Pope Francis arrives in the Holy Land, Israelis and Palestinians were putting the finishing touches Thursday on a flurry of festive preparations for the visit. |
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/05/23/opinion/open-a-middle-road-to-mideast-peace.html?_r=0
Dear Editor,
Do we walk away from Mideast Peace? Some always have, some always will- but many good and decent people world wide have been hoping for a just and lasting peace for both Israel and for Palestine, and doing all they can to help make that hope a reality.
The proposal to end the Israel-Palestine conflict is already here, and has been. It is a fully secular two state solution, shaping a fully sovereign Palestine living alongside an already sovereign Israel, with both Israel and Palestine respecting each other as well as fully respecting international law and universal human rights, including but not limited to true respect for the Palestinian refugees inalienable right to return to original homes and lands to live in peace.
Palestinian refugees must be free to return, but they should not be forced to return, nor should they be forced to hang in stateless limbo for yet another generation, with more and more native non-Jewish Palestinians pushed into poverty and forced exile by a Jews-preferred Israel controlling all the land and resources.
Palestinian families need justice and real freedom, including the freedom to make a new life where they want to live and work and pay their taxes and pledge allegiance. Engaged citizenship where ever they might be has already helped formulate more inclusive and informative media coverage for Palestine and for peace here in America.
Jewish is a religion. Peace needs to be between Israel and Palestine: Tax payers (here and there) should not be forced to fund religious scholars and schemes. Dennis Ross might have good intentions, but American leadership should not be advising Palestinians or Israelis (or anyone one else who might be listening) to endorse and empower the idea that a person's religious identity is the best way to determine citizenship, entitlements, job opportunities, home ownership, security, and state subsidies. Peace is and must be an ongoing project, with ALL people, ALL MEN, WOMEN and CHILDREN fully empowered to contribute regardless of their supposed race or religion.
Sincerely,
Anne Selden Annab
NOTES
"It is critically important to have a broad strategic vision of the future that embodies the values and aspirations of your people. And it is equally important to be able to project how you can see that vision being implemented in the short term. " James Zogby of AAI...
"Thinking about the future means we do not create
"false idols" of the past or present. It means that we
understand that we are human, subject to God's laws, and
that we do not allow ourselves become so arrogant as to
subject God to our own whims and fancy. It also requires
that we reject the temptation to use means that
contradict the very ends we seek to accomplish."
My letter PUBLISHED CSM May 19, 2014 The 'big-ticket questions, such as Palestinian sovereignty, claims to Jerusalem, and the "right of return" ' are very relevant to the day-to-day lives of Palestinians.
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