Akashma Online News

Posted on August 30, 2010 By Marivel Guzman

A village teacher and one of the organizers of the weekly protests, said he was amazed at the military’s assertions [of protester violence, including of “rioters” throwing “Molotov cocktails”] as well as at its continuing arrests and imprisonment of village leaders.

“They want to destroy our movement because it is nonviolent,” he said. He added that some villagers might have tried, out of frustration, to cut through the fence since the court had ordered it moved and nothing had happened. But that is not the essence of the popular movement that he has helped lead.

This February, former President Jimmy Carter wrote on behalf of the Elders, the group of global leaders brought together by Nelson Mandela to promote peace:

We are especially concerned to hear that Abdallah Abu Rahma, the coordinator of the Popular Committee against the Wall and Settlements in Bil’in, was detained in a night raid on 10 December last year and faces charges of incitement, stone throwing and organizing and participating in illegal marches. […] Abu Rahma is a middle-aged school teacher who eschews violence including stone throwing.

Catherine Ashton, Europe’s Hillary Clinton, protested the conviction. Why hasn’t Hillary done so?

Perhaps the failure of the U.S. media to simply report the news might have something to do with it?

You can ask Secretary of State Clinton to speak out, as Europe’s Catherine Ashton has, by calling the State Department’s comment line at 202-647-6575 and pressing 1.

Or you can use the State Department’s web form, choosing “E-mail a Question/Comment,” and topic “U.S. Foreign Policy/Middle East.” You could use a subject like “Conviction by Israeli court of Abdallah Abu Rahmah for nonviolent protest,” and a question like “I urge Secretary Clinton and other State Department officials to speak out against the conviction by Israeli military court of Abdallah Abu Rahmah for organizing nonviolent protests against the Israeli separation barrier in the West Bank, which has confiscated Palestinian land.”

You can write a letter for publication to the New York Times here; you can contact the Times’ news editors here; you can write to the Times’ Public Editor here.

The world has changed, the heroes are in every spot in the planet, they are regular citizens, they don’t wear a red hood or a mask, they don’t fly or read minds, who ever desire to be free and stand for his dreams and fight the occupiers with bare hands that is a hero worth remembering.

Every Palestinian is in his own merit a hero to remember, the silent resistant. Every Palestinian that never gave up their dream for an independent Palestine is silent hero.

They have fought The Zionist empire with almost bare hands, armed with only their dreams of freedom and their hands holding a Flag that means more than just a rug of cloth with colors.

The Palestine Flag is at the heart of every dissenter in the world, it means dreams for freedom, means occupation, blood, destruction, tears, torture, incarceration.

But more than anything means Love for your Home Land.

And in our mind the no Palestinians means brotherhood, fighting hand by hand with the brother that reach for help.

Help with your voice to raise awareness on Palestinians struggles, their suffering, their oppression that is worsening every day. Don’t wait for your leaders to do anything or for the Rich Media to report.

Use your power to unite with the world, help a family in Palestine, help a student to fulfill his dreams, write in your blogs, make a video of the crimes.

Be a silent hero, the future generation will thank your for it.