The Secretary
The victory that was Adelaide Writers' Week ...

What began as a powerful anti-Palestinian campaign by a few Zionist organisations and individuals turned into a victory for Adelaide Writers' Week (AWW) and the Palestinian writers who attended.

The sessions featuring the Palestinians, particularly those held in conjunction with Australian First Nations writers, were phenomenally popular; hundreds of people attended these sessions.

As Louise Adler said, “People are free to deeply object. They don’t have to come. Or come, and you don’t need to agree with what people think. But people listened. These steadfast Adelaide audiences came out in their thousands and listened with courtesy and respect for the conversation. It should be something that lifts the spirits of all of us.”

The victory that was Adelaide Writers' Week (March 2022)
The Secretary
Speech to rally against adoption of IHRA ...

“The definition proposed for adoption by the South Australian parliament is one devised by the International Holocaust Remembrance Association (or IHRA). It is a flawed definition because it singles out one group of people for special treatment. This motion is specific to Israel and to Israel only. The motion moved by One Nation’s Sarah Game gives Israel a ‘get out of jail free’ card.

The motion itself determines the ways in which we might be allowed to criticise Israel without finding ourselves labelled as antisemitic.”

Speech to rally against adoption of IHRA definition of antisemitism - Sandra Kanck
News
The Secretary
How a Palestinian shoemaker started the West ...

“What started as an experiment days after the coronavirus outbreak in the West Bank is now a factory producing thousands of masks a day.

How a Palestinian shoemaker started the West Bank’s only mask factory overnight

United Nations

UN Launches Service to Facilitate Medical Transfers From Gaza to Israel, West Bank

UN Launches Service to Facilitate Medical Transfers From Gaza to Israel, West Bank

“The United Nations has launched a special temporary service to arrange for patients from the Gaza Strip to receive medical treatment in Israel, East Jerusalem and the West Bank, the organization’s Middle East envoy announced on Monday. This is the first time the United Nations has gotten involved in the issue. It did so because many Gazans have not been able to arrange urgent treatments in the months since the Palestinian Authority ceased all cooperation with Israel. The PA had previously served as the liaison between patients and the Israeli authorities.”

Canada Switches Sides in U.N. Vote for Palestinian State

Canada Switches Sides in U.N. Vote for Palestinian State

“Canada, traditionally an ally of Israel, has shocked Israel and its supporters by voting for a United Nations resolution calling for the establishment of a Palestinian state, an “end to the Israeli occupation.” The unexpected departure from its usually reliable support for Israel on such measures called into question Canada’s Mideast policy. There was no official reaction from the Israeli Foreign Ministry, but an Israeli diplomatic official was quoted by The Times of Israel as saying, “We are very disappointed by Canada’s vote. Israel and Canada are friends and our relations are close and strong. We hope it will continue this way,” he said, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.”

Israeli-Palestinian Escalation in Gaza Shows Urgent Need for Political Progress on Middle East Peace Process, Special Coordinator Tells Security Council

Israeli-Palestinian Escalation in Gaza Shows Urgent Need for Political Progress on Middle East Peace Process, Special Coordinator Tells Security Council

“The recent escalation of violence between Israel and Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip demonstrates the urgent need for political progress on the Middle East peace process, which, in turn, calls for maintaining the international consensus on basic principles, the Special Coordinator of that process told the Security Council today. “Upholding the international consensus on resolving the conflict and all final-status issues on the basis of the two-State solution, as per relevant resolutions, international law and mutual agreements is critical,” Nickolay Mladenov said during his regular monthly briefing, cautioning that unilateral actions fuel anger and disillusionment while undermining the prospects for peace.”

Over half a million girls and boys will go back to UNRWA schools for the new Scholastic Year 2019-2020

Over half a million girls and boys will go back to UNRWA schools for the new Scholastic Year 2019-2020

"UNRWA operates 709 elementary and preparatory schools in its five fields of operation, including eight secondary schools in Lebanon, providing free basic education for over 530,000 Palestine refugee children. Pupils in UNRWA schools follow the host countries’ national curricula and textbooks, which the Agency enriches to encourage the development of critical thinking skills, empathy and tolerance."

UN official: Need to invest in education in Palestine

UN official: Need to invest in education in Palestine

"International scholars are important to universities throughout the world. Their unique perspectives, emanating from different cultures and places, enrichen intellectual conversations among students and faculty. International scholars help orient local students toward global citizenship, and in turn those students help visiting scholars to understand their host country and culture better."

 

Palestine Center for Peace, 60 Frome Street, Adelaide, South Australia

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AFOPA acknowledges that we work and organise on the lands of the Kaurna people. We also acknowledge that sovereignty of this land and the lands across this vast continent of over 250 nations has never been ceded. Always was, always will be, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Lands