Gaza blockade must go
I must disagree with Mike Fegelman who wrote (Sept. 17 “Ending blockade of Gaza is not the answer”) that the maritime blockade of Gaza is essential. He suggests that the only way to prevent arms from reaching “Palestinian terrorists” is via a blockade. He is wrong.
First, Fegelman falsely claims that Israel’s blockade is legal. While blockades per se are not illegal, they must conform to international humanitarian law and therefore must ensure that any civilian population under blockade is not prevented from receiving civilian goods. At times in the past, Israel has prevented items as mundane as spices, chocolate and school supplies from entering Gaza. Currently, Israel still prevents cement, steel, and dozens of items needed for industry and maintenance of civilian infrastructure.
Second, failing to allow civilian goods through a blockade is considered “collective punishment.” Because of this, Israel has been repeatedly accused of illegal collective punishment, by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon (http://www. haaretz.com/middle-eastnews/1.727871), Oxfam, and many others.
The international community has offered to assist Israel in a border control regime to prevent the passage of arms into Gaza, but Israel has refused. Under such regimes, neutral 3rd party countries would work with Israel to inspect all inbound commerce, allowing civilian goods, and blocking any arms. By refusing such help, and denying the passage of ships carrying goods essential to the civilians of Gaza, Israel is guilty of collective punishment against the 1.5 million Palestinian civilians of Gaza — a war crime under international law.
One particularly horrible period of Israel’s blockade of Gaza is documented in a 2008 document entitled “Food Consumption in the Gaza Strip — The Red Lines” released by Israeli human rights group Gisha. Gisha showed that Israel had calculated the minimum amount of calories Palestinians would need to consume to avoid malnutrition under its blockade. For several years, less than 106 trucks carrying foodstuff were allowed to enter the Strip, falling under the recommended amount of truckloads to avoid the malnutrition of Palestinians. As a result, a 2012 report by the Palestinian Bureau of Statistics revealed that 9.9% of children living in Gaza suffered from chronic malnutrition. By subjecting thousands of civilians to malnutrition, Israel is essentially carrying out the mass starvation of its occupied population. Needless to say, this goes against international law.
The Women’s Boat to Gaza’s (WBG) noble mission is to bring attention to the dire situation of this beleaguered territory. By challenging Israel’s blockade, WBG performs a noble act of solidarity that helps spread a message of humanity, hope and peace.
Whatever Fegelman and others may think about Hamas, there are 1.5 million Palestinian civilians in Gaza who deserve our compassion. Despite Israel’s rain of carnage on Gaza, the vast majority of Palestinians in Gaza have never acted to harm Israelis. What they do want and deserve, however, are their basic human rights. Lifting the siege would undoubtedly be a huge step in the right direction towards ensuring that Palestinians enjoy these rights. Nadine Tahan CJPME Analyst Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East