IMPORTANT MESSAGE FROM FREE GAZA
By Guest Post • Aug 8th, 2008 at 16:05 • Category: Action Alert, Ideas and Projects, Israel, Music, Poetry, Events, Newswire, Palestine, ResistanceThe moment we’ve all worked so long for is nearly here: on August 12th or 13th the Free Gaza Movement will begin its trip from Cyprus to Gaza. They will sail in two boats, the SS Free Gaza and the SS Liberty with 40 people on board. If all goes well, the journey should take 20 hours. But a lot can happen along the way and it’s not unlikely that as the boats approach Gaza’s coastal waters or even before, they will end up in a stand off with the Israeli navy. You can track the progress of the boats by going visiting Free Gaza and clicking on the BOAT UPDATES tab on the top right-hand side of the page www.freegaza.org .
Free Gaza intends to resist Israeli attempts to board the boats, and all other forms of intimidation. If the boat is stopped at sea, fired on, boarded, towed or otherwise subjected to Israeli attack, it is very important that everyone who has endorsed this trip mobilize quickly to support the people on board and the purpose of the voyage.
That’s why we are writing you now. The first step you can take, if you haven’t already, is to add your name to the Gaza friends listserv so you can receive email reports as we go, get our updates and our announcements and watch streaming video once we are on the sea. To do this, subscribe (T)here.
Please contact local press to tell them about Free Gaza’s mission and the current situation of the boats. Let them know that it may be possible to arrange interviews with the passengers on the boats.
Also contact other activist groups in your area to let them know about Free Gaza and to ask for help and support.
If the boats are stopped, IMMEDIATELY:
·Contact the press including local radio and TV as well as print
·Call your political representatives. Explain the situation and give the names of any passengers in their districts. Emphasize that this is a complete non-violent and peaceful mission. Ask them to make sure that Israel does not harm any of the people on board.
·Be prepared to counter disinformation and get the true purpose of the voyage across to journalists and the general public. There may be a lot of false statements circulating from groups that support current Israeli policies.
You can contact us for more information; we’ll share what we know. Please keep us updated on what you are doing—you can post to the list at freegazasupport@lists.riseup.net .
Sincerely,
The Free Gaza Movement
-Free Gaza Movement Mission Statement-
We want to break the siege of Gaza. We want to raise international awareness about the prison-like closure of the Gaza Strip and pressure the international community to review its sanctions policy and end its support for continued Israeli occupation. We want to uphold Palestine's right to welcome internationals as visitors, human rights observers, humanitarian aid workers, journalists, or otherwise.
www.freegaza.org
Guest Post is the author as indicated in the tagline. He/she (or the source that is indicated within the post) reserves the rights to the material published.
Email this author | All posts by Guest Post
I wish I could be with you with my body, but now it is my spirit and soul who stand with you all, great good success to you all.
Captain Zen
Today, Saturday, August 9 Greta will be speaking on the LIBERTY Hour:
10 AM till noon Central Standard Time
http://www.republicbroadcasting.org
The call-in number for 'The Liberty Hour' is 800.313.9443
On August 8, 2008 Greta wrote:
Dear Gaza Friends:
Well, today is the opening of the Olympics, and it's also the day the boats have set sail for Crete. After solving several small technical problems and waiting for the weather to clear, FREE GAZA and LIBERTY are on their way to Chania, Crete, arriving there tomorrow. We will have a press conference, and it will be the first time photographers will be able to take photos of the two boats as they sail into the harbor.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SS Free Gaza and SS Liberty Arrive in Chania, Crete, Saturday, 9 August at 21:00 p.m.
For further information, contact: 6932 766496 for directions, or Greta Berlin, 00375 99 08 17 67
Nicosia/Lefkosia, Cyprus, August 7. The Free Gaza Movement announced today that their boats, destined to break the Israelis' siege of Gaza, will arrive in Chania, Crete, on Saturday, August 9, at 9 p.m. and that a press conference will be held to welcome their arrival. "Internationals are gathering across the world – in Beijing and Cyprus – with the common dream of peace and justice for everyone."
Human rights activists Lauren Booth, journalist, (sister in law of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair), Huwaida Arraf (a Palestinian-American residing in Ramallah, Palestine), and Jeff Halper (an Israeli Jew who was nominated for the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for opposing demolitions of Palestinian homes) will be available at the press conference for interviews.
"This will be the first time that our two boats will be publicly displayed and photographers are welcome to come, take photos and post their images." said Paul Larudee, on board the boats sailing toward Chania.
The Free Gaza Movement is endorsed by an impressive array of international groups and personalities including South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Former Prime Minister of Lebanon Dr. Salim Al-Hoss. For additional information, http://www.freegaza.org
We are a week late, but we are more determined than ever to go to Gaza. By now, almost half of the people are on board or traveling to the boats, and those of us left in Cyprus are finishing up our training, working on banners and trying to control our impatience. When we called the people of Gaza to tell them we would arrive a week late, their reply was, "Don't worry. We know you are coming. And we are waiting," a testament to their confidence that 40 Internationals, two small boats, and tremendous media attention can somehow defeat the Israeli Navy.
Some of the survivors of the USS Liberty have written to us and asked us to be on one of their programs tomorrow night. They wrote this request of us:
What is the possibility of you and the crew of the SS Liberty throwing 34 long stemmed roses into the sea as a memorial to the 34 Americans who were killed aboard the USS LIberty? We will pay for the roses or whatever else you have in mind. I guarantee you our newspaper American Free Press will give a HUGE spread in the paper for it. The survivors of the LIberty and their familes would be eternally grateful to you and your ship mates for this gesture as no one has ever done anything like this before.
Another wrote:
I am one of the survivors of the USS Liberty. A very tired man who woke up somewhat when I heard of the
SS Liberty. I was the petty officer in charge of the body recovery and identification, and I remember it almost like it was yesterday.
May God Be With You
So, when we leave Cyprus next week, we hope to have a ceremony for all of those Americans killed by the Israelis on board the ship in 1967.
The media attention has been intense in Europe, people calling constantly asking for interviews. If you GOOGLE Free Gaza, Cyprus, you will see dozens of stories about us and the boats and the response from here. So many angels have stepped in to help, from offering us their homes, feeding us, and driving us around to media appointments. One man called us today and told us that he would loan us the money to cover our expenses for the boats and the equipment, because, "You are making history."
Greta Berlin
The Free Gaza Movement
[...] – 09.08.08 Free Gaza Movement: SS Free Gaza and SS Liberty arrive in Chania, Crete, Saturday 9th August at 21:00 p.m, press release by FGM http://www.palsolidarity.org/main/2008/08/09/free-gaza-movement-ss-free-gaza-and-ss-liberty-arrive-in-chania-crete-saturday-9-august-at-2100-pm/ http://palestinethinktank.com/2008/08/08/important-message-from-free-gaza/ http://www.silviacattori.net/article502.html [...]