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SIGN THE PETITION: Freeze Relations with Israel (English translation here)

Joint Statement against Government Repression of Civil Rights in NL (English)

Joint Statement against Government Repression of Civil Rights

We, as advocates for human rights and justice, unite in this joint statement to express our support for both the right to demonstrate and the growing movement for Palestinian liberation from Israeli oppression, apartheid, and ethnic cleansing. With a genocide unfolding before our eyes in which the Netherlands is complicit, the protection of peaceful protest is more important than ever.

On Tuesday, March 26, a hastily drafted statement was published, signed by a large number of political parties. The statement purported to condemn antisemitism but unmistakably targeted demonstrators. The majority of political parties in the Dutch House of Representatives apparently believe that peaceful protests, fully operating within the confines of the law, can nevertheless be banned.

While we have deep concerns about the rise of antisemitism and Islamophobia in our society, exacerbated by the shift of the political spectrum towards the far right, we condemn the actual content of this statement. We disagree with this smear campaign to equate legitimate protest and Palestinian solidarity actions with antisemitism. This includes the protest referenced in the statement: the disruption of a concert by Lenny Kuhr, which was aimed at Kuhr’s explicit political support for the Israeli occupation and genocide in Palestine. The protest had nothing to do with her Jewish identity. However, this claim was uncritically adopted across the board by the media and politics.

We see a disturbing trend where criticism of Israel’s gross human rights violations and occupation practices is dismissed as antisemitism. Apart from the fact that Israel is not synonymous with Judaism, nor does it speak or act on behalf of Jewish people, the misuse of the term undermines the seriousness of antisemitism. The ‘antisemitism’ smear is increasingly being used as a weapon to serve Israel’s interests, and now seems to be redefined as a tool to enforce political censorship around Palestine. This censorship not only enables the ongoing slaughter of Palestinians but also hollows out the concept of antisemitism. This increasingly endangers Jewish people and also denies the existence of an anti-Zionist Jewish community, who stand alongside Palestinian activists and all those in solidarity in the struggle for justice and decolonisation.

We condemn the selective outrage and the lack of recognition of the Palestinian cause by our government. With their statement, the Dutch House of Representatives has de facto given more support to one Dutch singer than to all Palestinian victims of the genocide, including over 33,000 deaths, half of whom are children.

Therefore, we call on the parties that signed the March 26 statement to reconsider their position, and emphasise the importance of protecting the right to peaceful protest and freedom of speech for all citizens, especially those advocating for the equal rights of marginalised groups. The suppression of critical voices and the restriction of the right to demonstrate threaten the democratic values on which our society is built.

Especially now, it is crucial that we dare to hold our government accountable when it violates international and national laws, and that we remain in solidarity with the Palestinian struggle for freedom, decolonisation, and justice.

At time of publication, signed by:
Workers for Palestine NL, XR Justice Now!, BIJ1, Erev Rav, een Ander Joods Geluid, Platform Stop Racisme & Fascisme, Plant een Olijfboom, MiGreat, Internationale Socialisten, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, Stichting Stem op een Vrouw, FNV Palestina Werkgroep, Haagste Stadspartij, Leiden Scholars for Palestine, Palestijnse Gemeenschap NL, Utrecht in Solidarity with Palestine, Groningen voor Palestina, New Neighbours Utrecht, Pal Action NL, Palestijns Netwerk Nederland, Lijst Ahmadi Veldhuyzen, Nijmegen for Palestine, Zaankanters voor Palestina, Rotterdam Palestina Coalitie, Stichting Kifaia, Sit-in 4 Palestine NL, Breda Solidair, Revolutionair Verbond, De Socialisten, NCPN, Kairos-Sabeel Nederland, The Hague Peace Projects, Amersfoort4Palestine, Eindhoven4Palestine, Almere voor Palestina, Alkmaar voor Palestina, Gouda4palestine, Zwolle.4Palestine, Friesland for Palestine, The Road To Free Palestine, FriendsofHandala, Platform Stop racisme en facisme Arnhem-Nijmegen

Joint Statement against Government Repression of Civil Rights in NL (Dutch)

Demonstratierecht onder druk – Een gemeenschappelijke verklaring

Wij, als voorstanders van mensenrechten en rechtvaardigheid, verenigen ons in dit gezamenlijke statement om onze steun uit te spreken voor zowel het demonstratierecht als ook de groeiende beweging voor Palestijnse bevrijding van Israëlische onderdrukking, apartheid en ethnische zuivering. Nu er onder onze neus een genocide plaatsvindt waaraan Nederland medeplichtig is, is de bescherming van vreedzaam protest belangrijker dan ooit.

Op dinsdag 26 maart werd een haastig opgestelde verklaring gepubliceerd, ondertekend door een groot aantal politieke partijen. De verklaring zou antisemitisme veroordelen, maar is onmiskenbaar gericht tegen demonstranten. Het gros van de politieke partijen in de Tweede Kamer vindt blijkbaar dat vreedzame protesten die volledig binnen de wet vallen desondanks verboden kunnen worden.

Hoewel we diepe zorgen hebben over de opkomst van antisemitisme en islamofobie in onze samenleving, versterkt door de verschuiving van het politieke spectrum naar extreemrechts, keuren we de daadwerkelijke inhoud van deze verklaring af. We zijn het oneens met deze lastercampagne om rechtmatig protest en Palestijnse solidariteitsacties gelijk te stellen aan antisemitisme. Dit omvat ook het protest waar de verklaring aan refereert: de verstoring van een concert van Lenny Kuhr, die gericht was op Kuhrs expliciete politieke steun aan de Israëlische bezetting en genocide in Palestina. Het protest had niets te maken met haar Joodse identiteit. Deze bewering wordt echter kritiekloos overgenomen door media en politiek.

We zien een verontrustende trend waarbij kritiek op Israëls grove mensenrechtenschendingen en bezettingspraktijken wordt afgedaan als antisemitisme. Los van het feit dat Israël niet synoniem is met het Jodendom, noch spreekt of handelt namens Joodse mensen, doet het misbruik van de term afbreuk aan de ernst van antisemitisme. Antisemitisme wordt steeds vaker als wapen ingezet om Israëls belangen te dienen, en lijkt nu opnieuw gedefinieerd als een instrument om politieke censuur rond Palestina af te dwingen. Deze censuur maakt niet alleen de voortdurende afslachting van de Palestijnen mogelijk, maar holt ook het concept van antisemitisme uit. Dit brengt in toenemende mate Joodse mensen in gevaar en ontkent tevens het bestaan van een antizionistische Joodse gemeenschap, die zij aan zij met Palestijnse activisten en solidaire mensen strijden voor rechtvaardigheid en dekolonisatie.

We veroordelen de selectieve verontwaardiging en het gebrek aan erkenning van de Palestijnse zaak door onze overheid. Met hun verklaring heeft de Tweede Kamer de facto meer steun verleend aan één Nederlandse zangeres dan aan alle Palestijnse slachtoffers van de genocide, inclusief ruim 33.000 doden waarvan de helft kinderen zijn.

Daarom roepen we de partijen die de verklaring van 26 maart ondertekenden op hun standpunt te herzien, en benadrukken we het belang van het beschermen van het recht op vreedzaam protest en de vrijheid van meningsuiting voor alle burgers, vooral waneer deze opkomen voor gelijke rechten van gemarginaliseerde groepen. De onderdrukking van kritische stemmen en de beperking van het recht op demonstratie vormen een bedreiging voor de democratische waarden waarop onze samenleving is gebouwd.

Vooral nu is het van wezenlijk belang dat we onze overheid erop durven aanspreken als zij internationale en nationale wetten breekt, en dat we solidair blijven met de Palestijnse strijd voor vrijheid, dekolonisatie en rechtvaardigheid.

Op het moment van publicatie, ondertekend door:
Workers for Palestine NL, XR Justice Now!, BIJ1, Erev Rav, een Ander Joods Geluid, Platform Stop Racisme & Fascisme, Plant een Olijfboom, MiGreat, Internationale Socialisten, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, Stichting Stem op een Vrouw, FNV Palestina Werkgroep, Haagste Stadspartij, Leiden Scholars for Palestine, Palestijnse Gemeenschap NL, Utrecht in Solidarity with Palestine, Groningen voor Palestina, New Neighbours Utrecht, Pal Action NL, Palestijns Netwerk Nederland, Lijst Ahmadi Veldhuyzen, Nijmegen for Palestine, Zaankanters voor Palestina, Rotterdam Palestina Coalitie, Stichting Kifaia, Sit-in 4 Palestine NL, Breda Solidair, Revolutionair Verbond, De Socialisten, NCPN, Kairos-Sabeel Nederland, The Hague Peace Projects, Amersfoort4Palestine, Eindhoven4Palestine, Almere voor Palestina, Alkmaar voor Palestina, Gouda4palestine, Zwolle.4Palestine, Friesland for Palestine, The Road To Free Palestine, FriendsofHandala, Platform Stop racisme en facisme Arnhem-Nijmegen

HPP Statement: Genocide Convention against Israel at ICJ (English)

The Hague, January 2024

We, The Hague Peace Projects, would like to express our support of the proceedings instigated by South Africa at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Israel, and we laud the steps taken by Spain, Ireland, Belgium, and Norway, in condemning without ambiguity the disproportionate answer of the Israeli government to the attacks of October 7th. The Israeli government has been denying the Palestinian population of Gaza access to food, water, medicine, and fuel in a concerted effort to maximize their suffering and expedite the demise of this ethnic group. Israeli occupying forces have killed more than twenty thousand Palestinian civilians in just a matter of months since October 7, 2023, not accounting for the injured and yet unnamed corpses lying under the rubble.

Schools, hospitals, shelters, and ambulances have been purposefully targeted, as well as fleeing civilians, with the intention of terrorizing the population of Gaza and producing a new Nakba that would displace the Gaza population into refugee camps in Egypt rather than to open the northern border into Israel and create refugee camps there as part of an operation meant to protect civilians. These actions by the Israeli government defy all sense of humanity, proportionality, and any conceivable right to self-defence from occupied populations. Official statements made by the Israeli government and across the breadth of the political spectrum amount to a blatant campaign to destroy the Palestinian presence in Gaza and ethnically cleanse the occupied Palestinian territories by encouraging attacks in the West Bank, increasingly so in the months that preceded the October 7th attacks and since then.

It is imperative that the genocidal acts of Israel are recognised as such by the International Court of Justice so that their prevention can be encouraged by international pressure and enforcement. This is a critical precedent for the prevention of future genocides and the credibility of the international architecture of law, democracy, and human rights. The experience of a legalized apartheid in South Africa is in all our memories and this country’s desire to respect the lessons therein and uphold international law, in the case of the apartheid system imposed on the Palestinians as established by the UN itself in 2022 and that of the ongoing war on Palestine, should be supported and lauded by any means.

We therefore urge national governments to immediately file a declaration of intervention in support of the South African case against Israel at the International Court of Justice to stop the killing in the occupied Palestinian territories and convey an international peace conference aimed at resolving the conflict once and for all by addressing the question of the right of return of the refugees and the financial compensations that will have to be paid.

The Hague Peace Projects

Press Release November 2023 – Violence in Israel/Palestine (English)

The Hague, 14-10-2023

The world was shocked by Hamas’ attack on Israel last weekend and the violence that followed. We are deeply saddened by the loss of many civilian lives on both sides of the conflict, Israelis and Palestinians alike. We condemn all attacks on civilians, whether carried out by Hamas, or by the State of Israel as collective punishment of the Palestinian civilians in Gaza.

The current situation in Gaza is a human catastrophe. Political and military leaders of Israel have explicitly stated it is their goal to destroy Gaza , to maximize damage, and to remove the entire population by military force. The actions and statements by Israeli officials amount to an ongoing genocide. We condemn those leaders who enable Israel to implement these goals with their political and military support.

Imprisoning more than two million people on a small strip of land without food, shelter, electricity and water, while bombing them from airplanes is deliberate cruelty that does not comply with any human values nor international law. The atrocities committed by Hamas do not legitimize the deliberate bombing of civilian neighborhoods of Palestinians, and the targeting of families, schools, hospitals, mosques, and humanitarian convoys.

As human beings we cannot remain silent or indifferent to these war crimes. Therefore, we call upon all decisionmakers in the US and the EU to intervene to stop Israels’ bombing campaign, and to open up all necessary humanitarian corridors to allow the supply of food, water, and medical care to enter the Gaza strip.

The unfolding violence is the result of an accumulation of many crimes and injustices over the past decades. This historical background requires a place in the mainstream political narrative to open the way towards dialogue and sustainable peace. For too long, the West has aided the colonial project of Israel and ignored the basic human rights of the Palestinian people and their legitimate claim to their land and dignity.

The Second World War is remembered as one of the most catastrophic events in human history. “Never again” was the slogan which carried the peace movement to rebuild a world where this was true. It is imperative that we emphasize the need for equal human rights for both Israelis and Palestinians, and recognize that crimes of colonialism, suppression, apartheid, and ethnic cleansing cannot be ignored no matter who commits them.

We urgently call for an immediate ceasefire on civilian targets in the Gaza strip and for negotiations to release the Israeli hostages. We strongly warn against a singular political narrative that needlessly accelerates this conflict. We believe that only dialogue and a mutual recognition of each other’s suffering can bring this war to an end. We therefore call for an honest, deep, and serious dialogue between all relevant actors in this conflict in order to advance towards a sustainable peace in the Middle East.

The Hague Peace Projects

Press Release Feb 2023 – Oekraïne (Dutch)

Op 17 februari jl. organiseerde The Hague Peace Projects een publieke bijeenkomst in Den Haag onder de titel: “Vrede in Oekraïene: Tijd om te praten!” Sprekers waren Jan Pronk, oud minister en VN-gezant, Anette Freyberg- Inan, hoogleraar politicologie en internationale betrekkingen en aan de UvA, Bastiaan van Apeldoorn, hoogleraar Globale Politieke Economie en Geopolitiek aan de VU en eerste kamerlid voor de SP en Henk Baars, voorzitter van de vredesorganisatie Kerk en Vrede. Na de presentatie van de sprekers volgde een openhartig gesprek met het publiek over de vraag hoe wij als Westen in deze bedreigende situatie terecht zijn gekomen en hoe er zo snel mogelijk een einde aan het bloedvergieten kan komen.

Een jaar geleden viel Rusland Oekraïne aan en pleegde daarmee een daad van agressie tegen Oekraïene. Dit is een ernstige overtreding tegen de internationale rechtsorde die wij veroordelen. Tegelijkertijd zijn de Westerse leiders van de afgelopen drie decennia, die van de VS, de NAVO en de EU, mede verantwoordelijk voor het creëren van de condities waarbinnen dit conflict kon ontstaan. Onder meer door de uitbreiding van de NAVO en het actief ontmantelen van de nucleaire veiligheidsarchitectuur.

Door het conflict in Oekraïne zijn de verhoudingen tussen Oost en West teruggevallen tot het niveau van de ergste crises tijdens de Koude Oorlog. Desondanks lijkt geen van beide partijen bereid om een stap terug te doen. In tegendeel is er sprake van een voortdurende escalatie, zowel in retoriek, zwaardere bewapening als bombardementen op civiele infrastructuur. Deze escalatie brengt de kans op een directe confrontatie tussen nucleaire grootmachten steeds dichterbij. De vernietigende gevolgen van een dergelijke confrontatie zijn niet te overzien. Wij veroordelen de roekeloosheid waarmee zowel Rusland als de NAVO op deze wijze roulette spelen met de toekomst van de mensheid. Het is ieders verantwoordelijkheid om er alles aan te doen om dit scenario te voorkomen.

Daarom roept The Hague Peace Projects de Nederlandse regering op:

Verlaat de politiek van escalatie en zoek actief naar een diplomatieke oplossing voor het conflict in Oekraïene, bijvoorbeeld door het instellen van een nationale adviescommissie die advies uitbrengt over mogelijke diplomatieke uitwegen uit de oorlog.
Pleeg inspanningen in EU verband voor het benoemen van een EU-vredesgezant die met zowel Rusland als Oekraïne de mogelijkheden verkent voor een diplomatieke oplossing.
Gebruik de invloed van Nederland invloed in EU om een internationale conferentie te organiseren tussen alle strijdende partijen waaronder Rusland, de VS, Oekraïene, de NAVO en de EU waarin afspraken gemaakt kunnen worden over een gemeenschappelijk, permanent en duurzaam veiligheidskader.

Een videoverslag van de bijeenkomst op 17 februari is hier terug te vinden. Mocht u vragen hebben nemen naar aanleiding van deze oproep of de bijeenkomst dan kunt u contact opnemen met Jakob de Jonge, voorzitter van The Hague Peace Projects: j.dejonge@thehaguepeace.org, 06- 18051097.

At The Hague Peace Projects, we find ourselves playing an increasingly important and challenging role providing context and balance to polarized narratives on global and domestic conflicts. Support peace through dialogue such that a healthy and well-informed civil and political discourse may be equipped to break our cycles of violence and achieve peace through consensus.

Stop The War is an initiative to engage in and promote dialogue as the route to peace

Political and military leaders of Israel have explicitly stated it is their goal to destroy Gaza , to maximize damage, and to remove the entire population by military force. The actions and statements by Israeli officials amount to an ongoing genocide. We condemn those leaders who enable Israel to implement these goals with their political and military support.

The conflict in Ukraine has reduced relations between East and West to the level of the worst crises of the Cold War. Despite this, neither side seems willing to take a step back. On the contrary, there is a continuous escalation, both in rhetoric, heavier armaments, and the bombing of civilian infrastructure. This escalation brings the chance of a direct confrontation between nuclear superpowers ever closer, the consequences of which are incalculable. We condemn the recklessness with which both Russia and NATO play roulette with the future of humanity in this way.

It is everyone’s responsibility to do everything possible to avoid this scenario.

The route to Peace: Ukraine

With this statement we hope to discourage the escalation of warring rhetoric and action, and establish support for the commencement of peace negotiations

  • Abandon the policy of escalation and actively seek a diplomatic solution to the conflict in Ukraine, for example by setting up a national advisory committee to advise on possible diplomatic solutions to the war.
  • Make efforts at EU level to appoint an EU peace envoy who will explore the possibilities for a diplomatic solution with both Russia and Ukraine.
  • Use the influence of the Netherlands in the EU to organize an international conference between all warring parties, including Russia, the US, Ukraine, NATO and the EU, in which agreements can be made about a common, permanent, and sustainable security framework.

Peace in Ukraine: Time to Talk!

De-escalation Starts with Dialogue. It’s Time to Talk!

Dialogue

Follow discussions about our conflicts and the dialogue for peace

We all have a story to tell, so let’s agree to listen. Dialogue is how we understand and gain appreciation for other perspectives. We are committed to encourage a well-informed and inclusive civil society, so that real non-violent, political, social, and environmental transformation can be achieved.

Public Debates

Public debate #1 – Grey Space, The Hague

Public debate #2 – Pakhuis de Zwijger, Amsterdam

Public debate #3 – Election debate 2023, The Hague

All Interviews

Public discussion with Jan Pronk, Anette Freyberg- Inan, Bastiaan van Apeldoorn & Henk Baars (Dutch)

Interview with Harry van Bommel, former Member of Parliament for the SP (Dutch)

Interview with Henk Overbeek, professor of International Relations and former member of the Senate for the SP (Dutch)

Interview with Jan Pronk, former politician and minister, former UN envoy, emeritus professor (Dutch)

Interview with Nilab Ahmadi, council member for Bij1 in Amsterdam (Dutch)

Interview with May-May Meijer, chair of the NGO PeaceSOS (Dutch)

Interview with Bert de Vries, former Dutch minister (Dutch)

Interview with Ewald Engelen, Professor Financial Geography (Dutch)

Interview with Lidija Zelovic, Producer and Director (Dutch)

Interview with Tom Sauer, Professor International Political Relations at Antwerpen University (Dutch)

Interview with Arne Tulner, Historian and Political Scientist (Dutch)

Interview with Wendela de Vries, Researcher/Campaigner at Stop Wapenhandel (Dutch)

Interview with Guido van Leemput, political assistant for defense for the SP (Dutch)

Public debate at Pakhuis de Zwijger, Amsterdam, 30 June 2023 (Dutch)

Interview with Henk Baars, chairman of Kerk en Vrede (Dutch)

Interview with Pieter Ham, Dutch farmer in Russia (Dutch)

Interview with Amir Kiyaei, Policy Coordinator of DiEM25 (English)

Interview with Jeffrey Sachs, economics professor and global leader in sustainable development (English)

Interview with Mirjam Ateş-Snijdewind, chair of Religions for Peace (Dutch)

Interview with Erik van der Zanden, strategist for peaceful revolutions (English)

Interview with Jasper van Dijk, MP for the Dutch Socialist Party (Dutch)

Interview with Larry Johnson, former CIA analyst (English)

Interview with Chris de Ploeg, investigative journalist (Dutch)

Interview with Pascal Lottaz, associate professor of Kyoto University (English)

Interview with Maryia Cherenko (Ukrainian doctor) about the need to end the war (English)

Interview with Jan van de Kolk (Kairos-Sabeel) about the 75 year occupation of Palestine (Dutch)

Interview with Umayya Abu-Hanna, Palestinian Israeli journalist and writer (English)

Interview with Rawad Yonus, Palestinian academic (English)

Interview with Reinout Sterk, military lawyer (Dutch)

Interview with professor Bastiaan van Apeldoorn, Member of the First Chamber for the SP (Dutch)

Interview with Yuval Gal, candidate MP for BIJ1 (Dutch)

Interview with Karen Kwiatkowski, ret. USAF Lieut. Colonel (English)

Interview with Peter Emerson, director of The deBorda Institute (English)

Interview with Lawrence Wilkerson, Ret. US Colonel (English)

Interview (#2) with Arne Tulner, historian and political scientist (Dutch)

Interview (#2) with Harry van Bommel, former Member of Parliament for the SP (Dutch)

Interview with Samar, Palestinian from Bethlehem and development practitioner with experience in the entire Middle East (English)

Interview (#2) with Larry Johnson, former CIA analyst (English)

Peace Talks Now!

Peace in Ukraine: Time to Talk!

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