[Peace-discuss] Rep. Keith Ellison: End the Gaza blockade to achieve peace

Wed Jul 30 14:53:09 EDT 2014

Please help spread this all around. It doesn't matter if you don't think
it's perfect; spreading it around doesn't mean you agree with every word.
What matters is that we don't have anything else like this in mainstream
U.S. political discourse. Rep. Ellison has moved the ball. Rally around
him!

http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/keith-ellison-end-the-gaza-blockade-to-achieve-peace/2014/07/29/e5e707c4-16a1-11e4-85b6-c1451e622637_story.html

By Keith Ellison July 29

Keith Ellison, a Democrat, represents Minnesota’s 5th District in the House
of Representatives.

It seems as though each day brings new horrors and heartbreaks in the Holy
Land. More than 1,000 dead. Gazan children blown up on the beach. A U.N.
shelter hit. Two-thirds of Israelis living in fear from indiscriminate
rocket fire launched by Hamas. But as the calls for a cease-fire gain
momentum, it is important to understand that many Gazans who have no
association with Hamas view the return to the way things were as
unacceptable.

These people aren’t rocket shooters or combatants. For the past several
years they have lived in dreadful isolation. The status quo for ordinary
Gazans is a continuation of no jobs and no freedom. This is not an
attractive future. Gazans want and deserve the dignity of economic
opportunity and freedom to move. This can be accomplished only with an end
to the blockade of the Gaza Strip, which must be considered within the
framework of a cease-fire. Israelis likewise deserve to live free of rocket
fire and terror attacks. In order for Israelis to live safely and securely
in their homes, Hamas must give up its rockets and other weapons.

I have traveled to Gaza three times since 2009 and have visited hospitals
and schools there. As I have talked with ordinary Gazans, I have not
encountered anyone representing Hamas. During one visit, I had the
opportunity to meet Scott Anderson, deputy director of the U.N. Relief and
Works Agency (UNRWA). Anderson, a 21-year veteran of the U.S. Army, said it
best when I spoke to him again this week: “Unless there is material change
to the status quo, you’re just resetting the clock for another cycle of
violence.” Continuing to block goods and services to and from Gaza keeps
the keys to opportunity away from the people who just want to live, work
and travel.

The vast majority of Gazans do not support firing rockets into Israel or
killing Israelis. In fact, the majority of people in Gaza are women and
children. During my first visit to the region, this fact was clear: There
were kids everywhere. This week, I also spoke with Yousef Moussa, chief
area operations officer at the UNRWA office in Rafah. He puts this
observation in context, noting, “50 percent of Gazans are under the age of
18. Seventy percent of Gazans are women and children. 80 percent of Gazans
live below the poverty line. Relatively few Gazans are associated with
Hamas.”

So how can the international community support those Gazans who don’t
support indiscriminate rocket fire? We could take steps to allow for the
safe flow of goods and services into Gaza and the export of goods and
services to neighboring countries. We could advocate for Gazans to have
freedom of movement. Now, if you’re a Gazan traveling in the West Bank, the
Israeli military can forcibly return you to Gaza. Being able to import
goods such as food, fuel and medicine would mean that Gazans would not be
forced to buy necessities from a tunnel economy controlled by extremists.
International actors should be involved in the process to address Israel’s
security concerns about lifting the blockade.

The blockade prevents development in Gaza. Egypt and Israel argue that the
blockade is designed to cut off resources from terrorists, but really it
has brought those who want a better life to their knees while the bad
actors still have their rockets. Before the blockade, the United Nations
provided food to 80,000 in Gaza; today it provides food to 830,000 .

Israel and Egypt also view the blockade as a success because it pushed
Hamas into a financial crisis. This is short-term thinking. It ignores the
fact that the economic devastation from the blockade weakens the public and
private sectors in Gaza and strengthens extremists and smuggling
enterprises. Repression and deprivation fuel terrorism; economic
development and inclusion can fuel long-term peace.

A viable path beyond the current crisis would empower Gazans and weaken
extremists who benefit from their suffering. The international community,
especially nations in the region, should help Gazans rebuild their
demolished homes and businesses. But who will invest if war will
predictably break out every two years?

There is no military solution to this conflict. The status quo brings only
continued pain, suffering and war. Promoting economic development and
social interaction in Gaza is in the long-term security interest of Israel
and the rest of the region. The relative calm that existed during Secretary
of State John Kerry’s extended diplomatic talks between Israel and the
Palestinians during 2013-14 shows that engaging in dialogue is the first
step toward stopping the violence.

Ultimately, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict must be resolved with a final
status agreement, and ending the violence and the blockade is a first step
toward a permanent solution.

===

Robert Naiman
Policy Director
Just Foreign Policy
www.justforeignpolicy.org
naiman at justforeignpolicy.org
(202) 448-2898 x1
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.chambana.net/pipermail/peace-discuss/attachments/20140730/c1289fe1/attachment.html>