Defence for Children International
Palestine Section

[RAMALLAH, 3 October 2009] – On 2 October 2009, the Palestinian Authority withdrew its draft Resolution supporting the recommendations contained in the Goldstone Report, resulting in a deferral of a vote to endorse the report in the Human Rights Council, to March 2010. It is reported that the decision was taken after intense pressure from the United States government and some members of the international community.

[Read the report | h/t]

Don McCanne
2 October 2009

Two difficult issues that stem from using private health plans as the model for reform include: 1) Can you mandate individuals to buy an insurance plan they can’t afford?, and 2) Can you allow insurers free rein on using premium dollars for their own purposes rather than spending them on health care? Let’s see how the Senate Finance Committee approached these.

[Read more]

M1 of dead prez: 24 hours in Gaza
by Mutulu Olugbala, aka M1 of dead prez
5 September 2009

You may have heard me say, “I work for the people; the streets are my office.” Well, my recent mission to Palestine was a testament to that statement. Through the Existence is Resistance organization, I bore witness to a very moving and eye-opening experience. As a man-at-arms in an African Liberation Movement in the U.S. which is currently in the process of re-organizing and re-inventing itself in these times, I see the role of international solidarity critically important to our future world view. So when asked, “Why are you all the way over there when there is a war going on in your own community?” I proudly quote dead prez’ “Psychology” (“Let’s Get Free,” 2000): “My enemy’s enemy is my man!”

[Read Part I]

M1’s Ghetto to Gaza Tour is on! Read his ‘24 hours in Gaza, Part II’
Written by Mutulu Olugbala, aka M1 of dead prez
Thursday, 01 October 2009

Part II: Breaking the siege

Even with its political repression, media tirade against it, and continuous bombings and chemical warfare, the Gaza Strip was a much better place to be in than Cairo. It was cleaner, more beautiful and the food was much better, trust me!

We were escorted through the town in what seemed like a parade even though we made it through the border at about 9 o’clock p.m.! The procession was led to a beautiful hotel in which they had prepared a feast which wasn’t very vegan friendly but nonetheless a more-than-warm welcome.

[Read Part II]

Updated 2/10/09 @ 1615:
I sent a comment up for moderation several hours ago re: part two that hasn’t been published yet. Don’t recall it verbatim but it went something like this:

Fatah’s filthy history of torture and U.S.-sponsored oppression of “dissidents” aka “terrorists” – depending on which media outlet is doing the story telling – seem to be missing from this report.

This is not an attempt to excuse human rights abuses perpetrated by Hamas but a wondering why Fatah’s despicable actions were not addressed during the visit or in this telling of it.

George Bisharat, The San Francisco Chronicle, 30 September 2009

This article was originally published by The San Francisco Chronicle and is republished with permission.

President Obama has placed restoration of the stature of the United States among his primary foreign policy goals. He has already achieved substantial progress in Europe, where polls indicate that he is widely admired. The president’s June Cairo University speech also won praise in the Arab and Muslim worlds. Yet there are still no substantive policy changes implied by his inspiring words.

Obama can solidify broader global respect by supporting the recommendations of the just-released Goldstone report in the U.N. Human Rights Council. Richard Goldstone, a former South African supreme court justice and chief prosecutor in the International Criminal Tribunals for Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, led a mission to investigate allegations of war crimes in Gaza last winter (Dec. 27, 2008, through Jan. 19). The Goldstone mission concluded that, indeed, Israel and Hamas committed war crimes, and recommended that both parties be given six months to mount independent internal investigations. If they fail, the mission calls on the U.N. Security Council to refer the matter to the International Criminal Court.

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