Refuser Solidarity Network Newsletter

Current Newsletter
December, 2008

GREETINGS FROM THE REFUSER SOLIDARITY NETWORK!

The winter 2008, issue of the RSN newsletter includes updates from the organizations we support, as well as links to current activities by military Refusers in Israel/Palestine, Europe and North America. A number of these stories have appeared on RSN's website, http://www.refusersolidarity.net/

WHO WE ARE: The Refuser Solidarity Network (RSN) was formed in April of 2002 to provide support for the growing Refuser Movement in Israel. The initial impetus for the establishment of the RSN was the publication in January 2002 of the Combatants Letter by a group of 52 reserve officers, which later became Ometz Le'sarev or Courage to Refuse. RSN now supports Combatants for Peace, Yesh G'vul, the Shiministim, New Profile and other Israeli organizations advocating peaceful conflict resolution in Israel/Palestine and working to end the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories seized in 1967. A 501(c)3 charitable organization, RSN makes grants to refuser groups to support their work financially. RSN is funded entirely by contributions from individuals in the U.S. and around the world. Our mission statement is as follows:

RSN builds support for, seeks to increase the visibility of, and educates the public about the Israeli refuser movements, with the objective of working together with refusers to end Israel's occupation of the Palestinian territories.

To learn more about RSN, visit our website at http://www.refusersolidarity.net/.

NEWS FROM THE REFUSER MOVEMENT

FREE THE SHMINISTIM - ISRAEL'S YOUNG CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS

The Shministim are Israeli high school students who have been imprisoned for refusing to serve in an army that occupies the Palestinian Territories. Show your support by contacting the Israeli Minister of Defense using the form below. Israeli peace activists will hand-deliver your message on December 18th, the Shministim Day of Action. 11,000 LETTERS AND COUNTING! Go to http://december18th.org/.

Who are the Shministim?

Although Israel mandates universal military service, many graduates avoid service through "gray" refusal: they obtain letters from doctors and psychiatrists excusing them from service, or they leave the country. The Shministim are a group of high school graduates who take a more direct (and braver) approach, refusing induction directly because of their opposition to the Occupation. June 27, they invited young men and women considering refusal to a meeting in Tel Aviv, explaining: "Our political and social power depends on our ability to organize. As a group we will be able to make a difference." The group also sponsored a discussion of the abuse of Palestinian detainees by Israeli soldiers, an event that coincided with the annual UN International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. [From: Jewish Voice for Peace]

NEW PROFILE

RSN has been a major supporter of New Profile for many years. Recently, New Profile has been in the news as the target of a criminal investigation for allegedly encouraging draft dodging-a crime in Israel. Here's an account of the probe from the Israeli press (Amos Harel, HaAretz, September, 2008): http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1020999.html

And a response from New Profile's Rela Mazali: http://kibush.co.il/show_file.asp?num=29072

Jewish Voice for Peace recently interviewed Ruth Hiller, one of New Profile's co-founders. http://www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org/publish/article_1116.shtml

New Profile is a group of feminist women and men who oppose the militarization of Israeli society. NP works for a truly democratic civic education, teaching the practice of peace and conflict resolution, rather than training children to enlist and accept warfare. More information is available at New Profile's website http://www.newprofile.org/default.asp?language=en

COMBATANTS FOR PEACE (CFP): Recent Activities

A-Ram (17.11.2008)
First meeting of "Ramallah-Jerusalem" Combatants for Peace group
Around 30 people, Palestinians and Israelis, attended the first meeting of the Ramalla-Jerusalem group of Combatants for Peace was held in A-Ram, in north-east Jerusalem. Around 30 others, who expressed their will to become members of the new group, will have to await the opening of yet another group in the area, hopefully in the near future. The Ramalla-Jerusalem group is intended as a new base for the movement's activity in this crucial area and we hope it would succeed in initiating actions of various kinds.

Wallaga (12-13.12.2008)
An activity for supplying running water
A group of Jerusalem based activists has formed around Abed,the land owner, and decided to preserve this oasis by making it an active ecological center, a place were people from both sides of the valley can meet, learn and work together. The first priority is to create a supply of drinking water, as Abed now has to carry water from a spring- filling jerricans and transporting them by donkey or by car. We will build a rainwater collecting system that will resolve the problem, at least partially. Combatants for Peace will join hands and help promoting this project.

The Combatants for Peace movement was started jointly by Palestinians and Israelis who have taken an active part in the cycle of violence--Israelis as soldiers in the Israeli army (IDF) and Palestinians as part of the violent struggle for Palestinian freedom. Since 2005, CFP has organized meetings between Israeli and Palestinian veterans in which both sides tell about the violent actions that they have taken part in and about the turning point that led them to understand the limits of violence. These combatants' meetings allow each side to understand the other's narrative through reconciliation rather than conflict. For more information see: http://www.combatantsforpeace.org/

YESH G'VUL

Yesh G'vul ("There is a limit!") is an Israeli peace group campaigning against the Occupation by backing soldiers who refuse duties in the Occupied Territories. Yesh G'vul arose in response to the 1982 Israeli invasion of Lebanon. It offers counseling to soldiers who wrestle with the painful choice between serving policies they find abhorrent and defying military discipline. The organization provides moral and material backing for those who elect to refuse, ranging from financial support for families of jailed refuseniks to vigils at the military prisons where they are held. The oldest of the refuser groups, Yesh G'vul continues to struggle against illegal military actions in the Occupied Territories.

OTHER LINKS TO ANTI-OCCUPATION ACTIVITIES IN ISRAEL/PALESTINE

Occupation Magazine reports on opposition to Occupation: http://www.kibush.co.il/

The Free Gaza Movement has sent ships to Gaza to break the siege and express nonviolent solidarity with the people of Gaza. Read more at http://www.freegaza.org/

ICHAD-USA, the American counterpart of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, sponsors a variety of educational activities as well as a summer camp during which volunteers rebuild the home of a Palestinian family whose house has been demolished by Israeli authorities. Read more at http://icahdusa.org/

B'tselem, the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, maintains an active web site detailing Israeli human rights violations in the Territories and resistance by Israeli-Palestinian peace groups. Read more at http://www.btselem.org/English/index.asp

RSN NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT!

You can help the efforts of refusers and peace activists in Israel/Palestine!

Forward this newsletter to your own peace and justice networks and encourage others to learn about our work

Send us news, links to articles about refusers and anti-occupation work in Israel-Palestine at our newsletter address, rsnnewsletter@yahoo.com.

And most important, donate to RSN. RSN is the only charitable organization established in the United States that provides grants to refuser organizations. You can make a secure on-line donation by going to the RSN web site, http://refusersolidarity.net, and clicking on the DONATE NOW link.

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