Greeting of Stavros Gerolatsitis, member of the C.C. of AKEL, to the meeting of the Palestinian community in Cyprus
Friday, 30th October 2015, Nicosia
Friends and comrades,
On behalf of the Central Committee of AKEL, we salute today’s meeting and express our support and solidarity with the struggle of the Palestinian people.
The situation in the occupied Palestinian territories is dramatic and explosive. Violence and bloodshed appear to be out of control. However, it is not “both sides” that are responsible for this situation – as those who want to equate the aggressor with the victim claim. The responsibility lies with Israel, the occupying power which for decades has been occupying and colonizing the land of the Palestinians; the occupying power that is killing and oppressing the Palestinians, trying to crush the heroic Palestinian resistance.
The violence and clashes centered in Jerusalem have escalated recently due to the deliberate policy of the Israeli authorities to reverse the status quo in the region of the Al-Aqsa mosque, altering the character, legal status and demographic composition in the occupied Palestinian Territories. More specifically, with regards occupied East Jerusalem, Israel is seeking to impose its “judaization”. Israel’s goal is to create such fait accomplis so as to make the two-state solution unfeasible.
To begin with, it must be made clear in every direction that the attempt by the Israeli authorities to transform the Palestinian problem into a religious confrontation will not succeed. The unacceptable actions of the Israelis in the holy places of the Muslims constitute a provocation for everyone, not just for the Palestinians. In addition, Israel must know that the peoples and the progressive movements around the world will not stop demonstrating their solidarity with the struggle of the Palestinians, until the day when an independent, viable and sovereign Palestinian state will be established on the borders of 1967 with East Jerusalem as its capital.
AKEL for decades is on the side of the Palestinian people in this struggle. At the same time, we join our voices with the Palestinian people and demand the immediate release of all Palestinian political prisoners held in Israeli prisons. AKEL also demands the demolition of the illegal wall of separation that was erected by Israel in Jerusalem.
As AKEL we are – and will continue to be- a force exerting pressure on the government of Cyprus to adhere to positions of principle and to express solidarity with Palestine. The people of Cyprus, who know very well what foreign occupation and colonization is, was and will continue to be on the side of Palestine.
Finally, as we do from the podium the European Parliament, we call on the EU to abandon its unacceptable policy of equal distancing on the Palestinian problem; a policy that ultimately encourages the occupying power. As AKEL, together with the Group of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left in the European Parliament, we demanded and demand the suspension of the EU’s Association Agreement with Israel, due to the countless violations of human rights of the Palestinians perpetrated by Israel.
Friends and comrades,
Everyone proclaims they want peace to prevail in Palestine. However, peace will only prevail if justice prevails first. And justice means freedom for the heroic and unyielding Palestinian people, holding aloft the banner of dignity and struggle!
