Declaration against the annexation of the West Bank
Through this declaration, we express our absolute and radical rejection of the plan to annex parts of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank, carried out through the colonialist policies implemented by the State of Israel, driven by its Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and supported by the so-called “Deal of the Century” proposed by US President Donald Trump.
As academics particularly sensitive to all matters concerning territorial justice, sovereignty, self-determination, and the human rights of peoples, we commit to organizing and expressing our rejection of the possible annexation of Palestinian territories. We will also strive to expose the actions of the State of Israel as a power with which normal relations are impossible. We will always uphold the legitimate right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and the protection of their historic territory.
The annexation is nothing more than a new phase in the expansion of an illegal occupation.Israel, which has done little to nothing to establish peace in the region, systematically violating the rules of international law established for the peaceful coexistence of states. For decades, fueled by Zionism, Israel has been exercising systemic and blatant violence before the eyes and with the passivity of the international community, not only through the illegal annexation of territories, but also through a systematic ethnic cleansing deployed since the founding of the State of Israel (1948), whose objective appears to be none other than the elimination of an entire people and their historical and cultural legacy.
Based on all of the above, we propose:
1) To create an academic space for critical thinking that promotes solidarity with the Palestinian people.
2) To make visible the situation of colonization (expulsion, occupation and apartheid) that, since its creation in 1948, has been systematically imposed by the State of Israel on Palestine.
3) Promote the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel in Latin American universities with the aim of academically and politically pressuring Israel to end the colonial situation.
4) To create and strengthen an international network of academics, integrating those who adhere to the principles and objectives established by Academics for Palestine and supported by the Special Group “Palestine and Latin America”
In this context, Academics for Palestine and the Special Group “Palestine and Latin America” declare that:
a) We categorically oppose the possibility of the “annexation” of a portion of the West Bank (30%), announced by the Israeli government and supported by the US. This proposal has been rejected by the United Nations and the international community in general. We believe that the current annexation plan requires international sanctions against Israel, which must be applied to force it to change its course of action.
b) We find the alliances of certain Arab states with Israel, such as Saudi Arabia, unacceptable; however, we greatly value the solidarity of the Arab peoples with the Palestinian cause.
c) It is unacceptable that biased versions of the colonial conflict currently suffocating Palestine are circulating in the national and international press. These versions argue that the Zionist claim belongs to the sphere of “civilization” and that Palestinian resistance is a product of “barbarism.”
d) We affirm that any solution to the current situation in Palestine necessarily involves dismantling and ending the Zionist colonial system. This solution must, on the one hand, be based on respect for international law, and on the other, restore coexistence in historic Palestine among different communities, languages, and cultures, as was the case for centuries in that territory.
e) We completely reject the Israeli ideological blackmail that labels all its critics as “anti-Semites”.
FOR A FREE AND SELF-DETERMINING PALESTINE!
July 7, 2020
CLACSO Special Group / Al Zeytun Magazine
Palestine and Latin America
