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Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, August 2008, pages 54-55 Waging Peace Journalist Ramzy Baroud Discusses the Humanitarian Crisis in Gaza
WHY IS A woman doctor in Gaza riding in a 7-person taxi with 13 other people, with a woman as well as a baby sitting on her lap? Explaining that the doctor is his own sister, Ramzy Baroud, veteran journalist and editor-in-chief of the Palestinian Chronicle, began his April 26 lecture at the Colorado Muslim Society in Denver. The occasion was a fund-raising luncheon co-sponsored by Friends of Sabeel-Colorado and the Colorado Muslim Society, with proceeds donated for humanitarian aid in Gaza. “The disaster in Gaza is man-made,” Baroud said, charging that Gaza refugees are being “punished for their democratic political views.” Although 80 percent of Gazans are dependent on food aid, they are denied fuel, he noted, meaning that world food programs cannot get into their camps. Israel also has cut the number of cancer patients allowed to travel from Gaza to the West Bank for treatment, he added, and Palestinians need passports and special permission to make the short trip to Jerusalem. Israel denies any involvement, claiming this crisis is created by Hamas to gain favorable world opinion. As an independent Palestinian, the Gaza-born Baroud holds no allegiance to any political party and dares to challenge this and other fraudulent Israeli claims supported by the U.S. Hamas is willing to accept a six-month truce in Gaza and extend it to the West Bank, Baroud told his Denver audience, but the Israeli government has refused—although 64 percent of Israelis believe in the importance of negotiations with Hamas. “Israel perpetuates the violence because it needs time to finish grabbing land in the West Bank to further its own imperialistic and colonial interests,” he stated. Baroud’s work has been published in hundreds of newspapers and journals worldwide. He has been a guest on numerous television programs, including CNN International, BBC, National Public Radio, Al-Jazeera, and many others. His most recent book is The Second Palestinian Intifada: A Chronicle of a People’s Struggle (available from the AET Book Club), the foreword to which is written by former CIA analysts Kathleen and Bill Christison. The Christisons explain how Israel has consistently aimed to erase the Palestinian people from the political landscape. Innocent Palestinian civilians have been “criminalized” through decades of relentless Israeli propaganda. “The body of misperceptions surrounding the Palestinians has not simply grown haphazardly,” they insist, but “has been carefully shaped and nurtured by a skillful pro-Israeli propaganda machine that operates around the world, but primarily in the U.S.” Baroud’s lecture was another attempt to help undo the propaganda and tell the truth, “no matter how detested the word of truth may be,” as Baroud put it. “What are we really gaining from uncritical support of Israel?” he asked. “Instability in the Middle East!” Before the lecture, the two sponsoring organizations honored several individuals for telling the truth and helping to relieve the humanitarian crisis in Palestine. The Media Award went to David Barsamian for his work in alternative radio, and the Activism Award to Jason Bosch of Argusfest. Rev. Jeff and Janet Wright received the Service Award for training Palestinian therapists to do trauma therapy among their people. This work will soon expand to include Iraqi therapists who will train in Jordan. The fund-raising luncheon for humanitarian aid in Gaza, “Remembering Palestine 60 Years Later,” concluded in hope. Baroud insisted it is important not to despair because despair leads to defeat and defeat to capitulation. He not only reminded his audience of the resilience of the Palestinian people, he embodied this resilience himself. —Tessa Bielecki |
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