Edinburgh Peace and Justice Centre

The Edinburgh Peace and Justice Centre joins the world in condemning Israel's deadly attack on the Gaza-bound aid flotilla. Along with Scottish WILPF, we encourage those who care for peace and justice to act in ways that show their support for the beseiged Palestinian citizens of Gaza and those attempting to bring aid to them. This can be done through lobbying the Scottish and UK Government, writing to the Israeli Government and its allies in the US . We can demand that heed is paid the the UN Security Council and its Resolutions. Additionally we can publicly demonstrate in the streets. The Centre supports the proposed demonstration in Edinburgh at the foot of the Mound this Saturday at 2.00pm.

The Peace and Justice Centre has always condemned any use of violence, including retaliation; this also includes the violence in preventing people from accessing basic food, shelter and medical necessities. We seek to find alternative means of resolving conflict, and believe that dialogue, communication and mutually respectful negotiation can help to achieve this. That is why we supported the Scottish WILPF Song and Dance at Faslane for Nuclear Abolition Day, this Saturday and encouraged people to go there to support a global Nuclear Weapons Convention, like the Convention that banned the use of chemical weapons world wide.

After some discussion with Scottish WILPF, it has been agreed to go ahead with an event at Faslane, which will be smaller than originally planned. We are now suggesting that where groups had intended to attend, only one member goes to Faslane, and the others can help make a good presence in Edinburgh (and other cities where demonstrations are planned)

Peace and Justice Centre volunteer and Scottish WILPF member Penny Stone told us that
while she was working as internatiional observer on the West Bank earlier this year she witnessed an unnarmed civilian population that was threatened and attacked by Israeli soldiers on a daily basis. She added
“An unarmed civilian population. This attack on international unarmed civilians serves only to highlight the ongoing problem. The time is long overdue for the interbational community to act.”

The Faslane demonstration provides an important chance at this difficult time to consider the Israeli Government's denial of its own nuclear arsenal while scaremongering about the intentions of the government in Iran. We believe that the best hope for establishing a nuclear free zone in the middle east is the promotion of a Nuclear Weapons Convention.
A nuclear free middle east could provide stability and respect for international law. Those of us going to Faslane will be taking banners and placards designed to make the links, and the prisoners and victims of violence off the coast of Gaza as well as all those who live in Palestine and Israel will be in our thoughts.

Marie-Claire Faray-Kele, the Vice President of UK WILPF who is visiting the Peace and Justice Centre as the keynote speaker speaker at our AGM encouraged our actions with the following words: “Nuclear and conventional weapons epitomise the forces that would divide and destroy the world, they can only be overcome by solidarity, resilience and perseverance of ordinary citizens of good will everywhere working together and campaigning to transform hope into energy towards the realisation of a world free from the menace of nuclear and conventional weapons – thus creating a new era epitomised by peace and justice”.

Phil Lucas, member of the Centre's Management Committee added 'Having lived in Israel/Palestine for three months this year, I know that a growing number of both Israeli citizens and Jews around the world are uncomfortable with the agressive, disproportionate way its present government is dealing with those who oppose its policies towards the occupied Palestinina territories and Gaza in particular.  We must respond to this latest atrocity by encouraging our own government and that of the USA to take a much stronger stand against oppression, and to support those in Israel, Palestine and beyond who are working towards a peace which sees the rights of Jews and Arabs equally valued.'