Students for Palestine
Encyclopedia
Students for Palestine (SFP) is a network of pro-Palestinian
student activists based on various Australia
n university campuses. The group was set up (originally as Students for Gaza) in response to the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict
. SFP works closely with other Australian pro-Palestine and anti-war organisations such as the Gaza Defence Committee, Jews Against the Occupation, Australians for Palestine, Stop the War Coalition
, the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions
and Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine among others, and forms a part of the general international Palestinian solidarity movement.
(BDS) campaign. In 2010 they officially endorsed the first national conference in support of the BDS campaign in Australia.
The list of aims for the Victorian group are:
Secretary and SFP spokesperson, Damian Ridgewell condemned then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
for not breaking ties with Israel after the IDF
raid on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla
which killed nine peace activists. SFP helped to organise the initial demonstration to the IDF action in Melbourne. Later in 2010, SFP toured activists Ahmed Luqman and Jerry Campbell who were aboard the Mavi Marmara, one of the boats which were boarded by IDF. Luqman spoke of the incident in which he had been shot.
SFP members were amongst those that organised a public protest against former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
and Israeli Vice Prime Minister Silvan Shalom
at the Australia Israel Leadership Forum held at the Hyatt Hotel in Melbourne
. Outside the gala dinner attended by then-Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
, Julia Gillard
(who re-affirmed the Australian Labor Party
's opposition to the Goldstone report to the UN General Assembly), activists were pepper spray
ed for trying to enter an under-policed side entrance to the hotel. Then-University of Melbourne Student Union
Welfare Officer and founding SFP member, Frances Lewis, wrote of the event: "A bit of pepper spray will not deter us -- it is nothing in comparison to the horrors Palestinians face every day."
Protesters also threw shoes
at police in reference to Iraqi journalist, Muntazer al-Zaidi who threw his shoes in protest at US President George W. Bush
. At least three activists were taken to hospital for treatment over police use of pepper spray, which Lewis claimed had not happened in Australia in nearly a decade.
University of Melbourne SFP members also helped organise a public meeting with Israeli-Arab
Knesset
member Haneen Zoabi
in Melbourne in 2009. In 2010 they held a fundraiser for the Viva Palestina 5, the land convoy headed for Gaza for the purpose of delivering building materials destroyed after the Gaza War, which successfully reached its destination by October.
, according to an article in The Age
, Omar Hassan, an SFP activist and Education Officer of the Monash Student Association
(MSA) was stripped of his wages for two weeks by the Council for using his office time and MSA funds on campaigning for SFP, claiming that it was a non-MSA related matter. The Education Officer accused the MSA of "trying to gag political dissent", a charge the MSA President denied, stating the decision by the council was based on "constitutional grounds because he had failed to do his job". The officebearer allegedly used the officebearer hours, money and resources of the MSA to run the SFP campaign, while not completing the duties within his portfolio. The Council ruled that the campaign was irrelevant to his position as an officebearer, and that due to the breaches of the MSA constitution and the failure to complete his duties, that he be docked two weeks of pay.
Hassan also put forth a motion to the Council asking the student union to take an official stance against Israel's aggression in Gaza, stating precedents that student unions at other Universities had already taken a stance. This motion was rejected by the Council.
SFP members moved a motion - passed by the RMIT Student Union
- condemning Israel for its role in the 2008–09 Israel–Gaza conflict
, calling for an end to bombing and the blockade
. They expressed concern over the ALP
Government's support for Israel, calling on then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
to condemn Israel. The motion also demanded any ceasefire
would need to include opening Gazan borders, IDF
withdrawal
and "a complete cessation of the Israeli Government’s military aggression".
SFP commemorated Al-Nakba in 2009 at RMIT with an information session on its history prior to marching in protest against Israel through Melbourne's inner city, some of the protesters chanting, “Palestine will be free, from the river to the sea”. This is not the formal position of the group, which includes people who support both 1 and 2 state solutions.
struggle in 2009
Palestinian people
The Palestinian people, also referred to as Palestinians or Palestinian Arabs , are an Arabic-speaking people with origins in Palestine. Despite various wars and exoduses, roughly one third of the world's Palestinian population continues to reside in the area encompassing the West Bank, the Gaza...
student activists based on various Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n university campuses. The group was set up (originally as Students for Gaza) in response to the 2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict
2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict
The Gaza War, known as Operation Cast Lead in Israel and as the Gaza Massacre in the Arab world, was a three-week bombing and invasion of the Gaza Strip by Israel, and hundreds of rocket attacks on south of Israel which...
. SFP works closely with other Australian pro-Palestine and anti-war organisations such as the Gaza Defence Committee, Jews Against the Occupation, Australians for Palestine, Stop the War Coalition
Stop the War Coalition (Australia)
Stop the War Coalition is an Australian anti-war group initially formed in Sydney in 2003 and later in Melbourne in 2004 mainly in response to the US-led wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the general "War on Terror" of which the Australian Government has been a strong ally...
, the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions
Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions
The Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions is an Israeli peace and human rights organization dedicated to ending the occupation of the Palestinian territories and achieving a just peace between Israelis and Palestinians...
and Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine among others, and forms a part of the general international Palestinian solidarity movement.
Focus
SFP oppose the Australian and US Government's support of Israel and support the Boycott, Divestment and SanctionsBoycott, Divestment and Sanctions
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions refers to a campaign first initiated on 9 July 2005 by 171 Palestinian non-governmental organizations in support of the Palestinian cause ".....
(BDS) campaign. In 2010 they officially endorsed the first national conference in support of the BDS campaign in Australia.
The list of aims for the Victorian group are:
- the right of self determination for the Palestinian people
- The right of return of the Palestinian people
- the immediate withdrawal of the Israeli state from Palestinian land and the dismantling of all Israeli settlements
- opposition to the oppression and dispossession suffered by the Palestinian people
- opposition to Israel's occupation and its aggression against neighboring states
- opposition to the political, economic and military support given by all governments to the Israeli state, in particular Australia and United States.
- opposition to anti- Jewish and anti- Islamic prejudice and all forms of racism and bigotry, including the "apartheid" and Zionist nature of the Israeli state
Swinburne University of Technology
In 2010, Swinburne Student UnionSwinburne Student Union
Swinburne Student Union , is the independent student representative body of Swinburne University of Technology in Melbourne, Australia. Membership is opt-in for all Swinburne students....
Secretary and SFP spokesperson, Damian Ridgewell condemned then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
Kevin Rudd
Kevin Michael Rudd is an Australian politician who was the 26th Prime Minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010. He has been Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2010...
for not breaking ties with Israel after the IDF
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
raid on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla
Gaza flotilla raid
The Gaza flotilla raid was a military operation by Israel against six ships of the "Gaza Freedom Flotilla" on 31 May 2010 in international waters of the Mediterranean Sea...
which killed nine peace activists. SFP helped to organise the initial demonstration to the IDF action in Melbourne. Later in 2010, SFP toured activists Ahmed Luqman and Jerry Campbell who were aboard the Mavi Marmara, one of the boats which were boarded by IDF. Luqman spoke of the incident in which he had been shot.
University of Melbourne
In 2009, University of MelbourneUniversity of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
SFP members were amongst those that organised a public protest against former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
Ehud Olmert
Ehud Olmert is an Israeli politician and lawyer. He served as Prime Minister of Israel from 2006 to 2009, as a Cabinet Minister from 1988 to 1992 and from 2003 to 2006, and as Mayor of Jerusalem from 1993 to 2003....
and Israeli Vice Prime Minister Silvan Shalom
Silvan Shalom
' , born 4 October 1958) is an Israeli politician, member of the Knesset for Likud and the country's Vice Prime Minister and Minister for Regional Development. He previously served as the country's Foreign Minister and Finance Minister.-Biography:...
at the Australia Israel Leadership Forum held at the Hyatt Hotel in Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
. Outside the gala dinner attended by then-Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
Deputy Prime Minister of Australia
The Deputy Prime Minister of the Commonwealth of Australia is the second-most senior officer in the Government of Australia. The Deputy Prime Ministership has been a ministerial portfolio since 1968, and the Deputy Prime Minister is appointed by the Governor-General on the advice of the Prime...
, Julia Gillard
Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard is the 27th and current Prime Minister of Australia, in office since June 2010.Gillard was born in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales and migrated with her family to Adelaide, Australia in 1966, attending Mitcham Demonstration School and Unley High School. In 1982 Gillard moved...
(who re-affirmed the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
's opposition to the Goldstone report to the UN General Assembly), activists were pepper spray
Pepper spray
Pepper spray, also known as OC spray , OC gas, and capsicum spray, is a lachrymatory agent that is used in riot control, crowd control and personal self-defense, including defense against dogs and bears...
ed for trying to enter an under-policed side entrance to the hotel. Then-University of Melbourne Student Union
University of Melbourne Student Union
The student union, one of several student organisations at the University of Melbourne, Australia, is divided into two parts. The University of Melbourne Student Union , incorporated as University of Melbourne Student Union, Inc. provides representation for students. The service provision arm is...
Welfare Officer and founding SFP member, Frances Lewis, wrote of the event: "A bit of pepper spray will not deter us -- it is nothing in comparison to the horrors Palestinians face every day."
Protesters also threw shoes
Shoeing
Shoeing, throwing shoes, showing the sole of one's shoe or using shoes to insult are forms of protest in many parts of the world.Incidents where shoes were thrown at political figures have taken place in Australia, India, Ireland, Israel, Hong Kong, Pakistan, the United Kingdom and most notably,...
at police in reference to Iraqi journalist, Muntazer al-Zaidi who threw his shoes in protest at US President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
. At least three activists were taken to hospital for treatment over police use of pepper spray, which Lewis claimed had not happened in Australia in nearly a decade.
University of Melbourne SFP members also helped organise a public meeting with Israeli-Arab
Arab citizens of Israel
Arab citizens of Israel refers to citizens of Israel who are not Jewish, and whose cultural and linguistic heritage or ethnic identity is Arab....
Knesset
Knesset
The Knesset is the unicameral legislature of Israel, located in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.-Role in Israeli Government :The legislative branch of the Israeli government, the Knesset passes all laws, elects the President and Prime Minister , approves the cabinet, and supervises the work of the government...
member Haneen Zoabi
Haneen Zoabi
Haneen Zoabi, also spelled Hanin Zoubi, , is a member of the Knesset representing the Balad party. She is a Palestinian Arab, who is also an Arab citizen of Israel...
in Melbourne in 2009. In 2010 they held a fundraiser for the Viva Palestina 5, the land convoy headed for Gaza for the purpose of delivering building materials destroyed after the Gaza War, which successfully reached its destination by October.
Monash University
At Monash UniversityMonash University
Monash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....
, according to an article in The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
, Omar Hassan, an SFP activist and Education Officer of the Monash Student Association
Monash Student Association
The Monash Student Association Inc is located at the Clayton campus of Monash University in the Campus Centre building. The MSA is made up of elected student representatives who represent all Clayton campus students on general issues such as education, fees and student welfare, and also specific...
(MSA) was stripped of his wages for two weeks by the Council for using his office time and MSA funds on campaigning for SFP, claiming that it was a non-MSA related matter. The Education Officer accused the MSA of "trying to gag political dissent", a charge the MSA President denied, stating the decision by the council was based on "constitutional grounds because he had failed to do his job". The officebearer allegedly used the officebearer hours, money and resources of the MSA to run the SFP campaign, while not completing the duties within his portfolio. The Council ruled that the campaign was irrelevant to his position as an officebearer, and that due to the breaches of the MSA constitution and the failure to complete his duties, that he be docked two weeks of pay.
Hassan also put forth a motion to the Council asking the student union to take an official stance against Israel's aggression in Gaza, stating precedents that student unions at other Universities had already taken a stance. This motion was rejected by the Council.
RMIT University
In January 2009, RMIT UniversityRMIT University
RMIT University is an Australian public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. It has two branches, referred to as RMIT University in Australia and RMIT International University in Vietnam....
SFP members moved a motion - passed by the RMIT Student Union
RMIT Student Union
The RMIT Student Union Council, commonly known as the RMIT Student Union or RUSU, is the representative body for all students enrolled at RMITUniversity...
- condemning Israel for its role in the 2008–09 Israel–Gaza conflict
2008–2009 Israel–Gaza conflict
The Gaza War, known as Operation Cast Lead in Israel and as the Gaza Massacre in the Arab world, was a three-week bombing and invasion of the Gaza Strip by Israel, and hundreds of rocket attacks on south of Israel which...
, calling for an end to bombing and the blockade
The 2007–2009 blockade of the Gaza Strip
The blockade of the Gaza Strip refers to a land, air, and sea blockade on the Gaza Strip by Israel and Egypt since June 2007, a more severe version of restrictions which began in 2001...
. They expressed concern over the ALP
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
Government's support for Israel, calling on then-Prime Minister Kevin Rudd
Kevin Rudd
Kevin Michael Rudd is an Australian politician who was the 26th Prime Minister of Australia from 2007 to 2010. He has been Minister for Foreign Affairs since 2010...
to condemn Israel. The motion also demanded any ceasefire
Ceasefire
A ceasefire is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be declared as part of a formal treaty, but they have also been called as part of an informal understanding between opposing forces...
would need to include opening Gazan borders, IDF
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces , commonly known in Israel by the Hebrew acronym Tzahal , are the military forces of the State of Israel. They consist of the ground forces, air force and navy. It is the sole military wing of the Israeli security forces, and has no civilian jurisdiction within Israel...
withdrawal
Withdrawal (military)
A withdrawal is a type of military operation, generally meaning retreating forces back while maintaining contact with the enemy. A withdrawal may be undertaken as part of a general retreat, to consolidate forces, to occupy ground that is more easily defended, or to lead the enemy into an ambush...
and "a complete cessation of the Israeli Government’s military aggression".
SFP commemorated Al-Nakba in 2009 at RMIT with an information session on its history prior to marching in protest against Israel through Melbourne's inner city, some of the protesters chanting, “Palestine will be free, from the river to the sea”. This is not the formal position of the group, which includes people who support both 1 and 2 state solutions.
University of Western Sydney
UWS SFP students passed a motion in support for the TamilTamil people
Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...
struggle in 2009
Active campuses
- Monash UniversityMonash UniversityMonash University is a public university based in Melbourne, Victoria. It was founded in 1958 and is the second oldest university in the state. Monash is a member of Australia's Group of Eight and the ASAIHL....
- RMIT UniversityRMIT UniversityRMIT University is an Australian public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. It has two branches, referred to as RMIT University in Australia and RMIT International University in Vietnam....
- Swinburne University
- University of MelbourneUniversity of MelbourneThe University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
- University of Western SydneyUniversity of Western SydneyThe University of Western Sydney, also known as UWS, is a multi-campus university in the Greater Western region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...