Al-Naqba Commemorated in Winnipeg

Photo courtesy of CanPalNet

To mark the 60^th anniversary of the beginning of the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from their ancestral homelands, Al-Naqba, or the catastrophe, activists in Winnipeg organized the city’s first ever commemoration event on May 15. Led by the Canada Palestinian Solidarity Network - Winnipeg (CanPalNet), participants from other organizations including Peace Alliance Winnipeg, Canadian Muslims for Palestine, Jews for a Just Peace, the Alliance of Concerned Jewish Canadians and Grassroots Women took part in the event.

Over the course of the evening, more than 100 people participated in the socio-political program that was organized across from the legislature in Memorial Park. There were speeches, cultural performances, the reading of testimonials from survivors of the 1948 atrocities and other activities. A symbolic refugee camp was set up, with several participants camping over night in the park.

As many speakers noted, the particular tragedy of Al-Naqba is that it continues today. In 1948, after the foundation of the state of Israel, nearly one million Palestinians (estimates range from 700,000 to 930,000) were forced out of their ancestral homes, villages and towns. Many fled to nearby refugee camps in what are now the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Jordan and Lebanon, where they and their descendents still live. The deeds to the homes and lands from which they were forced to leave have been passed down, from generation to generation, with each new generation hoping to reclaim what is theirs.

Since 1948, Israel has continued its policy of ethnic cleansing, encroaching ever steadily on Palestinian lands. The latest aspect of the catastrophe is the construction of the apartheid wall between Israel and the occupied territories. The wall has literally split villages in half, keeping farmers from their lands, business people from their shops, students from their schools. Whole families have been displaced, and despite an International Court ruling that the construction of the wall through occupied territories is a violation of international law, Israel continues to build it.

Bassam Hozaim, a Palestinian refugee born in the Gaza Strip, discussed the impact of al-Naqba on the Palestinian people and underlined the right of return for all Palestinian refugees as a fundamental part of any solution to the ongoing crisis in the region.

Dr. Mark Etkin denounced the role of pro-Israeli groups in Winnipeg and Canada for supporting the continued ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people. He noted the Israeli occupation and ongoing crimes being committed by the Israeli state violate all the tenements of religious Judaism as well as the progressive, secular traditions of the Jewish people.

Several speakers highlighted the similarities between the colonial oppression of Aboriginal people in Canada and the Palestinian people. Making this link has become extremely important in Manitoba, as the pro-Zionist movement has been making a concerted effort at winning support for Israeli policies of ethnic cleansing amongst the Aboriginal communities.

Back to Modern Communism