Month: February 2023

MEETINGS COVERAGE

GENERAL ASSEMBLYCOMMITTEE ON THE INALIENABLE RIGHTS OF THE PALESTINIAN PEOPLE

410TH MEETING (AM)

GA/PAL/1449

Timing of Massacre ‘Not an Accident’ as Global Community ‘Busy with Another Big Issue’, Says Permanent Observer, Stressing Palestinians ‘Need to See Action’

As news came in of an Israeli security forces operation in Nablus that killed 10 Palestinians, speakers at the first formal meeting of the Palestinian Rights Committee in 2023 appealed for an immediate end to the deadly cycle of violence.

Preventing escalation and restoring calm is the immediate priority, United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said today to the 25-member entity, known formally as the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, which the General Assembly established in 1975.

Noting the clash in Nablus this morning and the fragile situation in Jerusalem, he stressed that the demographic and historical character of Jerusalem and the status quo at the holy sites must be upheld. He also expressed concern about Israel’s recent punitive measures against the Palestinian Authority following the General Assembly resolution seeking an International Court of Justice advisory opinion on the occupation.

This risks further destabilizing the Palestinian Authority at a time when it is already struggling with a dire fiscal crisis, he said, urging all donors to support the resilient and high-performing work of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). Calling for the courage to make the difficult choices, he said each new settlement is another roadblock on the path to peace. At the same time, nothing justifies terrorism, he said.

“We will work with you, Mr. Secretary-General, but we need to see action,” Riyad Mansour, Permanent Observer for the State of Palestine, said during his address to the Committee. Describing the anger and frustration among the Palestinian people, he said it is increasingly difficult to convince them that Security Council resolutions will be implemented. They keep seeing the Organization adopting appropriate documents but “they don’t see teeth to these resolutions”, he said.

Condemning this morning’s attack in Nablus, a city that is supposedly under the control of the Palestinian Authority, he noted that so far 10 people, including children and the elderly, have died, with many fighting for their lives. The timing of the Nablus massacre was not an accident, he said, adding that Israel knew that “the international community will be busy with another big issue” and assumed nobody will pay attention. Despite the Council presidential statement adopted two days ago, which emphasized the need for humanitarian access, the Israeli occupying forces did not allow ambulances access this morning, he said.

Drawing attention to the extremist Israeli Government that took office in December, he said its actions have triggered several Council meetings. Also condemning settler terrorism, he said the Palestinian people live in daily fear of being attacked by settlers who have been armed by the current Government. If principles such as the right to self-determination and the inadmissibility of acquisition of land by force are applicable to other situations in the world, they should also be applicable to Palestine, he declared.

Cheikh Niang (Senegal), speaking upon his re-election as Committee Chair, said the devotion to the Committee demonstrated by those present reflect their countries’ respective commitment to the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people. Israel’s continued occupation and illegal practices — including settlement activities, creeping annexation and deliberate demographic change — constitute a serious threat to the sovereignty of the Palestinian State. Further, elevated violence across the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, is concerning, and recent weeks have been marked by alarming violence, confrontation and military action that includes children among the victims, he said.

He went on to welcome the Security Council’s recent adoption of a presidential statement condemning Israeli settlement activities, urging the organ to turn this message into effective action and address the suffering that has continued for too long. He also stressed that the peace process must be relaunched, and that all pending matters must be discussed, including the status of Jerusalem, refugees, security and the situation in Gaza. Meanwhile, all parties should refrain from unilateral actions that undermine resuming the peace process. Calling on Israel and the international community to uphold the rights of the Palestinian people — namely the right to live in freedom and dignity in a sovereign State — he also urged Member States to continue supporting UNRWA.

The Committee re-elected Pedro Luis Pedroso Cuesta (Cuba), Arrmanatha Christiawan Nasir (Indonesia), Neville Melvin Gertze (Namibia) and Jaime Hermida Castillo (Nicaragua) as Vice-Chairs. It will fill the vacant posts of Rapporteur and one Vice-Chair at a later time.

In other business, the Committee adopted its programme of work for 2023 (document A/AC.183/2023/L.3).

The Committee will reconvene at a date and time to be announced.

Discussion

Expressing alarm and grief about the attack in Nablus earlier today, Committee members took the floor to reaffirm support for the two-State solution and the rights of the Palestinian people.

“On a morning like today”, the representative of Namibia said, “I really do not feel it appropriate for me to congratulate any one of us for being re-elected or making statements”. The brutal attack in Nablus this morning is another reminder of the persistent misery that the occupying Power inflicts on its people, he said, calling on the Committee to “continue to be bold” in pursuit of its mandate in a manner that remains realistic and rooted in international law.

The representative of the League of Arab States noted the double standards within the United Nations when it comes to the situation in Ukraine versus the situation in Palestine. Pointing to the multiple meetings convened on Ukraine, including the one later today, he said the attitude towards Palestine is different. This makes it essential to support Palestine in various international forums such as the International Court of Justice, he said, calling on Committee members to collect evidence and legal precedents. Also stressing the importance of international recognition for Palestinian statehood, he said the Committee must convince more countries to recognize the State of Palestine.

Venezuela’s delegate also looked forward to the day when Palestine will be a full-fledged member of the United Nations, as he paid tribute to the long heroism of its people, who have withstood colonial aggression, military brutality and the criminal apartheid of the occupying Power for 75 years since the nakba. The time has come to adopt measures to provide international protection to the Palestinian civilian population, he said.

Jordan’s delegate expressed concern about “attempts to obfuscate reality”, noting that two days ago in the Council, the representative of Israel demonized Palestinian children as terrorists. He was trying to justify Israel’s legitimate right to kill Palestinian children, he said, also expressing concern about media reports that portray Israel as the victim. Condemning attempts to erase the Muslim, Christian and Arab identity of Jerusalem, he reaffirmed his country’s custodianship of the holy sites.

The speaker for Lebanon noted how the occupation has deprived Palestinian people of their land and their identity while the representative of Türkiye condemned Israel’s legalization of nine outposts in the West Bank, as illegal “even under Israeli law”. The representative of Indonesia said that it “may not be an exaggeration” to say that that occupying Power’s actions are creating a “hell on Earth” for the Palestinian people.

Egypt’s delegate condemned the killing of innocent civilians, the use of live munitions against children, the demolition of Palestinian homes and the blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip for more than 15 years. He reiterated his country’s full support of the Palestinian people’s legitimate rights — including seeking an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice. A day will come when the Committee will celebrate the accession of the Palestinian people to long-due freedom and independence, he said.

The representative of Syria pointed to the Security Council’s silence in the face of Israel’s actions, adding that as a result, the region is witnessing unprecedented levels of tension and instability. Reaffirming that “the Palestinian cause is a central one”, he supported all efforts aimed at implementing Security Council and General Assembly resolutions pertaining to the Palestinian issue and ending the continuing, systematic crimes perpetrated by Israel.

Feda Abdelhady-Nasser, an observer for the State of Palestine thanked Committee members for their solidarity, adding that the Palestinian people are grieving yet again today, part of a painful, ongoing grief for all the devastation inflicted on generation after generation. Mr. Mansour also took the floor again, apologizing for having to leave the meeting earlier, as he was meeting with the President of the Security Council regarding the crime committed in Nablus today. He also detailed ongoing preparations relating to the proceeding before the International Court of Justice and urged all those willing and able to submit written interventions to the Court to do so before the deadline of 25 July.

Also speaking were the representatives of Tunisia, China, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Cuba, Nicaragua and South Africa.

Source: UN General Assembly

Jill Biden on Wednesday made the first visit by a U.S. first lady to the southwestern African nation of Namibia — chosen, she said, because of its vibrant democracy. The Namibian president and first lady warmly welcomed her on the first stop of her first trip to the continent as first lady.

When asked why she chose Namibia — an arid, sparsely populated southern African nation — as the first stop on what the White House says is a show of support and respect for the African continent, Biden did not hesitate.

“We wanted to come because you know this is a young democracy, and we want to support democracies around the world,” she said. “We met each other in December, and we’re just continuing the relationship. Monica and I think it’s safe to say that we became good friends instantly.”

That friend — Namibian first lady Monica Geingos — agreed.

“There’s a lot in Namibia that we’d really like to show Dr. Biden. I know it’s her first visit to Namibia. I know it’s the first time an incumbent American first lady has come to the country, and I think what she talked about is very true. It is a very vibrant democracy. We’ve got a very large youth population, who drives that democracy, very energetic and fully enabled by our constitutional values but also by the personal values of our leadership. He may not look it, but he’s really the ultimate democrat.”

Jill Biden is the first White House official to visit the country after President Joe Biden last year pledged to send administration officials to the continent. She follows Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who visited earlier this year.

Visit highlights hunger

Like Biden, Thomas-Greenfield focused part of her visit around a food security crisis in East Africa — something Biden plans to highlight when she visits Kenya later this week. But these high-profile visits are also happening against the background of increased visits by top-level Russian and Chinese officials to the continent.

Geingos’ husband, President Hage Geingob, waited alone in a foyer while the two first ladies were entertained by dancers from the Nama, Oshiwambo and Tswana people, who ululated and danced in a flurry of leopard print, white beads and hot pink springbok pelts. VOA asked him what he thought of the unprecedented visit.

“We are very happy and honored to have the first lady of the United States. It’s a great honor to have her here,” he replied.

While the nation is a multiparty democracy, the same party — Geingob’s South West Africa People’s Organization — has led since the nation won independence more than three decades ago. And that liberation struggle pulled in other countries for support. Earlier Wednesday, Biden laid a wreath at Heroes’ Acre, a memorial to those who fought for the nation’s independence.

That memorial, with its brutalist sculpture and wide expanses of stone, bears an uncanny similarity to the Heroes’ Acre in Zimbabwe’s capital, maybe because both memorials were built by the same North Korean company. That same firm built the imposing, modernist gray cement State House where Biden was so warmly received by the first couple.

Biden plans on Thursday to visit a U.S.-funded project in the capital that focuses on empowering women and children, and to lunch with Geingos. Then she heads Friday to Kenya, where she will use her popularity and platform to draw attention to women’s empowerment, children’s issues and the hunger crisis that is again ravaging the Horn of Africa.

Source: Voice of America

Jill Biden left Tuesday for her first visit to Africa as U.S. first lady, with plans to stop in Namibia and Kenya, the White House said.

Biden will focus on women’s empowerment, children’s issues and food insecurity that has ravaged parts of the continent. She will be the first White House official to visit Africa this year, after U.S. President Joe Biden announced a new strategy regarding the continent and pledged high-level visits.

“Dr. Biden’s trip builds on last year’s U.S.- Africa Leaders summit and as another demonstration of President Biden’s commitment that the United States is all in on Africa and all in with Africa,” Judd Devermont, senior director for African Affairs at the National Security Council, told reporters Tuesday morning.

“…The U.S. strategy towards sub-Saharan Africa, which we released last August, starts with the conviction that Africa is critical to critical to advancing our shared global priorities,” Devermont added. “We believe that we are in the early years of a decisive decade which will determine the rules of the road on a host of vital issues from trade and economics, cybersecurity and technology.”

With this visit, Jill Biden also becomes the first U.S. first lady to visit Namibia since the southwest African nation gained independence in 1990.

“Putin tried to starve the world, blocking the ports of the Black Sea to stop Ukraine from exporting its grain, exacerbating a global food crisis that hit the developing nations of Africa especially hard,” said President Joe Biden. “Instead, the United States and the G-7, and partners around the world answered the call with historic commitments to address the crisis and to bolster global food supplies. And this week my wife, Jill Biden, is traveling to Africa to help bring attention to this critical issue.”

In addition to focusing on women and children, the first lady will also draw attention to the dire food insecurity that is once again gnawing at East Africa.

“In Kenya, Dr. Biden will very specifically draw attention to the food security crisis impacting the Horn of Africa, which is noted as the worst drought that this region has experienced in decades,” said NSC spokesperson Becky Farmer. “Over 20 million people are increasing experiencing acute food insecurity with many more at risk of increased hunger over the last year.”

President Biden highlighted the situation in December when he announced a large humanitarian aid package at a summit that brought African leaders to Washington.

The Biden administration has been seen as trying to woo Africa to support Ukraine over Russia, recently dispatching Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen to Senegal, Zambia and South Africa.

Meanwhile, Russia’s foreign minister has visited multiple nations that have historic or ideological ties to Russia or the former Soviet Union, such as Mali, Sudan and Angola.

China sent its new foreign minister to Africa for his maiden voyage — a sign of that nation’s deep interest in the continent.

Warm receptions are the norm

Presidential-spouse visits often provide a contrast to the strategic, muscular approach of the presidency — partly because, as Biden herself points out, she has no executive authority and no mandate from American voters.

“I wasn’t elected — but I had a part to play,” she said in December, at a gathering of spouses of African leaders. “As spouses, we serve the people of our countries, too. Don’t we? We see their hearts and hopes. We witness the small miracles of compassion and generosity between neighbors. We know what can happen when communities come together—how much can change when we work towards a cause that’s bigger than ourselves.”

U.S. first ladies are generally well-received on the African continent, said Katherine Jellison, a professor of U.S. women’s history and gender history at Ohio University — maybe because they have an advantage over the president.

“There’s just going to be warmer feelings toward a nonpolitician who’s visiting than a politician, because there may be strings attached,” she said.

U.S. first lady Laura Bush was well-received during her multiple visits to the continent, where she promoted the Bush administration’s HIV and malaria initiatives and attended the inauguration of the continent’s first female president, Liberia’s Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, in 2006.

And for first Black first lady, Michelle Obama, her trips to the continent were fraught with deep significance. She also used her platform to push for girls’ education.

And then there was first lady Melania Trump, whose 2018 visit to Ghana, Malawi, Kenya and Egypt boiled down to one, highly examined fashion choice.

For a safari in Nairobi National Park, the former model donned headgear that, for many Africans, evoked the continent’s painful history.

“She wore a pith helmet and looked like she was out of some movie about colonial-era Africa and so that didn’t go over well,” Jellison said. “And instead, the visual images very much played up the idea of Western colonization of Africa — absolutely the opposite of Michelle Obama, the daughter of Africa returning.”

Jill Biden visited Africa five times as second lady, highlighting the plight of the powerless. In 2011, when visiting the continent’s largest refugee camp at Dadaab in Kenya, she made an earnest plea, one she is likely to repeat on this trip as the region again descends into crisis.

“Mothers are bringing their children from Somalia, walking sometimes 15, 20, 25 days and they lose their children along the way, the children die,” she said. “So what I’m asking is for Americans just to be, maybe reach out and help and because the situation here is dire.”

Source: Voice of America

ADDIS ABABA— The African Union insisted it had “zero tolerance” for undemocratic changes of power and vowed to push through a continent-wide free trade deal as it wrapped up a two-day summit.

Leaders of the 55-nation bloc met in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa to discuss a slew of challenges facing the continent, including coups, conflict and climate change.

On the final day of the summit on Sunday, the AU said it was maintaining its suspension of four countries — Burkina Faso, Guinea, Mali and Sudan — which have been ruled by military leaders following coups.

“The assembly reaffirmed zero tolerance against unconstitutional change (of government),” said its Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Bankole Adeoye.

“The Commission is ready to support these member states to return to constitutional order, the idea is that democracy must take root and must be promoted and protected,” he told a news conference.

“It is necessary to re-emphasise that the AU remains intolerant to any undemocratic means to political power.”

At the end of the summit, the bloc’s new chairman, Comoros President Azali Assoumani, said the leaders had agreed to accelerate the implementation of a faltering trade deal launched in 2020.

The African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) is billed as the biggest in the world in terms of population, gathering 54 out of 55 countries on a continent with 1.4 billion people, with Eritrea the only holdout.

“I shall leave no stone unturned to ensure that this becomes a reality,” Assoumani said.

African nations currently trade only about 15 percent of their goods and services with each other. The AfCFTA aims to boost that by 60 percent by 2034 by eliminating almost all tariffs.

But implementation has fallen well short of that goal, running into hurdles including disagreements over tariff reductions and border closures caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

AU Commission chief Moussa Faki Mahamat said the deal was “strategic” for the continent but warned that the infrastructure to allow for its success was still lacking, highlighting that 600 million Africans did not have access to electricity.

On Saturday, UN chief Antonio Guterres said that among its many challenges, Africa was facing a “dysfunctional and unfair global financial system” that denied many countries the debt relief and concessional financing they need and charged them “extortionate” interest rates.

On the sidelines of the AU meeting, the regional Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) bloc also said it had maintained sanctions on the three Sahel countries.

“The Authority of Heads of State and Governments decided to maintain the existing sanctions on all three countries,” the bloc said in a statement signed on Saturday but shared on Sunday.

ECOWAS has also decided to impose travel bans on government officials and senior leaders in those countries, it added.

Fearing contagion in a region notorious for military takeovers, ECOWAS imposed tough trade and economic sanctions against Mali, but lesser punishments against Guinea and Burkina Faso.

All three countries are under pressure by ECOWAS to return swiftly to civilian rule by 2024 for Mali and Burkina and a year later for Guinea.

Juntas seized power in Mali and Burkina Faso amid anger at the military over the toll from an insurgency that has claimed thousands of lives and forced millions from their homes.

The coup in Guinea had different causes, being rooted in public anger against then president Alpha Conde over a lurch towards authoritarianism.

Sudan has been gripped by deepening political and economic turmoil since the coup led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in 2021 that derailed a short-lived transition to civilian rule following the ouster of Omar al-Bashir in 2019.

In an address to the summit on Saturday, Faki said the pan-African bloc needed to look at new strategies to counter the backsliding of democracy.

“Sanctions imposed on member states following unconstitutional changes of government… do not seem to produce the expected results,” he said.

“It seems necessary to reconsider the system of resistance to the unconstitutional changes in order to make it more effective.”

Source: NAM NEWS NETWORK