On Nov, 5, 2011 the Washington Post picked a letter, headlined "UNESCO's political games," by Melvin Farber of Silver Spring for printing. Here is the full text of the letter.
Regarding the Nov, 1 [2011] news story "UNESCO votes to admit Palestine; U.S pulls funding":
The UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization argues that its work is too important to be derailed by Middle East politics. If its work is indeed that important, then it should not have admitted the non-state of Palestine as a member. It knew the US law. Rather than appealing to the United States now, UNESCO should go to countries such as France, which voted to admit Palestine, and Britain, which cowardly abstained, to make up the loss of funding.
Actions have consequences. UNESCO should be held accountable for its decision to admit a non-state. It is UNESCO that is playing politics.
The letter accused UNESCO of "playing politics" by admitting Palestine as a member and shouldn't complain that the USA was enforcing its law banning funding, an exercise of the BDS tactic of sanctions to change or maintain policies, to UN agencies that recognize Palestine as a state before negotiations with Israel create a final status, conflict-ending, peace treaty. The letter called Britain cowardly for abstaining on a UN vote.
The USA abstained from voting on UN Security Council resolution 1860 calling for a cease fire in the 2009 Cast Lead war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza after the USA secretary of state, Condoleeza Rice, had worked to write the resolution. Abstaining from a resolution one helped write is more cowardly.
About 10 months after the UNESCO admission and USA defunding sanction, a set of billboards was purchased in the Washington, DC metrorail system by far-right, Israeli nationalist (zionist), American bloggers Atlas Shrugs (Pam Geller) and Jihadwatch (Robert Spencer) that compared Israel to a civilized man worth supporting in a war against savage jihad. The billboards had also been bought in the San Francisco and New York transit systems. The billboards drew condemnation by the social action and interfaith issues leader at the JCRC of Greater Washington. In "Faith groups demand Metro donate 'jihad' ad profits to charity" Presbyterian Church USA Rev J. Herbert Nelson was quoted "Metro may be called to profit, but we are called to prophesy." First, Metro is not primarily intended to be a business to make a profit it is a quasi-public provider of bus and subway transportation as an alternative to cars for health and environmental reasons. Ad revenue pays costs not covered by contributions from Md, Va and DC jurisdictions served by the metrorail system and metrobus routes.
The Presbyterian Church USA has twice, in 2006 and in June 2012, considered using BDS tactics, as the USA is using on UNESCO to effect policy on recognizing Palestine that Mr. Farber defends, to change Israel's policies on expanding existing settlements on land that is likely to be the subject of negotiations to resolve conflict with Palestine. It will be interesting to watch what the JCRC, and Rev J. Herbert Nelson, say in 2014 at the Detroit PCUSA General Assembly if BDS with church assets is brought up again. A vote failed by 333-331 of voting delegates in 2012. There was a resolution to allow individual pensioners to divest their individual assets from businesses, such as Ahava cosmetics and Hadiklaim agricultural products, supporting Israel's current occupation of lands likely to become part of Palestine in negotiations. It is no more or less improper to 'pre-judge' negotiations where some mutual agreement already exists on an outcome than it is to state speculatively what terms of pro sports contracts between athlete and team may be before the contract is finalized.
The JCRC acted selectively in not condemning extremism by their silence of not condemning, as they did later with the metrorail billboards, the 3 Israeli cabinet votes against an October 12, 2011 prisoner exchange to free Gilad Shalit. The JCRC of Greater Washington even started an account on twitter.com/rideforgilad as a way of building common ground with USA military veteran Rolling Thunder motorcycle riders who support freeing or accounting for the whereabouts of American POWs/MIAs in Vietnam. 1 cabinet member voting against the prisoner exchange freeing Gilad Shalit was Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman.
Palestinians are urged to keep trying to negotiate with him instead of, and back to the Farber letter, seeking UN membership as a non-member state observer similar to status held by the Vatican base of the Roman Catholic church. The UN General Assembly admitted Palestine to this status by November 29, 2012. It will be interesting to observe
[link died at end of 2011-12 Congress session. copy and paste of page view retrieved from archive.org below]
if the USA withholds its dues that account for 20% of the UN budget in a similar sanction as what the USA did to UNESCO.
[link died at end of 2011-12 Congress session. copy and paste of page view retrieved from archive.org below]
https://web.archive.org/web/20121211234830/http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/news/story/?2636
U.S. Must Impose Severe Economic Consequences for UN's Irresponsible Support for Palestinian Statehood Scheme, Ros-Lehtinen Says
Thursday, November 29, 2012
(WASHINGTON) – U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued the following statement regarding the United Nations General Assembly’s vote today to adopt a resolution granting “Palestine” (the Palestine Liberation Organization) the status of non-member observer state at the UN. Statement by Ros-Lehtinen:
“Abu Mazen, instead of condemning the Gaza rocket fire and negotiating with Israel for lasting peace, spent the past week congratulating Hamas for its efforts to murder Israeli civilians, while offering condolences for Hamas’s ‘martyrs.’ Now the UN’s vote to grant de facto UN recognition of a non-existent Palestinian state has pushed peace with Israel even further away.
“It is regretful that so many nations supported this unilateral action by the PLO instead of endorsing a bilateral, two-state solution between Israel and the Palestinians.
“It’s crystal clear that Abu Mazen and his cronies are not partners for peace and do not value their relationship with the U.S. The U.S must stand with our ally Israel and offer no U.S. taxpayer dollars and no political support for the PLO. As other UN bodies will no doubt use General Assembly resolution as an excuse to grant membership to a non-existent Palestinian state, U.S. law is clear: UN agencies that grant membership to a Palestinian state lose their U.S. funding. If the Administration again seeks to gut U.S. law and keep funding those reckless UN agencies, Congress’ response must be simple: No.”
if the USA withholds its dues that account for 20% of the UN budget in a similar sanction as what the USA did to UNESCO.
The status change does not change anything on the ground only the international standing of the Palestine Authority that strengthens its negotiating position with Israel by way of state v. state complaints to the International Criminal Court for further investigation of human rights investigative reports with enforcement measures to protect Palestinian and Israeli rights if so decided. Two recent human rights investigative reports that were not followed up on, perhaps because Palestine lacked UN member status, were the Goldstone (2009 Cast Lead war) report and the Palmer (Mavi Mamara Gaza aid boat killings May 31, 2010) report. Israel has already lost 1 case in international courts in 2004 when the International Court of Justice issued an advisory, non-binding, opinion that held Israel's wall/fence/security barrier around the West Bank was illegal. The ICC, if Palestinians had been able to bring a case such as called for in the Goldstone or Palmer reports, can enforce its decisions.
A binding international court decision, not Unilateral Declaration of Independence (UDI as the JCRC of Greater Washington calls Palestine UN membership) before negotiations continue, is the concern of Israeli nationalists (zionists) in the USA and their allies in Congress
[link died at end of 2011-12 session of Congress copy and paste of page view retrieved from archive.org link below]
like House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairperson Ileana Ros-Lehtinen who will be replaced, by party leadership decision as Chairperson in 2013 by Ed Royce, despite being reelected to her seat.
[link died at end of 2011-12 session of Congress copy and paste of page view retrieved from archive.org link below]
https://web.archive.org/web/20121212011538/http://foreignaffairs.house.gov/news/story/?2634
Israeli Ambassador Oren, Ros-Lehtinen Discuss Israel-Gaza Conflict
Extremists Must Not Be Allowed to Hijack International Organizations to Undermine Free Democracies
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
(WASHINGTON) – U.S. Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, made the following statement after hosting a briefing with Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren regarding the Israel-Gaza conflict. Statement by Ros-Lehtinen:
“Recent events highlight the continued need for the United States to stand in solidarity with our steadfast ally Israel. U.S.–Israel security cooperation and assistance remains a critical component of our bilateral alliance especially as militants in Gaza repeatedly launched rocket attacks against Israel. Our Committee and other House colleagues appreciated meeting with Ambassador Oren concerning the recent conflict between Israel and violent Palestinian extremist groups in Gaza.
“Despite the recent attacks on Israel from Gaza, the Palestinian leadership in the West Bank apparently will continue to end-run direct negotiations with Israel and instead seek UN de facto recognition of a Palestinian state. Any upgrade in status for the Palestinian UN mission could enable them to use the International Criminal Court (ICC) to pursue politically-motivated prosecutions of Israelis on sham war crimes charges. It is ironic that the ICC, a body founded to prevent genocide, could one day be exploited by violent extremists who oppose the very existence of the Jewish people and the Jewish State.
“We cannot allow extremists to hijack international organizations to undermine free democracies like our ally Israel. Not only will Hamas and other violent extremist groups continue their rocket attacks in the future, but they could gain the ability to launch legal rockets against Israel as well in the ICC. I am confident that the future of the U.S.-Israel alliance is bright as both our nations strive for peace and security in the region, and I encourage responsible nations to support Israel and oppose reckless Palestinian schemes at the UN.”
like House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairperson Ileana Ros-Lehtinen who will be replaced, by party leadership decision as Chairperson in 2013 by Ed Royce, despite being reelected to her seat.
