Saturday, 15 May 2010 16:13
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
15 May 2010
Contact: Manal Ammouri
Mobile: (052) 449-2303
manal.am[at]gmail.com ror1state[at]gmail.com
United against Israeli apartheid and colonialism
The Second Haifa Conference for the Return of the Palestinian Refugees and for the Democratic Secular State in Historic Palestine
28-30 May 2010
Haifa – At a time when prospects for a settlement that concedes basic Palestinian rights are blocked, interest in the one democratic state solution is witnessing an unprecedented growth. Wide sectors of Palestinians, in historic Palestine and exile, have adopted it, while international support for it is increasing daily. In this context, a committed group of activists is vigorously putting the final touches on the Second Haifa Conference for the Return of the Palestinian Refugees and for the Secular Democratic State in Historic Palestine.
The goals of the conference are to:
· Raise awareness and interest in a solution based on the return of the refugees and the democratic secular state locally and internationally.
· Provide a forum for the free exchange of opinions and experiences between the supporters of the project, leading to common activities.
· Create follow-up and coordination mechanisms to build the movement Lawyer Salma Wakeem, from the preparatory committee of the conference, sees the conference as “a qualitative step in the building of a world-wide progressive movement that is based on the principles of equality between all people and stands for the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, first and foremost the right of the refugees to return to their homes and the right of self determination. This could be achieved by building one democratic state for all the residents of Palestine and the refugees, while putting an end to all forms of occupation, Apartheid and discrimination.”
The preparatory committee of the conference is a group of activists and individuals from different political movements and parties, human rights organizations and civil society. It issued a basic declaration defining the goals of the conference and operates a web site for communication with the public.
The conference will last for three days and will bring together Palestinian activists from the Homeland and the Diaspora, Jews opposing to Israeli Apartheid and many delegations and solidarity movements around the world. Some of the most prominent participants will be writer Ghada Karmi and historian Ilan Pappe, in addition to representatives of political parties and intellectuals from many countries.
Yoav Bar, one of the organizers of the conference, related to the wide acceptance of the conference this year saying: “It seems that the time has come for the establishment of a global movement in support of the single democratic state, and this conference may give the movement a forceful launch”.
