United Nations International Meeting on the Question of Palestine, Quito, Ecuador, 25-26 March 2014

“Engaging for peace – the International Year of Solidarity with the Palestinian People” (28_March_2014)_PR_on_meeting_in_Ecuador

وزير خارجية الإكوادور يستقبل لجنة فلسطين في الأمم المتحدة

Quito

استقبل السيد ريكاردو باتينيو، وزير خارجية الإكوادور، بعد ظهر أمس في العاصمة كيتو وفد لجنة الأمم المتحدة المعنية بممارسة الشعب الفلسطيني لحقوقه غير القابلة للتصرف.  وضم الوفد سفير السنغال، رئيس اللجنة، ونائبه سفير أفغانستان، وسفير مالطا، مقرر اللجنة. كما حضر  الدكتور رياض منصور، سفير دولة فلسطين لدى الأمم المتحدة في نيويورك ، وهاني الريماوي، سفير دولة فلسطين لدى الإكوادور. جدير بالذكر أن اللجنة تعقد في العاصمة الإكوادورية المؤتمر الإقليمي للتضامن مع فلسطين الذي يعقد كل عامين في بلد لاتيني.

ورحب الوزير باتينيو بالوفد الذي ” يلقى كل الترحيب في الإكوادور كونه يجتمع لدعم قضية عادلة : القضية الفلسطينية” . كما عبر عن فخره واعتزاز بلاده التي اعترفت منذ الأيام الاولى بدولة فلسطين. وأكد الوزير على أهمية هذه النشاطات التضامنية التي بالتأكيد ستؤدي الى عزل الاحتلال وحلفائه وستجدي لإحلال السلام العادل في المنطقة.

بدوره شكر سفير السنغال ، رئيس اللجنة ، الوزير الإكوادوري وبلده المضياف وقدم شرحا لطبيعة عمل اللجنة وبرنامجها وعبر عن سعادته للحفاوة ورعاية هذه التظاهرة التضامنية التي تبدأ أعمالها اليوم الثلاثاء وتستمر لمدة ثلاثة أيام يشارك فيها رسميين وممثلين عن المجتمع المدني من كافة بلدان أمريكا اللاتينية. كما يشارك سفيري فلسطين في البرازيل والتشيلي ابراهيم الزبن وعماد الجدع في أعمال اللجنة.

وتكتسب هذه الدورة أهمية خاصة حيث ستخرج ببرنامج عمل ضمن فعاليات العام العالمي للتضامن مع الشعب الفلسطيني.

وفي الختام شكر سفير فلسطين الدكتور رياض منصور الوزير والإكوادور، رئيسا و حكومة وشعبا، على احتضان هذا المؤتمر مؤكدا حرص  فلسطين على السير في طريق السلام العادل الذي يؤدي الى إنهاء الاحتلال واستقلال دولة فلسطين تجسيدا لحل الدولتين.

كما نقل السفير منصور تحيات السيد الرئيس محمود عباس لنظيره الإكوادوري رفائيل كوريا ولشعب الإكوادور الصديق

 

United Nations International Meeting in Support of Israeli-Palestinian Peace, Beijing, China, 18 and 19 June 2013

Under the theme “Reviving the collective international engagement towards a two-State solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict”, the Meeting reviewed the current situation on the ground, including the main obstacles to the realization of the two-State solution, such as continued Israeli settlement expansion, and the latest international efforts to end such illegal practices. It examined action by United Nations organs in response to violations of international law, and explored current opportunities, particularly following the admission of Palestine in the United Nations as a non-Member Observer State. The Meeting also looked at possible ways for the international community to create conditions conducive to the resumption of meaningful negotiations between the parties. Invited were also all United Nations Members and Observers, intergovernmental organizations, United Nations system entities, parliamentarians, members of the academic community and representatives of civil society organizations. 

United Nations International Meeting on the Question of Palestine, UN Conference Centre, Addis Ababa, 29 and 30 April 2013

 

Convening in Addis Ababa, at the Economic Commission for Africa, this year’s UN International Meeting on the Question of Palestine was dedicated to Africa’s support in achieving Palestinian independence and sovereignty, while drawing on the experience of African States in anti-colonial and anti-apartheid struggles, as well as in post-colonial efforts to build effective governments and sustainable economies.

The two-day gathering at the end of April 2013 brought together representatives of 48 governments, members of UN and other international institutions, civil society organizations, academia and mass media outlets.

Addressing the meeting on behalf of the Secretary-General Ban, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa Carlos Lopes said that a window of opportunity for renewed engagement has opened following the visits to the region by US President Obama and Secretary of State Kerry. He stressed that there is a need for a concerted push for peace this year if the two-State solution is to be salvaged.

In this quest for independence and self-determination, representatives of African States speaking at the meeting pledged their strong support to the Palestinian people. Joined by international experts and senior Palestinian officials, they contemplated Africa’s experience with decolonization, economic independence and sustainable development, considering the lessons that would be relevant and important for the State of Palestine. Speakers and participants alike agreed that to achieve full sovereignty and territorial integrity, the Palestinian people must form a national unity Government, warning that divisions only served to weaken and destabilize a nascent State. Experts urged African Governments to share their negotiating and institution-building tactics, create a continent-wide solidarity movement, and launch a regional peace initiative to help the Palestinian people in their endeavor towards sovereignty and statehood.

Closing the meeting, Chairman of the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People Abdou Salam Diallo welcomed the ongoing third-party facilitation aimed at resuming negotiations between Israel and Palestine. Pointing out the important role of African States at the UN as part of the African Group and the Non-Aligned Movement, he called for their increased support to the Palestinian people and their leadership.

 

Caracas Declaration in Solidarity with the Palestinian People and the State of Palestine

CARACAS DECLARATION IN SOLIDARITY WITH PALESTINIAN PEOPLE, STATE OF PALESTINE

The Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People met in Caracas, Venezuela, on 17-18 April, and issued the following Declaration:

We, the members and observers of the United Nations Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, gathered in Caracas at the invitation of the Government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, expressing our unwavering solidarity with the State of Palestine, the Palestinian people and their leadership, at a time when they face unprecedented challenges due to the escalation of illegal actions by Israel, the occupying Power, solemnly declare the following:

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United Nations Seminar on Assistance to the Palestinian People, FAO Headquarters, Rome, 27 and 28 February 2013

The Seminar, organized by the Committee on the Exercise of the Inalienable Rights of the Palestinian People, was the first such gathering since the General Assembly voted decisively in November 2012 to accord Palestine non-Member observer State status at the United Nations.

Experts, joined by senior Palestinian officials, weighed the challenges and opportunities of developing a self-sustaining economy in the new reality of a State under occupation. While agreeing that the principal issues in Palestine were not economical but political, they nevertheless outlined programmes aimed at rebuilding the severely eroded Palestinian agriculture sector, ensuring high governance standards, and generating donor support for the reconstruction of Gaza.

Experts stressed that the conditions of humanitarian strife in the West Bank and Gaza — severe restrictions on movement and constraints on livelihoods — were man-made, with the occupation practices creating a “protection crisis”. If allowed, the Palestinian people could effectively address their challenges themselves.

Participants hailed the remarkable multi-sectoral achievements of the Palestinian Government and expressed appreciation of the vital efforts of the United Nations, the donor community, Palestinian and international civil society organizations and the private sector.

Expressing gratitude for unwavering support, Palestinian officials at the meeting asked the donor community to challenge Israel’s detrimental policies on the ground by supporting reconstruction in Gaza and projects that would connect the West Bank to East Jerusalem, by promoting the development of Area C, and by demanding that settlement products be labeled as such. They urged to look for new ideas on how to move forward, while sharing a unanimous sentiment of seminar participants that a small window of opportunity, opening on the political front following the last year’s General Assembly resolution, should not be missed.