Viva Palestina UK

Viva Palestina kicks off for Palestine

2011-11-23T12:18:00.000-08:00

Viva Palestina is finalising plans for the Kick Off for Palestine campaign to construct and maintain links with sporting venues in the besieged Gaza Strip.

It is five years since the imposition of the siege on 1.5 million Palestinians in Gaza and nearly three years since Israel's Operation Cast Lead, which killed 1,417 and destroyed tens of thousands of homes. The UN reports that conditions within Gaza remain appalling. And now a decision by the UN's cultural and sporting organisation to admit Palestine has been greeted with the immediate suspension of £60 million contributions to the body by the US and the decision by Israel to accelerate illegal settlement building in occupied East Jerusalem.

Yet in the face of all that, the Palestinian people are determined to rebuild. Pressure to finally end the siege is increasing and they are looking to the future of Gaza, which has a large youth population.

That's why local authorities and civil society organisations across the Strip have asked Viva Palestina to sponsor the building of five sporting facilities at different locations in Gaza. Viva Palestina has always been guided by the principle that it is the Palestinian people themselves who are best placed to identify their own needs. And they are urgently appealing for funds to get these projects built next spring.

We want to fund the construction of four playing fields, with irrigated grass pitches, surrounding running tracks and associated facilities. The fifth project is the roofing and completion of a gymnasium/sports hall - it will be only the second such venue in Gaza. The target for our appeal is £350,000 to complete all these projects.

All labour, work and tendering will be drawn from within the Gaza Strip, ensuring that these projects also help to rebuild the battered economy.

There is a long list of sports organisations which will benefit from these projects: from football to athletics, men and women, young people and, particularly, disabled people.

Viva Palestina will be providing updates from Gaza of the progress of these projects and messages from those who will benefit from them. Consortiums of sports and youth groups see these facilities as not only a major boost to rebuilding Gaza, but also as the focus for ongoing twinning and connections with their counterparts elsewhere.

We are asking everyone to think now how they can contribute to raising these urgently needed funds. Work is set to begin at the beginning of March 2012 and the appeal will open next week on 1 December.

Here are ways for you to contribute, and a campaign pack will be up on the website next week:

For just £15 you can sponsor a square metre of turf.

For £150 - ten square metres, or one spectator place in the gymnasium - you will have your name recorded at one of the sites as a donor

For £3,000 you or a representative of your organisation will secure a place on the delegation we will send to Gaza to open the projects and to spend four days meeting the people, visiting projects and witnessing the response to the siege.

Spaces on this delegation, which is scheduled to be in Gaza at the end of May/beginning of June next year are strictly limited. This is a unique opportunity to forge ongoing links with people who against all adversity are determined to rebuild their future. We intend to take a second delegation later in the year and funds raised above our target will go to developing these facilities, similar humanitarian projects in Palestine and the ongoing work of Viva Palestina.

There are many events and avenues to raise the funds for this appeal - from sports clubs organising sponsored or charity games to getting donation from friends, family and people in your community. This also helps to raise public awareness of the ongoing siege, the reasons for it and why it must end.

Campaign materials and further details of this project will be available next week. But please do start spreading the word now and thinking about how you can contribute to building a better future for the people of Gaza.

You can donate directly via Paypal below.

Viva Palestina Team

Kick Off for Palestine

2011-11-13T11:06:00.000-08:00

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation has recognised Palestine in an historic and overwhelming vote of the member countries. In response, the United States has cut off tens of millions of dollars of funding and Israel has announced the speeding up of the building of more illegal settlements on Palestinian land.

Viva Palestina is announcing a major new initiative, Kick Off for Palestine, in the wake of the UNESCO vote to bring aid and support to Gaza. We intend to raise £250,000 over the next few months to build three sports stadia and playing fields to enable young Palestinians, where unemployment is worst, to play football and other sports. This is an initiative strongly supported by Gazan civil society. We hope to see the first stadium open as early as Spring 2012.

We want to twin football clubs in Britain and beyond with Gaza and to engage footballers and other sports figures in this fund-raising project. Please get in touch if you can contribute funds or want to organise fund-raisers for this great project to bring a ray of hope to many young people in Gaza.

You can donate directly via Paypal below.

Convoy news

2011-11-12T10:06:00.000-08:00

The first democratic elections since the fall of Mubarak are due to take place on 28th November. In addition to the uncertainties raised by the election campaign and outcome in Egypt, Israel is now clearly preparing major military operations against Gaza and may launch an attack on Iran in the next few days and weeks.

In this context, we have decided to postpone the VP6 convoy until the situation has become clearer. We still intend to take a convoy in as soon as possible, which we now believe will be possible at some point in the first three months of the New Year. In the meantime, we are concentrating all our efforts on raising funds for Kick Off for Palestine.

Viva Palestina Arabia presents the Summer University of Palestine 2011

2011-03-10T11:21:00.001-08:00

One of the aims of Viva Palestina is to encourage a greater understanding of the Palestine issue and its wider impact on peace in the Middle East and beyond. As such, we participate in many conferences and educational events that promote this understanding. Viva Palestina will be participating in a conference organised by Viva Palestina Arabia which will be looking at the impact of the wave of democratic changes in the Middle East on the future for Palestine and ending the siege on Gaza.

To find out more about the conference go to the Viva Palestina Arabia website

Viva Palestina 5 in 3 minutes

2011-02-10T14:50:00.000-08:00

Mavi Marmara survivors speak out against Israeli "whitewash"

2011-02-10T13:18:00.000-08:00

"The claim by Israel's Turkel Commission that Israeli forces acted legally when they killed nine people aboard the Mavi Marmara, and left another brain dead, will be laughed out of court by all but the Israeli government and its most fanatical supporters", says Kevin Ovenden, who was on board the Mavi Marmara when it was attacked by Israeli forces in May last year.

"This whitewash commission was set up by the Netanyahu government, the same people who commissioned the assault on the aid ship. It is simply unfeasible to claim that, for example, the two men shot immediately to the left and right of me, were gunned down in some act of self-defence. They were shot from above. No Israeli commando was in sight of us when the bullets rang out.

"Israel has refused an independent international inquiry and instead was brazen enough to establish this farce. No Turkish official, lawyer or representative was allowed to take part. One of the only two international observers who was a fig-leaf for the commission's "impartiality" was Lord (David) Trimble. He was invited on to it a few months after founding a friends of Israel initiative. And as a leading establishment figure in the north of Ireland he refused for decades an independent inquiry into the killing of 14 unarmed civilians on the streets of Derry in 1972, the truth about the massacre only being officially acknowledged 38 years later with the report of the Saville inquiry.

"The United Nations Human Rights Council already found last year prima facie evidence of grave human rights abuses and war crimes aboard the Mavi Marmara.

"Rather than entertaining this charade from Tel Aviv, the British government should demand that Israel and those responsible for the atrocity of Bloody Monday on the Mediterranean on 31 May last year are held to account and to the same universal standards of justice that are required of other states.

"Whatever risible PR Israel and its supporters attempt to spin, that is going to happen. And on the one year anniversary of the attack on the Mavi Marmara a second, bigger international aid effort will set sail for the point at where it was so brutally attacked and will ask, civil society organisations, religious groups, politicians, governments, and people of conscience around the world to demand that all relevant governments and international bodies all it safe passage to Gaza.

"Wikileaks has confirmed what independent Israeli researchers told us last year. The siege on Gaza is carefully calibrated by the Israeli government to keep the Palestinian people in a state of dependency, with their economy society hovering just above complete collapse.

"The French foreign minister Michele Alliot-Marie is the latest high profile visitor to Gaza and Palestine to call for an end to the blockade.

"The pressure to end this barbarous policy is increasing. I think I can speak for all those who were aboard the Mavi Marmara in saying that we are redoubling our efforts in 2011 to bring it to an end this year. We will be part of the next aid missions, by land, by sea and by air.

"This sick joke from an Israeli government that has already lost all international credibility will serve only to increase our determination to bring justice to the Palestinian people."

Sarah Colbourne, Director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and who was also onboard the Marvi Marmara when the Israeli Defence Force attacked the boat said:

“However hard the Israeli Government attempts to rewrite history, they can’t rewrite the truth. The facts are simple, the Marvi Marmara was carrying essential humanitarian aid like baby milk to the besieged people of Gaza. There were no guns or weapons on board the boat, we were in international waters, when over 300 bullets – or one for every two people on board - rained down on us, killing 9 people and injuring over 50.

The actions of the Israeli Defence Force and the Israeli Government where by all international standards of law illegal as is their continued occupation of Gaza and the oppression of the Palestinian people.”

Viva Palestina Album

2011-01-10T14:26:00.000-08:00

Viva Palestina - The album featuring Drew McConnell from Babyshambles, Lowkey, Celt Islam and more . . .

only £9.99

including postage and packing

Discounts - 2 for £17.49 - 3 for £24.99

Don't miss Viva Palestina - The Album.

Buy your copy now. Special discount if you buy more than one - so why not stock up for Birthday, Eid or Christmas presents.

Track listing and credits .

1. Cologne Hotel by Helsinki. Written Drew McConnell. www.myspace.com/drewhelsinki

McConnell is heavily involved with the Love Music Hate Racism movement, contributing a song with Babyshambles and Helsinki to a CD given away free with a copy of the NME in 2007, as well as playing at such events as the Love Music Hate Racism carnival with Jon McClure of Reverend and The Makers .

2. Perfect Harmony by Phuturesonic .www.phuturesonic.com, www.myspace.com/phuturesonic

Written and Produced by Henry Gillespie Vocals and Lyrics by Melanie Jane and Jon Audio. Guitar by Jon Speedy, Viola by Laura Williams.

3. War , what is it good for (war pro peace mix) by Ugly Rumours. Produced by Lee Hirons, Main vocal Patrick Alan.

4. Gaza by Celt Islam www.myspace.com/celtislam Written and produced by Muhammad Abdullah Hamzah { Celt Islam } and Dawoud Kringle on sitar. Recorded at Al Khider Studio, Manchester. 2009 .

5. Fabrigation by Tai Mahmud An epic lyrical artist (and rapper) on all levels,www.taimahmud.com

6. Blood by Nabila Melody & lyrics by N Fowles-Gutierrez. Original music by: N Fowles-Gutierrez, K Houston, M Corbett, C McBride, 1999. Produced by: N Fowles-Gutierrez.www.myspace.com/nabilanaby

7. Together we stand . The helicopters. A collective of artists compromised of Dan on bass, George on drums and Tommy on guitars.
www.myspace.com/thehelicoptersband

8. Children of war by Abdullah Rolle www.abdullahrolle.com Abdullah Rolle is a British artist with over 20 year experience in the music industry.

9. Tears to laughter by Lowkey www.myspace.com/lowkeyuk Produced by Nutty P.

10. Palestine by Dudley Mclarnon special thanks to my band members of dalriada folk, david mclarnon and seamus olabhradha, to jay stewart and viva palestina for giving me this opportunity to help raise money for the people of palestine, to my family , and my dearest friends tony and elaine.

11. Sunshine by playmaker www.myspace.com/officialplaymaker Paul Rey-Burns Guitar and Lead Vocals Ste Brennan Lead Guitar and B.Vocals Stacy Harman Bass GuitarPete Lewis Drums

12. Gaza abc by Alex Kirby www.myspace.com/alexkirbyalex Written and performed by Alex Kirby.Backing vocals: David Tomlinson.

13 . Palestina Free by Patchanka. www.myspace.com/patchankadk From Copenhagen, Denmark! ¡Patchanka! stands for positive change... A change in music, and a change in the powerstructures of contemporate world politics.

Some of the artist are famous in their own right, some are not so knwon, all the tracks are great.

Viva Palestina Badges

2011-01-10T14:21:00.000-08:00

Viva Palestina Badge
A 25mm soft emamel badge.
Wear with pride to show your solidarity with Palestine.

Buy using Paypal at the following prices
£2.50 including UK postage
£3.00 with European postage
£3.50 with worldwide postage

Viva Palestina Partners

2011-01-10T13:47:00.000-08:00

Viva Palestina UK works with a range of partner organisations around the world to help raise solidarity with the people of Palestine.

Viva Palestina Arabia - Middle East
Viva Palestina Gulf - Arabian Gulf
Viva Palestina Malaysia - Malaysia
Viva Palestina Italia - Italy
Kia Ora Gaza - New Zealand
Palestine Forever - Canada
Filistine Yolacik (IHH) - Turkey
Viva Palestina USA - United States
Al Quds Community Centre - Australia

Sign up for email alerts

2011-01-01T13:06:00.000-08:00

On this web page you can subscribe to, or unsubscribe from, the mailing list information@vivapalestina.org.

About Viva Palestina UK

2011-01-01T12:57:00.000-08:00

UK Register Charity Number: 1129092

Office enquiries please contact us by email at rob@vivapalestina.org or phone Rob on +44 7889 726 777

Press enquiries at press@vivapalestina.org or phone +44 7889 726 777

Viva Palestina is registered as a Charity in the UK (number 1129092) with the following purposes:

1) PROVISION FROM THE UK OF FOOD, MEDICINE AND ESSENTIAL GOODS AND SERVICES NEEDED BY THE CIVILIAN POPULATION.
2) HIGHLIGHTING THE CAUSES AND RESULTS OF WARS WITH A VIEW TO ACHIEVING PEACE.

Donate to Viva Palestina

2011-01-01T01:36:00.000-08:00