quote:

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The Congress of South African Trade Unions is appalled at the destruction of the headquarters of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU) in Gaza, by two one-ton Israeli F-16 missiles.

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Solidarity, Israeli-style.

quote:

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COSATU reaffirms, with even greater force in the light of this atrocity, its 2006 National Congress resolution which pledged solidarity and support to the struggle of the Palestinian people for freedom, and demanded that:

* Our government should impose sanctions against Israel until the aggression on Palestine and Lebanon is stopped.
* We should step up the campaign for the release of Palestinian prisoners.
* COSATU members must boycott Israeli goods and demonstrations must be held at the embassies of Israel and the United States in South Africa.
* The government must end with immediate affect the diplomatic ties with Israel including recalling the ambassador.

We call on the workers of the world to join us in protesting at this deadly attack on our fellow trade unionists. An injury to one is an injury to all!

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A missile down a union's throat.

quote:

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GAZA CITY, Mar 4 (IPS) - Two F-16 missiles were all it took to bring down the five-storey headquarters of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions (PGFTU).

The Union, established in 1965, is one of the forerunners of the movement calling for an international boycott of Israel, and imposition of sanctions on it until Israel meets its obligations over UN resolutions, borders, and the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homeland.

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Further:

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"The occupation doesn't need any justifications to commit crimes against Palestinians," Nabil al-Mabhouh, acting head of the Palestinian General Federation of Trade Unions in Gaza told IPS. But the building had apparently been targeted because "we at PGFTU are supporting the rights of tens of thousands of Palestinian workers." ....

"Targeting a civil organisation shows how barbaric and outrageous the Israeli occupation is," he said. "We are not launching rockets; targeting a labourers union building is not justified."

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[ 08 March 2008: Message edited by: N.Beltov ]

In contrast to this, the CLC link to the story on the ITUC condemnation of the massacre of students in Jerusalem claims that "Militant group Hamas has claimed responsibility for the attack." The link is to Labour Notes which, it should be added, is nothing official from the CLC either.

It's my understanding that HAMAS made no such claim.

I suppose the CLC isn't in any danger of having its central office on Riverside Drive in Ottawa targeted by a few F-16 missiles and therefore doesn't need to worry, anytime soon, about failing to show firm solidarity with a sister organization whose HQ has just been blown to smithereens.

I must say that the CLC's coverage of international issues leaves a great deal to be desired (to put it mildly!) . But that's often the case for union leadership in an imperialist country like Canada or the USA.

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PGFTU: “Israel’s collective punishment of the people of Gaza is a clear breach of international humanitarian law and the Fourth Geneva Convention. It is, in effect, a war crime and Israel must be held to account. It is not sufficient for the International communities and the UN to express ‘concern’. The International Community and UN must take firm and immediate action to stop this catastrophe." Gaza needs action not talks to stop Israeli aggression.

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[ 08 March 2008: Message edited by: N.Beltov ]

quote:

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Originally posted by bruce_the_vii:
The Israelis and the Palestians don't care about these things. So commrades die. World opinion isn't going to help. Same as in N. Ireland.

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Not the same as Northern Ireland, and yes Palestinians do care about these things. Pastiche paltitudes, and generalitites like: "Same as N. Ireland" do nothing for anyone.

For example, Palestinian Trade Unions probably would have had more of a roll in the resistance if Israel had not spent the last 15 years booting Palestinians out of Israel and replacing them with guest workers. No such thing ever happened in Northern Ireland, and despite the violence, there was not an active campaign to eliminate Irish Catholics from the workforce, or limit immigration to the UK, as a policy of government.

This is not a religious conflict. This is about a powerless group of people being victimized by a military superpower, in order to take their land and resources. At no time, in the last 100 years did the British use the full force of its army against Catholics, or flatten whole blocks. Most violence was between local militias, not the British Army and Irish Catholics, and when it was that was a long time ago, and not at all like M. Ireland as we know it from the 60's and 70's.

This is nothing like Ireland, unless you are talking about Ireland in the 18th and 19th Century. This is about direct expropriation and disenfranchisment, enforced by a major military power.

When was the last time the RAF and the Royal Marines kill 160 Irish Catholics in 3 days or anything like that? Ask yourself when was the last time the RAF dropped a bomb on building that housed an Irish Trade Union? When did they last blow up the power station in Cork, or enforce an economic blockade upon Ireland in a deliberate attmept to impoverish the people?

"Same as N. Ireland". Pahh! What a load of crap. Embarassing for you to have written it. Just a cheap way out for you.

Stop fooling yourself. The people who "don't care about these kinds of things" are those who justifiy their fence-sitting by pretending this is an inexblicable and irrational blood feud between a few equally matched groups of fanatics, grinding tired axes, without rational cause and effect.

[ 09 March 2008: Message edited by: Cueball ]

Number of Irish (both sides mostly Catholic) killed by the British army 1969 til 2001: 368

[ 10 March 2008: Message edited by: bruce_the_vii ]

Yes some local bars got bombed, and that was ugly and messy but that is not at all the same as devestating the local economy and destroying the basic infrastructure upon which people depend.

I am sure if the UK had done what the Israelis are doing in Gaza their lives would have been directly effected in a way that is completely different from their experience.

Rantisi before he helped found Hamas in 1987, was a Doctor who organized a tax revolt against the occupation because he felt it was unjust for Palestinians to pay for their own subjugation. He was fired by the Israelis from his position as head of Pediatrics at the Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis in 1983.

Your assertion that the destruction of the infrasturcure and economy of the West Bank and Gaza Strip means nothing to Palestinians is absurd in the magnitude of its calousness. It would probably come as a suprise to you, but Arabs of this region, were until very recently one of the highest educated groups of Arabs outside of Baghdad and Cairo, and Gaza was in the 1940's one of the hot spots of European tourist activity -- a paradise on the med.

[ 10 March 2008: Message edited by: Cueball ]

This isn't my topic. I shouldn't even be saying anything. All I said was they are at each others throats.

[ 10 March 2008: Message edited by: bruce_the_vii ]

[ 10 March 2008: Message edited by: bruce_the_vii ]