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Latest News |
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All the Peace Cycle reports are
written by the cyclists themselves
Peace Cycle
Saturday 23 August 2008
We left Tulkarem
at 8.15 am for a 30 km ride to Qalqilya. As the
weather was a bit cloudy, we managed to bear the
heat and to over win the hills in the lovely
landscape. We could see a part of the
wall/fence during the ride. After some questions
at a major checkpoint we got through after about
10 minutes. The soldiers asked us why we only
had a Palestinian flag without having an Israeli
one. Our answer was that we were in Palestine
and not in Israel.
Around 11.30 am we
finally arrived in Qalqilya. This governorate,
to the East of the West Bank, is almost entirely
encircled by the wall. We were waited for by
photographers and by local people who handed out
sweets and water (to mark the run up to
Ramadan). After a lunch we were received by the
deputy governor of the governorate of Qalqilya.
He gave a brief presentation of the issues going
on in his province. The main one was of course
the negative impact of the construction of the
‘security’ wall and linked to that the stolen
land and water issues which complicate and
paralyse the daily life of people (access to
fields, schools, roads, medical infrastructure).
25 Israeli settlements are present. The deputy
governor also said that olive trees can get very
old (some of them might be 1000 years) and be
taken away easily by the Israeli soldiers but
they have very long roots like the Palestinians
and cannot be destroyed totally.
We had a long rest
of 3 hours and ``visited`` the apartheid wall by
bike. Lots of encouraging messages in different
languages are written on the wall as well as
drawings. We were all very impressed and silent
while witnessing this. How is this possible in
the 21st century? It is a big shame.
Afterwards we
visited the local zoo where we could see another
example of Israeli aggression: a giraffe was
killed after a bombing in 2002 and is still
there as a witness of violence which attacks
people, animals and nature.
Read More
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Detailed
Itinerary for the Peace Cycle in Palestine |
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Peace
Cycle Rides for Justice
The third international Peace
Cycle will arrive in the Middle East on 14th
August.
The cyclists, only one of whom
has visited Palestine before, have all been in
serious training for the last 6 months in
preparation for cycling some long distances in very
hot weather. The physical challenge may be a
difficult one but their message is simple: Peace in
Israel and Palestine can only come through justice
and an end to occupation.
The group of cyclists, which
includes a development worker from Greece, a school
Headteacher from London, an Avionics Engineer and a
20-year-old degree student, will cycle from Amman
and visit unrecognised Arab villages near Haifa and
Nazareth before touring the Palestinian West Bank on
their bikes to learn more about the realities of
life under20military occupation. Their route will
take them past the “Separation Barrier” and through
checkpoints, roadblocks and confiscated land. They
will be meeting as many local people as they can to
hear about their experiences, before taking up the
cause for justice back in their own countries,
raising awareness of the occupation across Europe.
Peace Cyclist Zeger, an NGO
worker from Belgium, said, “I want to increase my
own knowledge of Palestine so that I can campaign
more effectively, and next year I will take part in
a major campaign to the European Parliament,
demanding justice at last for the Palestinian
people”.
Another cyclist has given up her job in London so
that she can take part. She said, “This is such an
important issue and we all need to be better
informed. We cannot keep quiet in the face of such
injustice and by taking part in the Peace Cycle I
hope to show the Palestinian people that we do care
about what is happening to them”.
As well as training for the ride,
the cyclists have also been busy raising funds for
the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians, which
provides mobile health units in the Occupied
Territories. Nick, a Head teacher from20London said,
“The parents at my school used our sports
day to raise money for MAP, and this will be
used to help fund one of their essential medical
units. I feel it is a small way of helping people
who are suffering – if our governments won’t help,
at least we can”.
The Peace Cycle ride will finish
in Jerusalem on Friday 29th August, where
many of the cyclists plan to donate their bikes to
Palestinian charities before they leave.
For more information on the Peace
Cycle 2008, contact Laura Abraham on 0794 1056616 or
email
thepeacecycle@aol.com
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Sign the Peace Cycle Petition to suspend
the EU-Israel Association Agreement!
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Cyclist Information Pack
available now!
The detailed pack contains information about the Peace
Cycle, an outline of the events we have planned for this
year, and details of how to register to take part.
If you would like a pack emailed to you, please send a
message to:
cyclists@thepeacecycle.com |
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Announcing the Peace Cycle
Tour
of the Occupied West Bank
1967 – 2007: The State of Israel has been illegally occupying
internationally recognised
Palestinian territory for 40
years.*
The realities of Israel’s occupation of Palestine?
Mass detentions, indiscriminate killings, denial of food, water and
fuel supplies, roadblocks, checkpoints, destruction
of schools, roads and infrastructure, imprisonment
behind an illegal wall, theft of land and the
demolition of 18,000 Palestinian homes.
“Before
the eyes of the world, the Palestinian civilian
population is scrambling to survive”
The UN Special Co-ordinator on the Middle East Peace
Process
The next Peace Cycle will:
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Send an
international group of people direct to
Palestine to show solidarity and support to
the Palestinian people. |
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Raise funds to
help alleviate suffering and rebuild
Palestinian homes.
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Tour the West
Bank on bikes with cyclists from the newly
formed Palestinian Cyclist Club, to witness
the occupation and its effect on daily
life.
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Return via the
European Parliament in Brussels to meet with
MEPs, followed with public and media events
in the UK to speak of what we have seen and
demand an end to this injustice.
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From now until the ride begins
The Peace Cycle will call for people from all nationalities, all
backgrounds, all faiths and none to take part in the
ride, help organise events and raise funds for
humanitarian charity and home rebuilding in the
Occupied West Bank.
Late August/early September 2008
The Peace Cycle will fly direct to Amman, Jordan, for media events
before cycling into the West Bank to commence a
cycle tour with Palestinian cyclists, aimed to
educate participants about the realities of
occupation and to encourage advocacy after the ride.
Mid September 2008
The Peace Cycle will leave Palestine and fly from Amman to
Brussels, where cyclists will meet with Members of
the European Parliament and the media. The cyclists
will then return to London to take part in public
and media events to raise awareness and call for
action to end the occupation.
Exact timescales and itinerary will be finalised in due course.
Real peace can only come from real justice
Join the Cycle for Justice
To register your interest in taking part or to help us plan and
organise Peace Cycle 2008 email:
thepeacecycle@aol.com
* U.N. Security Council Resolution 242 calls for an immediate
withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories
occupied in the 1967 conflict (the West Bank, Gaza
and East Jerusalem), and for
achieving a just settlement of the Palestinian
refugee problem.
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"Patrons of the Peace Cycle". |
 Mordechai Vanunu spent 18 years in an
Israeli jail for exposing Israel’s secret nuclear weapons
programme, 12 years of these in solitary confinement. Despite
serving his sentence in full, Vanunu is still being held in
Israel against his will. He describes the Peace Cycle as “a
movement of compassion and hope”. |
Alexei Sayle is one of Britain’s best loved comedians and is an
established actor and writer. He has written several novels and
television series and has made many television and film
appearances.
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Gush Shalom - the
Israeli Peace Bloc, says about The Peace Cycle:
"With the inaction of
the official organs of the international community towards the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict, Gush Shalom sees The Peace Cycle
initiative as filling a
vacuum, encouraging us not to give up the struggle for a peace
based on the Green Line as the border between Israel and
Palestine - in order to start living side by side -
as good neighbours."
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Read the Weblogs of 2006 Peace Cyclists…more
Read about the Peace Cycle in the media…more |
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"Israel has deprived
millions of Palestinians of their liberty and property. It has
perpetuated a system of gross racial discrimination and inequality.
It has systematically incarcerated and tortured thousands of
Palestinians, contrary to the rules of international law. It has, in
particular, waged a war against a civilian population, in particular
children.....Palestine is one of the great moral causes of our time.
"Nelson
Mandela, 2001
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Nick
Pretzlik
1945 - 2004 |
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Support the Jenin
Freedom Theatre |
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