Playing Soccer in Gaza

Posted on December 19, 2010

By Andrew Ford Lyons

Ramadan Soccer Tournament

You’re watching your children play soccer. It’s a chilly weekend morning and you may be upset at the lost sleep involved in getting up and getting them there. The grass is green and the net, goal posts, striping are new and unscarred from previous play; their maintenance secured through a school district budget that generally passes grudging voter approval every two years. You see the mix of parents, some of them groggy, some of them slightly too excited by the impending competition. And it’s all incredibly normal.

What if the infrastructure for everything in the above scenario simply didn’t exist? What if there wasn’t a dew-covered green field behind the local elementary school that was open to all for community activities, funded by tax payers and maintained by salaried groundskeepers? What would it take for that scene to play out in a refugee community in the southern border town of Rafah, Gaza?

Every year, community members in the Yibna neighborhood of Rafah find out. Amid the ongoing brutal siege conducted by the Israeli occupation forces and the often violent struggle between internal political factions, comes the third annual Ramadan Soccer Tournament, organized by the Rachel Corrie Sports Initiative in Rafah.

It isn’t easy. People in this community are still reeling from a savage December 2008 military assault. They are part of a captive population of 1.5 million people who face a grim and grinding daily fight to prevent social collapse and cultural extinction. The soccer pitch is not grass. It’s on packed, dry, tan earth. The temperatures can be somewhat hotter than what some of the soccer parents you know might be comfortable with. And matches can potentially be called off due to curfews or air attack, as opposed to foul weather. Throwing a soccer tournament in the midst of these conditions becomes itself an act of resistance. The demand for some amount of normalcy itself becomes revolutionary.

Each year, a vital international community raises funds to keep the Ramadan Soccer Tournament going and to make the soccer field available year-round. This year the Rachel Corrie Foundation acted as the sponsor through which generous donations were sent. The Foundation helped raise over $12,000.00 to fund the tournament.

Tournament and sports initiative co-founders Khaled Nasrallah and Adnan Abu Al Sa’ud chose to name the event after their friend Rachel Corrie. “Rachel came among us and joined us in our struggle for justice as Palestinians,” Khaled said. “In the spirit of Rachel Corrie we hope to provide more than an event, but also a place for all the people of Rafah, regardless of faction. This tournament will provide a place for all community members–especially the heavily affected youth population in Rafah–to participate as Palestinians. It is truly a place to re-establish community.”

Rachel Corrie Foundation Joins First-Ever U.S. Universal Periodic Review

Posted on December 19, 2010

Edited by Evan Welkin

UN Human Rights Council Calls On U.S. to Enforce Leahy Amendment

Gina Patnaik (third from left) represents Rachel Corrie Foundation in Geneva.

On November 9, 2010, The U.N. Human Rights Council in Geneva released its draft report on the first Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the U.S. human rights record. The Universal Periodic Review was established by the U.N. General Assembly in 2006 to review human rights records of all 192 U.N. member states. The 2010 report calls for greater transparency and accountability in U.S. foreign military aid and programs. The Rachel Corrie Foundation was one of numerous non-governmental organizations to provide written submissions for the UPR of the U.S.

On Thursday, November 4, Gina Patnaik, a cousin of Rachel Corrie and PhD candidate at the University of California – Berkeley, spoke at UN headquarters in Geneva, representing the Rachel Corrie Foundation in a side panel to the U.S. review. Patnaik called upon the U.S. Government to strengthen two existing mechanisms for monitoring human rights abuses – the Leahy Amendment, and the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices. The Leahy Amendment is part of U.S. foreign assistance legislation and states that the U.S. must review all credible evidence of human rights violations committed by foreign militaries and hold its foreign aid beneficiaries accountable to international law.

In Geneva, Ms. Patnaik explained that there are systemic flaws in U.S. implementation of both the Leahy Amendment, and the Department of State’s annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices that prevent the government from effectively identifying and remedying gross human rights violations by countries receiving U.S. aid. Patnaik stated that multiple sources have provided credible evidence of a persistent pattern of human rights violations committed by the Israeli military. However, to date, the U.S. Department of State has not conducted an investigation under the Leahy Amendment into any Israeli military violations of human rights law.

Ms. Patnaik spoke, also, about the Corrie family’s ongoing efforts to seek accountability from Caterpillar, Inc. Katherine Gallagher, Senior Staff Attorney at the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), spoke about the U.S. justice system’s failure to hold corporations accountable for complicity in human rights violations. The CCR and the Ronald A. Peterson Law Clinic at Seattle University School of Law, filed suit against Caterpillar, Inc. on behalf of the Corries and Palestinian family members killed or injured with Caterpillar machines. Gallagher detailed ways that failure to monitor corporate involvement in human rights violations continues to undermine the U.S. commitment to international human rights law.

A high level U.S. delegation presented the U.S. UPR report on November 5th and answered questions from more than 50 nations about the U.S. human rights record. The delegation noted “President Obama’s and Secretary Clinton’s deep commitment to multilateral engagement, human rights, and the rule of law.” The U.S. delegation stated, “By admitting the possibility of imperfection, new opportunities to improve are revealed…” The delegation will return to the UN in March 2011 to discuss its efforts to address the 228 recommendations made during the UPR.

The Rachel Corrie Foundation applauds U.S. participation in the UPR and encourages the U.S. Government to fully comply with current laws governing foreign military assistance and the Congressional mandates for accurate and complete reporting of human rights violations in the annual Country Report on Human Rights Practices.

Corrie Trial Spotlights Flawed Investigations

Posted on December 19, 2010

By Cindy Corrie

Our family’s civil lawsuit in Israel in the case of our daughter Rachel opened March 10th with testimony from four international eyewitnesses, an autopsy doctor, an expert on heavy machinery, and a military police investigator. On March 24th, the trial recessed while the State identified military personnel to testify and the court broke for summer vacation. Proceedings resumed in Haifa District Court September 5th with five sessions spread over two months, the last being November 4th. Nine members of the Israeli military (including the driver and commander of the bulldozer that killed Rachel) testified for the Israeli Ministry of Defense. A Company Commander, Deputy Battalion Commander, and a Battalion Commander are among six to testify when the trial resumes. Because of an attorneys’ strike in the State Prosecutor’s Office, previously scheduled December court dates are now in question.

There are numerous revealing dimensions to this trial, but the spotlight on conduct of Israeli military investigations – both internal operational inquiries and those by military police – may be the most relevant to broader issues. Our attorney Hussein abu Hussein commented,

This civil trial is an important step to hold accountable not only those who failed to protect Rachel’s life but also the flawed system of military investigations which is neither impartial nor thorough.

Shalom Michaeli, lead investigator and head of the Israeli Military Police Special Investigations Unit, testified that he believed the Israeli army was “at war” with everyone in Gaza, including peace activists. An internal investigation of Michaeli’s investigating unit found that unprofessional conduct and negligence in investigation of the 2004 killing of a 13-year-old Gazan school girl was partly responsible for acquittal of the soldier charged. In a recent report, Void of Responsibility, the Israeli Human Rights organization B’tselem presents an indictment of Israeli military investigations:

B’Tselem protests the sweeping classification of the situation in the Occupied Territories as an ‘armed conflict,’ which effectively grants immunity to soldiers and officers, with the result that soldiers who kill Palestinians not taking part in hostilities are almost never held accountable for their misdeeds. By acting in this way, the army fails to meet its obligation to take all feasible measures to reduce injury to civilians, and its obligation prescribed by international law to investigate injuries to civilians.

Sworn testimony in Rachel’s case reveals that two out of three military police investigators were completing compulsory service and had three months or less of investigative training. While Michaeli stood by his 2003 investigation, he testified that he did not go to the site of the killing, that he failed to order a full transcript of radio transmissions from the event and considered them unimportant, and that he never interviewed Palestinian witnesses – including medical personnel who first examined Rachel. Michaeli did only an external inspection of the D9 bulldozer, strictly to see if there was blood or other indication that the bulldozer hit Rachel. He found no blood but testifed that the bulldozer could have been washed or “even painted” before he inspected it the day after the incident. Though Michaeli knew a video camera recorded the area round the clock, he failed to secure videotape from March 16th until a week later and testified that it had been taken by senior commanders. When questioned about failure to interrogate the camera operator, who panned away from the scene minutes before Rachel was killed, he said he did not think this relevant. Asked whether he questioned bulldozer crews about a military manual that states bulldozers are not to be operated near people, Michaeli said the manuals were not relevant.

All three investigators confirmed that on March 17, 2003, testimonies by the driver and commander of the bulldozer were interrupted by officers who stated that Doron Almog, head of the IDF Southern Command, instructed the soldiers to stop talking, not to sign anything, and not to cooperate with the investigation.

Questions remain about unresolved conflicting testimony taken from soldiers in 2003, the problematic interface of a strictly internal operational investigation with the military police investigation, and how information from these inquiries was used and seemingly manipulated to appease U.S. officials. The position of the U.S. Government remains that there has not been a “thorough, credible, and transparent”

Israeli investigation into Rachel ‘s killing, as was promised to President Bush by Prime Minister Sharon and was pursued by officials at the highest levels of the U.S. Government.

Our family continues to be shocked by the failure of military police investigators to look for evidence, to secure evidence, to resolve conflicting evidence, and to turn evidence over to the Israeli court. We are struck at how efforts of the investigating team and of those enlisted to support them were aimed at exonerating the military rather than impartially determining what happened on March 16, 2003. This is not what we and the U.S. government were promised by the Israeli government when Rachel was killed, and it is not what we accept now.

Representatives from the American Embassy-Tel Aviv have been in court each day and reportedly provide detailed accounts to Embassy and Department of State officials. Representatives of human rights and legal organizations (Al Haq, Adalah, Arab Association for Human Rights, the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, Center for Constitutional Rights, Human Rights Watch, International Federation for Human Rights, and National Lawyers Guild) have observed trial proceedings. Our family members attend all sessions. Bi-lingual volunteers translate the Hebrew proceedings for us and other English-speaking observers.

As challenging as the process is for our family, these are necessary and significant steps to take for Rachel and for others. The experience would be more difficult without the encouragement and both physical and emotional support we receive from a diverse group of friends.

Celebrating a Year of Pursuing Accountability

Posted on December 19, 2010

Craig and Cindy Corrie

Dear Friends,

For the Rachel Corrie Foundation, 2010 has been marked by courageous pursuits of accountability. This work is supported by an expanding network of individuals and organizations standing together for justice, non-violence, and universal human rights in the Middle East. As we evaluate and look forward, we ask for your help.

On a personal level, the trial in Israel in Rachel’s case has been all-consuming. It is significant – because, as a civil case, it addresses the collective responsibility of the Israeli Ministry of Defense and State, rather than actions of strictly one or two lower-ranked soldiers. The Rachel Corrie Foundation continues to communicate and educate about the human rights implications of this legal effort.

In May and beyond, we followed the bold path of the Gaza flotilla, the Israeli military attack on the Mavi Marmara, and the determined journeys of the MV Rachel Corrie and Irene (the Jewish Gaza Boat) that followed. At great personal risk, courageous seafarers refused to accept the continuing intransigence of the Israeli Government toward Gaza and the unwillingness or inability of the U.S. and other world powers to improve the situation. From the week following the Mavi Marmara attack until after the MV Rachel Corrie sailed, we provided over 26 local, national, and international news interviews illuminating the Israeli blockade and siege of Gaza that drove the flotilla activists to sea. Based on our own experience and on the U.S.

The White House

Government position about the inadequacy of investigation in Rachel’s case, we wrote to U.N. Security Council members (including U.S. Ambassador, Susan Rice) and communicated in person with high ranking Obama administration officials about our lack of confidence in a U.S. supported Israeli investigation of the flotilla incident.

To encourage adherence to U.S. values and laws, we participated in the American Friends Service Committee’s Chicago Hearing on U.S. military aid to Israel and in the first ever U.N. Universal Periodic Review of the U.S. human rights record. We cited inadequacies and inconsistencies in application of U.S. law governing U.S. foreign military aid when evidence of human rights violations by aid recipients exists. Recently, when word leaked to the Israeli media about a halt in sales of Caterpillar D9 bulldozers and linked this to our trial in Israel, we joined efforts to gather thousands of signatures in support of a permanent halt to such sales until Israel demonstrates accountability for human rights violations committed with these machines.

In Olympia, the Rachel Corrie Foundation celebrated the Olympia-Rafah Solidarity Mural Project, an inspiring public representation of the power of our connections. We proudly supported the efforts of TESC Divest and Olympia BDS that resulted in passage of Evergreen State College student resolutions supporting a CAT-free campus and college divestment from corporations that aid the Israeli occupation, and a successful boycott of Israeli products at the Olympia Food Co-op.

What will 2011 bring? In Olympia, our Peace Works Conference, Solidarity in Action (April 8-9), will feature a keynote address from author and activist Alice Walker and emphasis on BDS and other strategies. We will focus on Gaza – expanding our connections, supporting grassroots efforts for women, children, and families, and providing water purification for a Rafah kindergarten.

Congressman Brian Baird

Retiring Congressman Brian Baird, (WA-3) who visited Gaza four times since Operation Cast Lead, recently said of the ongoing Israeli blockade, “…from a humanitarian perspective, it’s a tragedy. From a legal perspective, it’s unlawful. And from a strategic perspective, it’s unwise.” The Congressman emphasized the importance of groups like RCF bringing our message to Congress. That message will become more powerful as we continue to network and partner wherever we can to most effectively impact U.S. and Israeli policy and to honor and advocate for the basic human rights of all in Israel/Palestine.

In our ongoing journey, it is a gift to find kindred spirits throughout the U.S., Israel, Palestine, and elsewhere, who share our hopes and nurture our efforts in so many different ways. Thank you for your invaluable support that makes each step we take possible. Despite disappointments on the national and international scene, we are all making a difference. This is a time to persist. During this month of giving, please share what you can with the Rachel Corrie Foundation. It continues to be the place where we dream about the possibilities that Rachel imagined and where we remember and try to emulate her spirit and creativity. Our small but committed staff and community of dedicated volunteers join us today in letting you know that your gifts inspire us. We are all grateful for whatever you are able to do to help.

Salaam, Shalom, and Peace, during this
holiday season,

Craig & Cindy Corrie

Connect with RCF Online