Thursday, April 4, 2024
The Elders call for suspension of arms transfers to Israel to end Gaza atrocities
The Elders call for suspension of arms transfers to Israel to end Gaza atrocities
Statement: The Elders today call on political leaders who have influence to use their leverage to end Israel’s atrocities in Gaza by suspending arms sales, to secure the immediate release of hostages held by Hamas, and to compel the parties to commit to a permanent ceasefire and the two-state solution.
All states providing arms to Israel - directly or indirectly - must suspend arms transfers in response to systematic violations of international humanitarian law in Gaza and across the occupied Palestinian territories. Israel’s obstruction of humanitarian assistance into Gaza is unlawful and is causing unprecedented levels of catastrophic hunger, with famine in northern Gaza now imminent.
Use of this leverage is also imperative to deter a calamitous ground assault in Rafah, and signal that the disproportionate approach taken by Israel is not supported by its allies. In this regard, the Elders welcome the recent decision by the Government of Canada to suspend future arms sales to Israel.
As Israel’s closest ally and its largest provider of arms, the United States of America must lead the way. National Security Memorandum 20 issued in February was an important development, but we are deeply concerned that the Biden administration continues to approve arms transfers, appearing to accept Israel’s assurances on compliance with its legal obligations as credible, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary.
Countries providing arms to Israel cannot legitimately claim that violations of international humanitarian law are not taking place, or that they supplied arms without this knowledge. The provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice on 26 January and 28 March should be a wake-up call. But Israel continues to act with impunity, and the scale of human suffering in Gaza continues to increase. Those providing arms are complicit, and need to be held accountable.
We also condemn the continued holding of hostages by Hamas, and its indiscriminate attacks on Israel. These are ongoing and systematic violations of international humanitarian law which contribute to the cycle of insecurity and violence. Iran in particular must use its influence to compel Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups to end such violations and immediately release all hostages, and to help de-escalate tensions across the region.
The wilful disregard by Israel and Hamas for the agreed norms that govern the conduct of war has wider consequences for the international rule of law. The Elders believe it is critical that the International Criminal Court accelerate its investigation. States parties to the ICC must provide the financial and political support needed to fully resource the Court’s global work, regardless of geo-political affiliation with those under investigation.
More broadly, all those with influence on the parties should back diplomacy with action, by using the full range of political, legal and financial levers at their disposal. This includes targeted sanctions to address state-sponsored settler violence and settlement expansion in the West Bank, building on the commendable steps already taken by the Biden administration. The EU’s Association Agreement with Israel, and the financial and political leverage of Arab states, should also be brought to bear to help compel a change of course in the region.
Nearly six months after the shocking attacks of 7 October, the Elders reiterate their call for an immediate ceasefire, and the full implementation of all relevant Security Council Resolutions. To suggest that such resolutions are non-binding is irresponsible, and further weakens an already ineffective Council. All member states are required to carry out the decisions of the Security Council, in line with Article 25 of the UN Charter.
The Elders further reiterate their call for an inclusive coalition for peace that can lay out a political pathway to end Israel’s decades-long occupation and permanently resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
This is the only way to guarantee peace, security and human rights for Palestinians and Israelis alike.
ENDS
Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland and Chair of The Elders
Ban Ki-moon, former UN Secretary-General and Deputy Chair of The Elders
Graça Machel, Founder of the Graça Machel Trust, Co-founder and Deputy Chair of The Elders
Gro Harlem Brundtland, former Prime Minister of Norway and former Director-General of the WHO
Helen Clark, former Prime Minister of New Zealand and former head of the UN Development Programme
Elbegdorj Tsakhia, former President and Prime Minister of Mongolia
Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Hina Jilani, Advocate of the Supreme Court of Pakistan and co-chair of the Taskforce on Justice
Denis Mukwege, physician and human rights advocate, Nobel Peace Laureate
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, former President of Liberia and Nobel Peace Laureate
Juan Manuel Santos, former President of Colombia and Nobel Peace Laureate
Ernesto Zedillo, former President of Mexico
ENDS
Media enquiries
William French, Head of Communications
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About The Elders
The Elders are independent global leaders working for peace, justice, human rights and a sustainable planet. The group was founded by Nelson Mandela in 2007.
The Elders are Ban Ki-moon (Deputy Chair), Gro Harlem Brundtland, Helen Clark, Elbegdorj Tsakhia, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, Hina Jilani, Denis Mukwege, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Graça Machel (Deputy Chair), Juan Manuel Santos, Mary Robinson (Chair) and Ernesto Zedillo.
Lakhdar Brahimi, Fernando Henrique Cardoso, Jimmy Carter and Ricardo Lagos are Elders Emeritus.
Desmond Tutu (1931-2021) and Kofi Annan (1938-2018) were founding members of The Elders and served as Chairs from 2007 to 2013 and 2013 to 2018 respectively. Ela Bhatt (1933 - 2022) and Martti Ahtisaari (1937 - 2023) were members of The Elders from 2007 to 2016 and 2009 to 2018 respectively.
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Wednesday, April 3, 2024
Via White Crane Institute // KATHY KOZACHENKO
Noteworthy
1974 -
On this date KATHY KOZACHENKO'S successful bid for a seat on the Ann Arbor, Michigan city council made her the first openly Gay or Lesbian American to win public office in the United States. Although Harvey Milk is many times mistaken for this historic first, Kozachenko's election predates his win by a few years. But you know, she's a woman, soooooo...
Kozachenko joined the Human Rights Party in the early 1970s. The differences between the platforms of the HRP and local Democrats dwindled, yet "Kozachenko's run as an out Lesbian ... provided her with a distinction to set her apart". She would go on to comment that "'the Democratic Party started to look and sound like us, so the students found no need to vote for us if they were saying the same thing, so we found something different to say'".
As an out student at the University of Michigan, Kozachenko rallied student radicals. They supported her progressive agenda, which included a fine of no more than five dollars for possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Another part of her platform included "a ceiling on the amount of profit a landlord could make from rents on a building". Running solely against a liberal Democrat, Kozachenko was elected to the Ann Arbor City Council on April 2nd, 1974. She won the seat "representing the city's second ward by fifty-two votes".
Kozachenko's HRP predecessors on the city council, Nancy Wechsler and Jerry DeGrieck, had come out as a Lesbian and a Gay man during their first and only terms on city council, thus becoming the first openly LGBT public-office holders in the United States. However, Wechsler and DeGrieck did not run for office as an open LGBTQ individual.
Kozachenko is overlooked as the first openly Gay elected official in the United States. On the day after the election in 1974, The New York Times ran an article that ignored the election of Kozachenko, and instead focused on the marijuana tax referendum. When listing the winning candidates, the Times depicted her as "a student at University of Michigan who described herself as a Lesbian".
In 2008, a reporter at the Washington Post misguidedly commended Gus Van Sant's Milk for "its poignancy in telling the story of the first openly Gay elected official in the United States, Harvey Milk". It was three days before LGBTQ historian Ron Schlittler set the record straight. (You’ll pardon the expression.)
Kozachenko served one two-year term before leaving politics. She continued to work as an activist in Brooklyn and then Pittsburgh. She would later meet her long-time partner, MaryAnn Geiger (who died in 2010), and have one son.
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