End the Ongoing Nakba

To the Right Honourable Prime Minister of UK David Cameron

Dear Mr. Cameron,

We the undersigned British Palestinians appeal to the British Government, in recognition of its historical role in the ongoing plight of Palestinians, to take historic steps in ending it.

November the 2nd will mark the 93rd anniversary of the Balfour Declaration. This declaration is the main symbol of Britain’s failed policy in Palestine. The turbulent effects of this failure still remain with us and Palestinians more than any other have been the victims. For decades Palestinians have suffered from endless wars, experienced massacres and were forced to flee from their land. Now, after 93 years, 7.1 million Palestinians, three quarters of the population, have been made refugees. Most are living on handouts from the international community, many facing intolerable pain and suffering on a daily basis. They see no end to their suffering as Israel continues, in an affront to international law and justice, to change facts on the ground by taking more land, building more settlements and imprisoning 1.7 million Palestinians in Gaza.

The real tragedy Mr. Cameron is not that Palestinians are suffering, it is that they have suffered for so long, even though the moral and legal weight have been on their side right from the beginning, and the international community have failed miserably to correct the historical injustice. The right of Palestinians to return to their lands is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, The International Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination, The International Convention on Civil and Political Rights. Right of return is guaranteed under Humanitarian and Human Rights Law and including countless UN resolutions.

Palestinian rights were further reinforced, In July 2004, by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), when the ICJ was tasked by the UN General Assembly to issue an advisory opinion on the Legal Consequences of Construction of a Wall in the Occupied Palestinian Territory. This was an unprecedented moral and legal victory for the Palestinian cause. However, six years on, instead of finding a more chastened Israel we find a more hostile Israel, demonstrating impunity for international law and displaying yet more aggression against the Palestinians.

Mr. Cameron we are not calling on the British government to side with the Palestinians but to side with the moral and legal positions that are unequivocally made by the highest judicial body in the world and countless human rights organisations. This is the least any citizen can demand from their government that is committed to law, justice and human rights.

We greatly appreciate your stance on Gaza and the Flotilla. And we were very encouraged by many of your MPs who also held a very strong moral and legal position following the attack on the flotilla. Your coalition partners, including the Deputy Prime Minster Nick Clegg, have written and voiced their concern over Israel’s deep hostility towards the Palestinians. Not only is it immoral and illegal it is also dangerous for the region, the international community and of course Britain.

We need new British politics for the foreign affairs, a new politics that leans towards greater justice and human rights. This coalition government has an opportunity that. Mr. Cameron the long arc of history may still judge the British position favourably; In Palestine our story could be a tale of redemption and reconciliation and not just as a flawed and duplicitous imperialist. The words you speak and the position you take from now can turn a new page in Britain’s role in Palestine. The next four years in office is an opportunity for you to remake this history and reposition Britain as a voice for justice, peace and human rights in the region.

History will judge Britain favourably in the region only when Britain plays a major part in ending the suffering of Palestinians. This can only begin when Britain apologises for its role in this affair and becomes visibly active in undoing the injustices of the past six decades. A courageous step will be made when the Prime Minster defends the rights and properties of British citizens who fled violence and persecution in Palestine. These citizens still hold deeds to their land in Palestine but still they have been denied their right to return to their land and reclaim their home from which they were expelled.