Tamar Katz, a 19 year old Israeli war-refuser jailed for 51 days last year, will be doing a speaker tour of Britain between 5 and 14 March 2009.
Following massive demonstrations and a wave of student occupations against Israel’s war in Gaza, British activists will be hosting a speaker tour with Tamar Katz, one of the Shministim, Israeli high school students jailed for refusing to fight in the occupied Palestinian territories. She is being brought over by Workers’ Liberty students, but the meetings are being hosted by a variety of organisations.
Tamar, 19, was jailed three times, for a total of 51 days at the end of 2008, for refusing to take part in military service. She explained why:
“I refuse to enlist in the Israeli military on conscientious grounds. I am not willing to become part of an occupying army, that has been an invader of foreign lands for decades, which perpetuates a racist regime of robbery in these lands, tyrannizes civilians and makes life difficult for millions under a false pretext of security.
“I oppose the anti-Palestinian policy of attrition and the oppression, not because I prefer the Palestinian society to the Israeli one, but out of an understanding that this policy has led us down a dead-end road politically and to immorality, forced especially on soldiers stationed in the Occupied Territories. I am not willing to become one of those holding the gun pointed indiscriminately at Palestinian civilians, and I do not believe that such actions could bring any change except ever more antagonism and violence in our region.”
This is an excellent opportunity for student and trade union activists who opposed the war in Gaza to learn more about the ‘other Israel’ – Israeli anti-war activists, students and workers who desperately need our support and solidarity.
Tamar will be speaking at universities across the UK, as well as to some trade union meetings, including the rail union RMT’s London Transport Region, which is sponsoring the tour.
Provisional dates (more information and links to events asap):
7pm, Thursday 5 March – LONDON
Meeting and reception hosted by RMT London Transport Region and Finsbury Park RMT
The Twelve Pins pub, 263 Seven Sisters Rd, London N4 2DE (next to Finsbury Park tube)
For more information email
janine.booth@btopenworld.com
Lunchtime, Friday 6 March - BRIGHTON
Sussex University – email Koos kc69@sussex.ac.uk
7pm, Friday 6 March - LONDON
“International Solidarity for Women’s Liberation” – meeting to celebrate International Women’s Day hosted by Feminist Fightback, Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq and others
Room 3a, University of London Union, Malet Street
Email rebecca.galbraith@yahoo.co.uk
For Facebook event see here.
11.30am, Saturday 6 March - NEWCASTLE
RMT Women's Conference, Grand Station Hotel Email janine.booth@btopenworld.com
Lunchtime, Monday 9 March – MANCHESTER
Manchester University – email hazel.kent@student.manchester.ac.uk
6pm, Monday 9 March – BRADFORD
Bradford University, hosted by University of Bradford Union – email Lloyd l.c.russell-moyle@bradford.ac.uk
Evening, Tuesday 10 March - CAMBRIDGE
Cambridge University, hosted by Workers’ Liberty – email Patrick phar2@cam.ac.uk
Lunchtime, Wednesday 11 March – NOTTINGHAM
Meeting at Nottingham University hosted by Nottingham Student Peace Movement - email Adam ldyaae@nottingham.ac.uk
Evening, Wednesday 11 March – SHEFFIELD
Sheffield University, hosted by Workers’ Liberty – email Daniel skillz_999@hotmail.com
6.30pm, Thursday 12 March - EDINBURGH
Edinburgh University – email darcyleigh@gmail.com
Time tbc, Friday 13 march – LONDON
LSE – email michaeldeas@gmail.com
For more information about the tour in general, email Heather Shaw at centre_stage_red@yahoo.co.uk or ring 07969 597 251
For more about the Shministim, visit
http://www.december18th.org
Tamar, 19, was jailed three times, for a total of 51 days at the end of 2008, for refusing to take part in military service. She explained why:
“I refuse to enlist in the Israeli military on conscientious grounds. I am not willing to become part of an occupying army, that has been an invader of foreign lands for decades, which perpetuates a racist regime of robbery in these lands, tyrannizes civilians and makes life difficult for millions under a false pretext of security.
“I oppose the anti-Palestinian policy of attrition and the oppression, not because I prefer the Palestinian society to the Israeli one, but out of an understanding that this policy has led us down a dead-end road politically and to immorality, forced especially on soldiers stationed in the Occupied Territories. I am not willing to become one of those holding the gun pointed indiscriminately at Palestinian civilians, and I do not believe that such actions could bring any change except ever more antagonism and violence in our region.”
This is an excellent opportunity for student and trade union activists who opposed the war in Gaza to learn more about the ‘other Israel’ – Israeli anti-war activists, students and workers who desperately need our support and solidarity.
Tamar will be speaking at universities across the UK, as well as to some trade union meetings, including the rail union RMT’s London Transport Region, which is sponsoring the tour.
Provisional dates (more information and links to events asap):
7pm, Thursday 5 March – LONDON
Meeting and reception hosted by RMT London Transport Region and Finsbury Park RMT
The Twelve Pins pub, 263 Seven Sisters Rd, London N4 2DE (next to Finsbury Park tube)
For more information email
janine.booth@btopenworld.com Lunchtime, Friday 6 March - BRIGHTON
Sussex University – email Koos
kc69@sussex.ac.uk 7pm, Friday 6 March - LONDON
“International Solidarity for Women’s Liberation” – meeting to celebrate International Women’s Day hosted by Feminist Fightback, Organisation of Women’s Freedom in Iraq and others
Room 3a, University of London Union, Malet Street
rebecca.galbraith@yahoo.co.uk For Facebook event see here.
11.30am, Saturday 6 March - NEWCASTLE
RMT Women's Conference, Grand Station Hotel Email
janine.booth@btopenworld.com Lunchtime, Monday 9 March – MANCHESTER
Manchester University – email
hazel.kent@student.manchester.ac.uk 6pm, Monday 9 March – BRADFORD
Bradford University, hosted by University of Bradford Union – email Lloyd
l.c.russell-moyle@bradford.ac.uk Evening, Tuesday 10 March - CAMBRIDGE
Cambridge University, hosted by Workers’ Liberty – email Patrick
phar2@cam.ac.uk Lunchtime, Wednesday 11 March – NOTTINGHAM
Meeting at Nottingham University hosted by Nottingham Student Peace Movement - email Adam
ldyaae@nottingham.ac.uk Evening, Wednesday 11 March – SHEFFIELD
Sheffield University, hosted by Workers’ Liberty – email Daniel
skillz_999@hotmail.com 6.30pm, Thursday 12 March - EDINBURGH
Edinburgh University – email
darcyleigh@gmail.com Time tbc, Friday 13 march – LONDON
LSE – email
michaeldeas@gmail.com For more information about the tour in general, email Heather Shaw at
centre_stage_red@yahoo.co.uk or ring 07969 597 251 For more about the Shministim, visit
http://www.december18th.org
e-mail:
Homepage:
Question in Newcastle meeting
21.02.2009 20:57
Thanks
Local activist
Details of Sheffield meeting
23.02.2009 18:58
Wednesday 11th March, 7:30-9pm, Arts Tower Lecture Theatre 6.
More:
Daniel Randall
Jerusalem Post: Draft-dodging on the rise among girls
01.03.2009 19:54
excerpts from:
Draft-dodging on the rise among Israeli girls
by Yaakov Katz, Jerusalem Post, 1 March 2009
The IDF has noted a sharp increase in the number of female high school graduates who are dodging the military draft, OC Manpower Maj.-Gen. Avi Zamir revealed on Sunday.
According to Zamir, in 2008, 44 percent of females slated for enlistment dodged the draft, mostly by declaring that they are religiously observant and that they could not therefore serve in the IDF.
[...]
In an effort to limit the number of females who evade the draft, the IDF has hired private investigators who have in recent months discovered 60 that lied when declaring that they were religious. Some of the girls were spotted driving on Shabbat.
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link to the news report:
Maria