arch/ive/ief (2000 - 2005)

AEL STATEMENT

THE JUDGE REJECTS THE BAN OF DEMONSTRATION; THE DEMONSTRATION OF SATURDAY 8th OF JUNE IS PERMITTED.

Press release 06 06 02

Antwerp- The court of law rejected today the ban declared by the Mayor of Antwerp against the planned Demonstration on Saturday. The Judge declared that the Demonstration should be allowed to take place. This is a great Victory for Democracy, constitutional rights, and can bring some credibility back to democracy in this city after that its political authority almost transformed it into a police state.
This is a Victory for The platform for a just peace in Palestine and AEL and a serious blow to the efforts that have been undertaken to criminalize and marginalize us.
A lot of people now are looking and feeling ridiculous, but above all we want to point out the coward attitude of some Immigrant organizations that have done nothing but helping the Mayor to oppress our community in order to secure their subsidies and positions. But in vain they tried; the fact that AEL is an independent movement rejecting subsidies instead of asking for them is obviously a frustration to many who would like to see us being "integrated" into one of their modulated formulas of organizing our community and controlling it. Those so called "self-organizations" showed that they do not care about Palestine or the rights of their people here and they have only one goal, and that is to grow by better serving the subsidizing power.
The Arab European League stresses the fact that it is now more than ever important to mobilize and demonstrate for Palestine as the continuous occupation and the daily oppression by Zionists against our people in Palestine continue. Sharon is preparing his gangs for a new onslaught that will be definitely another humanitarian tragedy. While we know very well that the international community did nothing to stop or to investigate what happened in Jenin and failed to impose even a fact finding mission. Tomorrow marks also the start of the national campaign of boycotting Israeli products in Belgium. These days mark also the 20th anniversary of the Israeli invasion of Lebanon that resulted in the murder of a 100.000 people and the horrible massacres at Sabra and Shatilla. This Saturday we have a chance to show that we are not intending on watching what happens in Palestine in silence, we have to make our voices heard.
The Arab European League (AEL) calls upon all Arabs and Muslims and all justice loving people to participate in The Demonstration of Saturday.
WHEN? Saturday 8th of June at 14h00
WHERE? ANTWERPEN, Leopold de Waelplaats In front of the "Museum van schone kunsten"

We'll be there