From 2 to October 4 held in the Palestinian village of Bil’in the 8th International Conference on Popular Nonviolent Struggle.
The West Bank village of Bil’in once again becomes the setting for reflection, analysis and support to the years of peaceful resistance in one of the more long-standing and more complicated conflicts in the world.
The continued construction of Israeli settlements, the supposed peace accords for Israel and Palestine or the endless negotiations between the two countries have not diminished the hopes of Palestinians for change. With an amazing mood, every Friday after prayers, women, men and children put into practice nonviolent strategies to condemn, pressure and advocacy. Their persistence favored that in November 2012 the United Nations General Assembly (UN) admited Palestine as an Observer State, implicitly recognizing the sovereignty of Palestinians on the territory occupied by Israel since 1967.
Protection and Coordination
Although actions in villages like Bil’in remain peaceful and supported internationally, waves of repression have experienced this year an important rise towards the popular movement leaders. In many cases, the repression violates human rights such as freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, putting defenders of human rights in a huge risk when it comes to defending their own rights and those of their people.
In this context, the main objective of the Conference this year is to strengthen and improve coordination mechanisms between the different actors involved in protecting defenders of human rights in Palestine. To do so, it has highlighted the role of the media, policy makers and Palestinian, Israeli and international civil society .
Last year, several members of the international community, as representatives of the European External Action Service of America, Spain and Italy attended the conference. Politicians internationally recognized as Federico Mayor Zaragoza, Luisa Morgantini and Jimmy Carter, along with respected figures in the field of peacebuilding and human rights, as Desmond Tutu, also joined the event in the past.
The 8th International Conference on Popular Nonviolent Struggle is an initiative of the Coordinating Committee of Popular Struggle (PSCC). A large group of civilians who are dedicated to the Palestinian nonviolent struggle led by Palestinian, Israeli and international people to life and freedom as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and international law, and it has the support of NOVACT-International Institute for Nonviolent Action.
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