Source:MSU-IIT Political Science Society statement on Palestine crisis
The MSU-IIT Political Science Society condemns in the strongest terms the genocide that US-backed Israel is committing against the people of Palestine. We mourn the loss of lives and offer solidarity in their fight for their existence. We vehemently condemn the murder of innocent children, women, the elderly, and the general civilian population who have disproportionately received the brunt of the illegal occupation and military attacks by Israel. We condemn the bombings of churches, residences, refugee camps, and hospitals and their medical vehicles and call for a humanitarian corridor to be secured to allow the passage of medical aid and other basic necessities. The blockade imposed by Israel is a collective punishment that no government or any institution should celebrate or, at the very least, support.
While the recent attacks have been magnified, the Palestinian people have long suffered under Israel's systematic eradication of the Palestinian state. The 75-year-long occupation and militarization should not be isolated from the recent attacks. With this, the MSU-IIT Political Science Society condemns in equal fervor the support of the United States, Britain, and other states that have colluded with the Zionist cause.
Since the 1948 Nakba, when hundreds of thousands of Palestinian people were violently expelled from their land, the Israeli government did not just illegally seize control of the Gaza Strip, but other parts of Palestine as well, including the West Bank, where Hamas does not have effective control over. It is unthinkable how the international community sides with an illegal settler colony at the expense of the Palestinians, millions of them are children. While Russia was condemned by the international community for its atrocities, there seems to be a deafening silence, if not deliberate support, for Israel's violations of international law. In fact, the United States has vetoed over 50 United Nations resolutions against Israel in the past five decades.
With these things in mind, we support the resistance efforts of the Palestinian people in their struggle for national liberation. While no sane person would advocate for violence, we have to understand that there is violent resistance because there is violent oppression. Peaceful means have been exhausted but were met with further violence. For instance, peaceful protests during the 70th commemoration of the Al-Nakba have been met with ammunition, incurring Palestinian deaths and injuries. While the Society is cognizant of the civilian casualties incurred by the attacks of both the Israeli government and Hamas, albeit asymmetrical in magnitude, it is in no position to dictate how the Palestinian people should defend themselves in the face of apartheid. This is not to say, however, that one entity gets to have a free pass on violence. Parties involved should all be tried in the International Court for the crimes they have committed. We dream of a peaceful resolution to this injustice, but how could such be attained in the current, violent crossfire remains in the hands of the watching States and most especially, by Israel, the aggressor.
Notwithstanding, every form of resistance counts. Hence, we urgently call for the following actions:
We call for the international community to take a firm stand in condemning Israel for the Palestinian genocide and to use their platforms to advocate for an immediate ceasefire. We call for an immediate stop to the total blockade imposed by Israel on the Gaza Strip. We call for international institutions and organizations to render their support for the Palestinian cause by any means necessary. Needless to say, we also condemn the Philippine government's support to Israel, and call for the reevaluation of its relations with the latter, demand for the embodiment of rules-based principles, and encourage its participation in its peaceful resolution. There is no democratic reason to support a colonizer who steals land and indiscriminately murders people who only want to live in the lands where their ancestors are buried. We call for the students and faculty members of MSU-IIT and the wider MSU System to fight for what the institution says it fights for: the right to self-determination and the right of the people to their ancestral lands. It is disheartening that the University is clad in silence when the Palestinian cause should remind us of our collective historical struggle against illegal occupation and massacre.
Palestine has been fighting for the recognition of their state and a place in the international community for decades ever since Israel intruded the peaceful state of Palestine. We, the MSU-IIT Political Science Society, recognize Palestine as an independent state. Palestine rightfully belongs to their land and deserves justice for all lives lost in the prolonged illegal occupation of Israel. Israel must be condemned by International law for all their committed human rights violations. We are hopeful that this statement will contribute to the cause which has received unfair treatment in media coverage and from the rest of the world. May we all witness the coming emancipation of Palestine and until then, we shall sing along with the cry of Liberation, "From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free."
𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗼 𝘁𝗼 𝗣𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗲, 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘆!
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