Human Dignity Of The Palestinian Prisoners Silent Battle

Human dignity of the Palestinian prisoners silent battle in the assault of barbaric Zionism.

By Hiyam Naour and Fadwa Nassar

May 1 2012

There are thousands of prisoners who will be joined by many other prisoners from today, on May 1st, in the hunger-strike triggered on April 17 2012, inside the jails of the Zionist entity.

In this cut-throat world, dominated by perverted forces of racial and religious hatred, injustice, plunder and arrogance, the Palestinian prisoners have refused food, to reclaim their dignity as human beings and the dignity of their people oppressed under a barbaric, inhumane occupation.

There is a silence and complicity of the international community, the UN and its agencies, the domineering powers, their associates and the so called “defenders of human rights”. The fate of Palestinian and Arab prisoners in the jails of the occupation, have pushed people, young and old to stand in the frontline of an indefinite hunger - strike, and to refuse medication.

The prisoners claim their dignity, which mean that the inhuman isolation of resistance leaders of which some have been held in solitary confinement for more than ten years must be ceased. Ending the strip searches of prisoners and the members of their families, stop physical assaults which relentlessly are imposed, not as claimed for security reasons, but to humiliate family members in particular citizens from Gaza, when visiting relatives which are political prisoners. Finally, the prisoners demand the ending of measures of revenge, legalized by the Knesset and conducted by the law enforcement, in order to humiliate the prisoners,the prisoners are deprived of their most basic human rights.

Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahla are hunger striking for over two months. Other prisoners such as Izzidine Jaafar, Sersek Mahmoud, Omar Moussa, Abu Shalal and Hassan Safadi are risking their health and life hunger-striking since more than a month, demanding an end to administrative detention following the outcome of Adnan Sheikh Khodr and Hana 'Shalabi.

Today, Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahla are entering their 64th day of hunger- strike. Bilal Diab was rushed to an Israeli prison hospital, and Thaer Halahla has suffered several complications in which he almost died.

Twice since their strike, the court has rejected the Zionist military. Records provided by the intelligence services of the Zionist entity (Shabak), stated that appeals was filed by Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahla’s lawyer, but nevertheless, he proposed a settlement, which was the deportation of released prisoners to Gaza, as it happened to Hana Shalabi. Bilal Diab and Thaer Halahla refused, demanding their right to return to their home of residence, Thaer to al-Khalil and Bilal to the village of Kufr Ra'i , near the city of Jenin.

Palestinian and Arab prisoner hunger strikers have decided to go all the way, until their martyrdom. The struggle is between the will of the prisoners, hungry for dignity, justice and freedom, and that of the Zionist occupier and oppressor, who have transformed Palestine into a land of death and suffering, supported by an international community, deaf, blind and dumb.

The prisoners, Bilal, Thaer, Jaafar, Mahmoud, Lina Jarbouni and Ahmad Saadat, Abdullah Barghouty and the MPs Ahmad el-Hage and Ali Jamal Natche, plus several hundred others, whom will continue the struggle for dignity, justice and freedom.

These Palestinians not only faces the Zionist occupant, but all the shallow groups, leagues and associations of power in the world. They also have to deal with dishonest news media which justifies its own existence of decadent survival, paid to pave the surface of fanatic zealots, rather than being valiant and bold, devoted to honest reporting, they are running their news organizations as a business, denying the knowledge of and connection to true reality.

Palestinian prisoners are the living conscience of the Arab-Islamic nation, because they have refused to collaborate with the Zionist occupant, the occupation of their country and the humiliation of their people. That is why they are arrested and detained. Some prisoners are military leaders and active in the resistance, others have simply refused to bow down to the colonial order, imposed by the occupier.

Those Western forces, who can exercise their supremacy in the world, by the strength of their criminal deadly weaponry, are followed by their docile servants. May they be kings or princesses, heads of state, journalists, thinkers and philosophers, these forces fear the powerful voices calling out from Zionist prisons, powerful voices that resonate and reflect a will of iron, these voices are righteously clamoring for dignity, justice and freedom.

The circles of the colonial Zionist enterprise, fear that the message of the prisoners on strike will reach all people which are stamped on, humiliated and tortured. A message announcing the refusal of the occupation, domination, humiliation and racism, a message that calls for liberation of human rights, mocking the sort of freedom announced by the circles of oppression in the world.

The liberty – formula they claim does not mean the liberty of Human Rights, their liberty-formula does not mean a thing,it’s invented by the oppressor to keep people in poverty oppressed by the colonial rule. This is no liberty, has no value or meaning, especially since the colonialists and their criminal terrorists brandish to kill the people and invade their home country.

The macabre coquettishness of the colonial world, represented by colonial domination's and oppressors, including the United Nations and it’s agencies have understood that it’s compliance with Zionist terrorism has gone too far. That is why they do not protest against the barbaric practices of the Zionim in Palestine. Even they dare in public openly argue their inhuman acts against the men,women and children of Palestine those who say no, we have had more than enough!

Palestinian prisoners in hunger strike have realized that their fight reaches far beyond the Zionist prison walls, that they are waging a struggle for freedom, justice and dignity of oppressed people around the world. This is the meaning of the messages that have reach the prisons, or rather what is going on at the prison hospital in Ramle, to where dozens of hunger-strikers were transferred. In their messages to the outside world, the prisoners explain the meaning and the value of their struggle, they explain why they refuse proposals made by their captors and military courts - that if they succumb it will be their final struggle, with noble dignity and for the dignity of mankind.

On the side of the Zionist oppressor everything moves in different directions, in particular since the outbreak of the strike on April 17. After transferring the hunger-striking prisoners from one prison to another, to place in isolation those considered to be leaders of the battle, the Zionist oppressor can witness the extension of the movement, despite attempts to break it - inviting divisions. For example suggest to separate PFLP prisoners from the leader Ahmad Saadat, in return if they end their hunger- strike. Yet they refuse instead high lightening the end of the isolation for all high commanders.

Declarations made by the Zionist entity have assured sections of prisons, that claims will be investigated, with the conditions that they end their unity movement. Hence, the prisoners are far from being fooled, especially since they already have experienced the empty promises of the prison administration. Moreover, as it was stated by Khaled Meshaal during a press conference in Cairo two days ago; the Zionists entity have not honored the agreement of last October with Hamas, the release of the Zionist militant Gilad Shalit in exchange for a larger number of Palestinian prisoners. The agreement contained a clausal which stated that released Palestinian prisoners would not have to fear being jailed or re-arrested, without proper cause.

The agreement to end the isolation and remove the “Shalit law”, which prohibits visitors to the prisoners from Gaza. When Zionist leaders make proposals to break the strike, they prohibit lawyers to visit prisoners and proceed to transfer more frequent the hunger-striking prisoners, aimed at destabilize and weaken, suppress people gathering in support of the prisoners outside Ofer prison and elsewhere. The transfer from one prison to another means more than a dozen hours on the roads, in inhumane conditions where the prisoners are locked and chained in metal boxes.

Sheikh Adnan Khodr, which was released on April 17, following his long hunger strike, is since his release sparing no efforts to call out in support of the striking prisoners. He is browsing through the West Bank, surrounded by students from Bir Zeit and the population of al-Khalil. His claims for popular support of the hunger-strikers also encouraging the prison movement to continue, because as he says; "it is a great battle that we are fighting and that we must win”.

Invited by the students and his colleagues at the Bir Zeit University, he explain at length the sense of unity in battle, how it is important to confront the occupier to get good results. Sheikh Adnan Khodr also visited al-Ibrahimi in Al-Khalil. There he discussed with the people, the family of Thaer Halahla, and the released prisoners, the students and the activists of different political colors, the ways to support the prisoners. He explained how he had to go beyond traditional strategies, to invent forms of struggle to confront the Zionist occupation.

Today, on May 1st the hunger – strike will begin with the participation of hundreds of prisoners. Inmates in several prisons, will join in unity the silent battle. As stated by the member of PFLP, Khalida Jarrar: “If the prisoners get to this stage to claim their basic rights, following through the hunger-strike, it is because we have not done enough, our duty is to support and mobilize. We have abandoned them, at the time when we had the means to act. By our actions and our mobilizations we can put an end to the suffering , we will also compel the Zionist entity and his accomplices to give the most basic human rights to our Palestinian resistance fighters."

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"Palestine is the heart of Arab countries"

- Hiyam Naour

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ENDS

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