Slingshot Hip Hop is an 80 minute high energy political documentary about Palestinian Hip Hop. It explores the genesis of hip hop in Palestine and gives voice to the politically charged conditions that the young Palestinian rappers and their fellow Palestinians engage with every day. Focusing on both groups and individuals, film maker, Jackie Reem Salloum takes her viewers on a journey that explores poverty, racism, colonialism, occupation and apartheid, as well as women’s rights, national identity and nationhood. Read more about the documentary: http://www.slingshothiphop.com/

Justice for Palestine media statement.
August 29, 2011.

Brisbane BDS supporters have pledged to intensify their campaign following a successful protest on August 27. Despite the rain, fifty protestors took to the streets to highlight the links between the Max Brenner chocolate store and the Israeli military occupation of Palestine.

Protest organisers from the Justice for Palestine group believe that the success of the protest is made apparent by the response it received from supporters of apartheid Israel.

Justice for Palestine activist, Kathy Newnam stated, “The zionist politicians and Murdoch media have been in overdrive spreading lies and misinformation about the BDS campaign because as the campaign grows, more and more people are finding out the reality of apartheid Israel and the colonial occupation of Palestine.

“The opponents of BDS have to rely on lies because they cannot answer the demands of the BDS movement. They cannot justify apartheid and occupation so they resort to lies and slander. They claim that our movement is anti-semitic, but not once in any single article or statement from Rudd, Danby or any other zionist politician can they state one iota of evidence for this slander. They can't because there is no evidence, none whatsoever.

“Those that seek to slander the movement are doing so because they stand with apartheid. They defend colonial occupation. They support the ongoing dispossession of the Palestinian people and the refusal of the right for Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and their land.

“Last night's media stunt by Wayne Swan at the Max Brenner chocolate store is consistent with the Australian government’s long history of support for apartheid Israel. We have to remember that this is the same government that supported the massacre of over 1400 people in Gaza in 2008-2009.

“Swan would be well aware of the facts behind the BDS campaign against Max Brenner. The parent company of Max Brenner, the Strauss group emphasises the support it gives to the Israeli army. The Strauss group is proud that for more than 30 years, it has supported the Golani reconnaissance platoon which is infamous for its involvement in the 2006 invasion of Lebanon and other atrocities, including the 2002 assault on the Jenin refugee camp. The Strauss group also proudly supports the the Givati Brigade, which led the ground assault on Gaza in 2009, including ordering 100 people from the Samouni family into a building which was bombed shortly afterward.

“This is the reality of Israel’s atrocities against the Palestinian people that Wayne Swan, Kevin Rudd and the Murdoch media don’t want the people of Australia to know about. They use lies, slander and silencing tactics against the BDS, but it won’t work. The BDS campaign continues to grow.

“No matter what barriers they try to put in the way of the BDS movement, the grassroots people's power will demolish them.

“Saturday’s BDS protest faced hostility from a group of counter-protestors, which included a zionist politician from Logan City Council, young Liberal students and members of a far-right racist anti-Islam organisation. The counter-protestors gathered outside the Max Brenner store and used numerous megaphones to drown out the speeches of the BDS campaigners. This attempt to silence our protest only strengthened the resolve of participants to redouble our efforts to build the BDS campaign.

“We know that what we face here is nothing compared to the daily brutality and harassment faced by the Palestinian people. We know that we cannot allow anyone or anything to stop us from standing in solidarity with their struggle and their resistance.”

Justice for Palestine, Brisbane. August 24, 2011.

A protest in support of Palestinian rights will be held in Brisbane on Saturday August 27 as part of the international campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against apartheid Israel.

The protest will gather in South Brisbane with a march to the Israeli owned Max Brenner chocolate store. The global chain of stores is owned by Israel’s second largest food company, the Strauss Group, which boasts of its support for the Israeli military occupation forces.

According to Justice for Palestine activist, Kathy Newnam, “The protest will seek to highlight the reality of life in Palestine under military occupation. It will combat the lies and misinformation and the continual mantra by politicians and the corporate media about the supposed need for “balance”.

“Just look at what is happening in Gaza right now. Israel has launched a bombing campaign that has killed at least 20 people in the past week. Israel claims that this brutality is a response to an attack on a bus which killed eight Israelis. The corporate media repeats this claim uncritically under the guise of “balance” despite the fact that Israel is carrying out a brutal form of collective punishment that is completely illegal under international law.

“There is no such thing as balance under apartheid and colonial occupation. One has to take sides and there are only two choices – to side with the oppressor and thus support the suffering of the Palestinian people or to side with the oppressed and do what you can to support their resistance.

“The BDS Movement is about bringing pressure to bear on Israel until it complies with international law. Saturday’s BDS protest will support the demands of the BDS Movement:

• For an end to the occupation of all Arab lands and the dismantling of the Apartheid Wall that Israel continues to build in defiance of international law. The 810 km wall is part of the ongoing theft and colonisation of Palestinian land. When completed the wall and its associated system of check-points and Israeli setter-only roads will annex some 46% of the West Bank, isolating communities into Bantustans, ghettos and “military zones”.

• For equal rights for Palestinian citizens of Israel by ending the system of apartheid laws that limit Palestinian rights to political participation, land, housing, education, diversity of culture, language and religion and due process.

• For the right of return for all Palestinian refugees. There are 5 million Palestinian refugees throughout the world – the highest number of refugees from any single country. Many generations of people have been forced to live their entire lives in refugee camps since the brutal expulsion of 750,000 Palestinian people from their homes and land in 1948.

“These are the issues that Saturday’s protest will be highlighting – this is the reality of occupation, colonisation and apartheid. That is why the likes of Kevin Rudd, Michael Danby and the Murdoch media are so intent on spreading lies about the BDS Movement – they do not want people to know the truth about Israel’s brutality.

“When people know the truth then they will support the BDS Movement, just as people in Australia supported the boycotts and sanctions against apartheid South Africa. As people realise the truth, they will see that foregoing an expensive hot chocolate is a very small sacrifice to make in order to show their support for the struggle against occupation and apartheid.

“We are confident that this will be another important step in building support for the Palestinian call for boycotts, divestment and sanctions against apartheid Israel”.

Boycott apartheid Israel. Boycott Max Brenner.
Peaceful protest: Sat August 27.
Gather at 1pm in park on cnr Merivale/Glenelg St for a march to Max Brenner store at South Bank

For more information or comment, phone 0400 720 757 (Kathy) or 0401 586 923 (Hamish).

13 August 2011

We the undersigned call on the Victorian Consumer Affairs Minister Michael O'Brien to withdraw allegations he made singling out several pro-Palestine advocacy groups calling for them to be investigated by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) for an alleged suspicion that they may be involved in ‘secondary boycotts’ against Israeli-owned businesses in Australia.

These allegations form an ongoing campaign of intensified attacks on Palestine solidarity organizing and freedom of expression in Australia. We understand the current round of attacks to be a direct reaction to a growing international solidarity movement in support of Palestinian human rights, so we take the opportunity to reiterate our support for the Palestinian civil society's call for boycott divestment and sanctions (BDS) from Israel.

The BDS campaign is based on well-founded criticism of the Israeli state for its ongoing violations of international law, violations that include: Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian territories; its settlement-building and construction of an apartheid wall on occupied land; its refusal to respect the right of Palestinian refugees to return; and its ongoing military siege on the Gaza strip.

As in the past when the Australian people participated in the boycott campaign against apartheid South Africa, we affirm our right to participate in the BDS campaign against apartheid Israel in our churches, unions, professional bodies, local councils, parliaments and community groups. This campaign has provided a vital and viable framework and non-violent approach to building an anti-apartheid movement grounded in principles of international solidarity. People of conscience in Australia, have a proud history of principled international solidarity through BDS campaigns - any legalistic attempts, employing anti-union laws such as the ‘secondary boycotts’ law, will fail to deter social justice groups from vocally advocating the BDS campaign and supporting Palestinian human rights.

It is very disappointing that elected politicians choose to launch investigations into human-rights and solidarity organizations, rather than explain to the public why Israel is not held to account for its violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention and the Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice against Israel's Wall and colonial settlements. The active attempts to repress Australian organisations that work to promote Israel's accountability before international law is beyond reproach.

We stress that the BDS movement is an anti-racist movement that rejects all forms of racism including anti-Semitism and Islamophobia. The consumer-boycott campaigns are aimed at institutions and businesses that provide support for ongoing Israeli violations of international law, they do not target any particular religious or ethnic group.

We note that most of the organisations named by the Minister for the investigation did not take part in the protest he refers to against Max Brenner stores in Melbourne. This is a clear indication that he has not looked closely into the matter, but is purely targeting all pro-Palestine advocacy groups on the basis of their support for BDS. Although, we may not have all participated in this specific protest, we strongly believe in the basic right to peacefully protest and raise awareness about businesses that have questionable policies and show blatant disregard for basic human rights.

We urge elected officials to remember that their job is to protect rights and freedoms and to represent democratic values, not to waste our hard earned tax dollars on trying to appease a foreign state and those who blindly cheer for it.

Justice for Palestine (JFP-Qld)
Australians for Palestine (AFP)
Women for Palestine (WFP)
Australian Friends of Palestine (AFOPA-SA)
Action for Palestine – SA
Friends of Palestine (FOP -WA)
Students for Justice in Palestine UTS
Students for Palestine (VIC)
Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC-Melbourne)
Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid (CAIA)
Australian Palestinian Professionals Association (APPA)
Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN)
Artists Against Apartheid (AAA)
Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine (CJPP-Sydney)
Sydney Peace Foundation (SPF)
Jews Against the Occupation (JAO-Sydney)
Australians for Justice and Peace in Palestine (AJPP-Canberra)

Max Brenner Chocolates is a 100% Israeli-owned company belonging to the Strauss Group, the second largest Israeli food and beverage company. On the “corporate responsibility” section of its website, the Strauss Group emphasises the support it gives to the Israeli army. The Strauss group is proud that for more than 30 years, it has supported the Golani reconnaissance platoon infamous for its involvement 2006 invasion of Lebanon and other atrocities. As their website puts it: “Our connection with soldiers goes as far back as the country, and even further. We see a mission and need to continue to provide our soldiers with support, to enhance their quality of life and service conditions, and sweeten their special moments.”

PROTEST: Sat August 27
Gather at 1pm in park on cnr of Merivale & Glenelg St for a march to Max Brenner store at South Bank

Phone: 0400 720 757, 0401 586 923
Email: contact@justiceforpalestin​ebrisbane.org

spread the word!

Join the Facebook event and invite your friends:
https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=241364205883144&ref=ts

Download posters and flyers:
http://boycottmaxbrenner.wikispaces.com/flyers+and+posters

International Day of Action against the Israeli apartheid wall

TEAR DOWN THE WALL!
End the occupation of Palestine!
Equal rights for Palestinian citizens of Israel!
Right of return for Palestinian refugees!

RALLY: Sat July 9, 1pm
King George Square, city

Boycott apartheid Israel! Cut all trade ties!

Phone: 0401 586 923, 0400 720 757.
Email: contact@justiceforpalestinebrisbane.org
www.justiceforpalestinebrisbane.org

Please help spread the word: invite your friends.

Join the Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=102430539849353

Download posters & flyers: http://teardownthewall.wikispaces.com/posters%26flyers

Join the protest outside the “Water Solutions for the Coal Seam Gas and Mining Industry Breakfast”. A trade delegation from Israel will be in Brisbane in May and will be hosted at a breakfast organised by the Australian Israel Chamber of Commerce and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland.

A protest will be held as part of the growing international boycott campaign against apartheid Israel. Speakers at the protest will detail Israel’s theft of water resources from Palestinian land and the policies that deny Palestinian people access to water in the Israeli occupied West Bank and Gaza.

Protest: Wednesday May 18, 7am
Outside Sofitel Hotel, 249 Turbot St

Organised by Justice for Palestine, Brisbane
Email: contact@justiceforpalestinebrisbane.org
www.justiceforpalestinebrisbane.org

Rally on May 13 to commemorate the Palestinian Nakba (Catastrophe) day. On May 15 1948, more than 780 000 Palestinians were ethnically cleansed from their homeland and more than 500 Palestinian villages depopulated and destroyed by Zionist terrorist death squads that were set up in Palestine under the protection of the British mandate.

Rally: May 13, 5pm
Brisbane Square, top of Queen St mall (outside Casino)

* speakers, display, march through the city *

* End the genocide in Palestine
* End the siege of Gaza
* End the Israeli occupation
* Recognise the Palestinian right of return
* No Australian support for Israel: sanctions now!

www.justiceforpalestinebrisbane.org

Featuring:
* Mardi Lumsden and the Rising Seas *
* Phil Monsour band *
* Ofa Fanaika (from Chocolate Strings) *
* Spoken word performances & more *
* MCs: Eliza & Thomas from 4ZZZ’s Paradigm Shift *

Saturday April 16
At The Globe Theatre,
220 Brunswick St, Fortitude Valley
Doors open 7pm

Tickets: $10/5 concession ($25 solidarity price)

18+ID. Tickets at the door or pre-sale from The Globe or independent music stores

Please join the Facebook event and invite your friends:
http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=118987834844487

Presented by Justice for Palestine www.justiceforpalestinebrisbane.org