Several hundred supporters were at the quayside party in Bergen to show their solidarity with Palestinians today and bid farewell to Al Awda (The Return).

Video: Arrival at dockside with choir https://www.facebook.com/TorillJF/videos/10160397327125083/

Our first Norwegian leg is from Bergen to Leirvik on the island Stord, a center for Norwegian offshore industry, to celebrate May Day with trade unionists and elected politicians in support of the Freedom Flotilla.

On our way southwards from Bergen we met a big merchant ship which gave us this message on the VHF Channel: Good luck to you on your way to Gaza.

 

Opening his European tour in Barcelona, Roger Waters will participate in the event ‘Totes amb Palestina’ (Everyone with Palestina), which will take place at the Espai Josep Bota de la Fabra i Coats, Monday 9th April.

Rania Muhareb, legal researcher with the Palestinian organization Al-Haq, will take part in the event and tell about the consequences of the latest escalation of repression in Palestine. Sandra Barrilaro, Rumbo a Gaza, Freedom Flotilla Coalition, will present Right to a Just Future for Palestine.

The Gaza Strip, Palestine, is recovering from the bloodiest episode since 2014, after the Israeli forces killed 21 people during the March 30th demonstrations near the border with Israel. Many thousands of Gaza’s residents have gathered to demand the right of the Palestinian refugees and their descendants to go back to their historical homes as part of The Great March of Return. The date to start this pacific action, supported by all Palestinian factions, was chosen as a reminder that the loss of land is a constant under the illegal Israeli occupation.

In light of this and while Roger Waters is in Barcelona, for the opening of his Us +Them tour; April 13th& 14th at the Palau Sant Jordi, various groups have organized this event ‘Totes amb Palestina’, to be held Monday April 9th in the Espai Josep Bota, at the Fabra i Coats cultural space of Sant Andreu de Palomar, Barcelona.

The founder member of Pink Floyd, a firm defender of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign (BDS) against Israel’s violations of human rights, will share the stage with Rania Muhareb, a legal researcher with Al Haq, a Palestinian human rights organization, who will speak about the increase in repression experienced by the Palestinian population at the moment; and with Sandra Barrilaro, member of Rumbo a Gaza (Freedom Flotilla Coalition), who will present Right to a Just Future for Palestine, the new mission to challenge the illegal blockade imposed on the Gaza Strip for more than a decade.

Free access subject to on-line booking using this link: http://Palestin.eventbrite.es. The event is organized by the following group: BDS, Prou Complicitat amb Israel, Rumbo a Gaza (Freedom Flotilla Coalition), Ateneu l’Harmonia, Tigre de paper edicions; and supported by the municipality of Barcelona. For more information: info@rumboagaza.org. We hope to share with you video from this event in the future, as was done with a Waters event in Vancouver last year (https://vimeo.com/243417578).

Freedom Flotilla Coaltion literary contest results.
After reviewing 29 English entries, our jurors selected a winner and a runner up in the categories of short story and poetry.   The winners are, for short story:  Mikayla Boorany (South Africa), Dan Lieberman (USA), and for poetry: Gerry Sloan (USA) and Anna Dora Antonsdottir (Iceland). Their submissions have begun appearing on our website www.sgf.freedomflotilla.org, and will continue to be published, along with winning texts in Spanish and Arabic. See our full announcement for more, including a link a collection of submissions from school-children in South Africa: sgf.freedomflotilla.org/news/winners-of-the-literary-contest-keys-to-the-future-of-palestine.

 

Our literary contest results announcement coincided with the Palestinian Land Day protests and Great March of Return, marking 70 years of the Nakba (Catastrophe). See the Freedom Flotilla Coalition's statement about the killing of civilian protestors: Massacre at Gaza’s Borders: We Will Not Be Silent – End Israeli Impunity. We will be continuing to follow these protests supporting the Palestinian Right of Return over the coming weeks. Our next flotilla, sailing for a Just Future for Palestine, will leave mid-May from Copenhagen and will make many port stops along the way before departing for Gaza mid-July from the western Mediterranean.  Please help spread the word by sharing our messages, and please follow our mission as we make our way towards ending the illegal blockade of Gaza, .

In solidarity,

The Canadian Boat to Gaza, part of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition

www.freedomflotilla.org
Facebook https://www.facebook.com/FreedomFlotillaCoalition
Twitter https://twitter.com/GazaFFlotilla
Instagram instagram.com/gazafreedomflotilla

le texte français suit*

Two Former New Democrat MPs, and the Publisher of Rabble now endorse our 2018 campaign to end the blockade of Gaza:

 

"Ending the blockade and human suffering in Gaza is an urgent human rights issue that must concern us all. Having visited Gaza in 2009 we know first hand the impact of the blockade on civil society. The International Freedom Flotilla in 2018 strives to bring the world's attention to the deteriorating situation. We support the aims for peace and justice for the Palestinians of Gaza."
Libby Davies Former Member of Parliament, Vancouver East, 1997-2015. Former Deputy Leader, New Democratic Party.
Kim Elliott, Publisher, rabble.ca

"I would like to thank all those involved in the Canadian Boat to Gaza and to wish them well in this important mission.  It is important to continue to bring attention to this illegal blockade. It is my hope that the Israeli authorities will welcome the Freedom Flotilla mission and guarantee freedom of movement for the Palestinian people. I would also like to encourage the Government of Canada to offer support to those courageous Canadians taking part in this important endeavour."
Alex Atamanenko

Member of Parliament, B.C. Southern Interior, 2006-2015.
The Canadian Boat to Gaza campaign needs your support in order to participate in the Freedom Flotilla 2018 sailing For a Just Future for Palestine.  

You can donate online (canadaboatgaza.org/donate) or by postal mail. Make out cheque or money order to Turtle Island Humanitarian Aid and mail it to:

Canadian Boat to Gaza
PO Box 1950, London Stn. B
London, Ontario N6A 5J4
CANADA

 

(Note: like many of our sister organizations, we would prefer to move away from dependence on PayPal for online donations. At this point, we are pleased to accept e-Interac transfers from Canadian bank accounts, and we hope to announce other payment methods soon. Please e-mail us if you have questions about this). 

Some (especially those who can benefit from a charitable tax receipt in the US) may wish to donate through the US Boat to Gaza page:

https://2018boatstogaza-nonviolenceinternational.nationbuilder.com/contribute
In other parts of the world, please consider donating through one our other partner campaigns in the Freedom Flotilla: 

https://sgf.freedomflotilla.org/donate

 

Whether your can donate financially or not, please help us spread the word about our campaign:

• share our messages with your family, friends and/or work colleagues and encourage them to join our mailing list; 
• send an endorsement message from your association, union, congregation or political party;
• organize and attend events to raise funds and awareness for our campaign;
• join a Freedom Flotilla campaign near you and encourage others to do so;
• follow us on the web, Facebook, Twitter (see below), and (new!) Instagram, and share our posts widely.

Twitter: @CanadaBoatGaza @GazaFFlotilla

www.facebook.com/CanadaBoatGaza        

www.facebook.com/BateauCanadienGaza 

www.facebook.com/FreedomFlotillaCoalition  
 

*francais:
Deux anciens députés néodémocrates et l'éditrice de Rabble.ca soutiennent notre campagne pour mettre fin au blocus de Gaza:
 

"Mettre fin au blocus ainsi qu'à la souffrance humaine à Gaza constitue un enjeu humanitaire urgent qui doit nous concerner tous et toutes. Ayant visité Gaza en 2009, nous connaissons de nos propres yeux l'impact du blocus sur la société civile. En 2018, la Flottille de la Liberté internationale s'efforce à attirer l'attention du monde sur cette situation qui se détériore. Nous appuyons les objectifs de paix et de justice pour les Palestiniennes et le Palestiniens de Gaza." 
Libby Davies, ancienne députée, Vancouver Est, de 1997 2015. Ancienne Leader adjointe, Nouveau Parti Démocratique.
Kim Elliott, Éditrice, rabble.ca

"Je tiens à remercier tous ceux et toutes celles qui oeuvrent au sein du Bateau canadien pour Gaza, à leur souhaiter bon vent pour cette mission importante en 2018. C'est important de continuer à attirer l'attention sur ce blocus illégal. Mon souhait c'est que les autorités israéliennes accueilleront bien la mission de la Flottille de la Liberté et garantiront la liberté de mouvement pour le peuple palestinien. J'aimerais aussi encourager le gouvernement canadien à offrir leur appui aux personnes courageuses du Canada qui participent à cet effort important."
Alex Atamanenko

Ancien député (NPD), C.-B. Southern Interior, 2006-2015.

 

La campagne du Bateau canadien pour Gaza a besoin de votre soutien afin de participer dans la Flottille de la Liberté 2018, quand on naviguera pour un Avenir Juste pour la Palestine.

Vous pouvez faire un don en ligne, (canadaboatgaza.org/donate) ou par chèque à la poste. Il faut libeller votre chèque ou mandat postal au nom de: Aide humanitaire Île de la Tortue et l'envoyer à:

 

Bateau canadien pour Gaza
PO Box 1950, London Stn. B
London, Ontario N6A 5J4
CANADA

 

(Nota bene: comme beaucoup de nos alliés, nous aimerions réduire notre dépendance sur PayPal pour les dons en ligne. En ce moment, nous sommes heureux d'accepter les virements par e-Interac à partir des comptes bancaires canadiens, et nous espérons annoncer bientôt d'autres méthodes pour effectuer les paiements. Veuillez nous contacter par courriel si vous avez des questions à cet égard).  

Certaines personnes (en particulier celles qui peuvent bénéficier d'un reçu d'impôt aux É-U, pourraient vouloir faire un don par le biais de cette campagne-là:

https://2018boatstogaza-nonviolenceinternational.nationbuilder.com/contribute
Depuis d'autres parties du monde, vous pouvez faire un don par le biais des sites de nos partenaires: 

https://sgf.freedomflotilla.org/donate

Que vous puissiez ou pas nous soutenir financièrement, veuillez nous aider à diffuser notre campagne:

• partagez nos messages avec votre famille, vos amis, et/ ou vos collègues de travail, et encouragez-les à s'abonner à notre liste de courriel; 
• envoyez un message de soutien de la part de votre association, votre syndicat, votre congrégation ou votre parti politique. 
• organisez et assistez à des événements afin de lever des fond et de conscientiser les gens aux objectifs de notre campagne;
• inscrivez-vous à une campagne de la Freedom Flotilla à proximité de vous, et encouragez les autres à encouragez d'autres personnes à le faire aussi; et
• suivez-nous sur le web, sur Facebook, Twitter (voir ci-après), et (nouveau!) Instagram, et partager nos billets largement.

Twitter: @CanadaBoatGaza @GazaFFlotilla

www.facebook.com/CanadaBoatGaza        
www.facebook.com/BateauCanadienGaza 
www.facebook.com/FreedomFlotillaCoalition  

 

— 

Canadian Boat to Gaza: www.canadaboatgaza.org email: canadaboatgaza@gmail.com

Bateau canadien pour GAZA: www.canadaboatgaza.org courriel: canadaboatgaza@gmail.com

 

Dear friends,

It was the middle of the night on May 31st, 2010. I was staring at a google map on my laptop. On it, a dot was slowly inching across the Mediterranean Sea. At 4:00 in the morning, the dot stopped moving.  That dot was tracking a convoy of ships staffed with hundreds of volunteers from Cyprus to Gaza, in an attempt to break the Israeli-Egyptian blockade on the Gaza Strip. It wasn’t the first convoy but it was the biggest one to attempt to do so. Its intention was clear — to reach the oft-forgotten Palestinian territory under Israel’s occupation and break the inhumane blockade imposed on it by land, sea, and air.
 
I remember those anxious hours, waiting for news, any news on why the dot stopped moving. In previous attempts to break the blockade, the Israeli navy stopped the ships and arrested those on board, deporting them after interrogation and confiscating or destroying their boats and supplies. This time I had a bad feeling. At 8:00 in the morning a message finally came through. The Israeli navy intercepted the boats, invaded, and attacked. All in international waters, all against international law. Nine people were killed (a tenth died later from wounds) and dozens injured.
 
Working as a journalist in Israel/Palestine I’ve frequently covered Israeli army attacks, but rarely have the victims been international activists. That attack led to international pressure, media attention, and a chain of events that had further complicated Israel’s fraught relationships with Turkey and Egypt. It had direct consequences on the ten families who lost loved ones, on thousands of activists, and on millions of Palestinians who saw that international civil society has not abandoned them in their struggle for basic freedoms. It also had an impact on millions of Israelis for whom Gaza is not a real place where people struggle to live normal lives but a conversation piece, a hellish fantasy behind huge walls, tucked away only to be periodically invaded as "punishment" for rocket attacks. In Hebrew “go to Gaza” is a slang insult, akin to “go to hell.” By noon of that day in May 2010, hundreds of Israelis gathered on the streets and chanted horrible hate-filled slogans aimed at the activists and Palestinians at large. The incident highlighted not only that the Occupation must end but also the extent of dehumanization and collective denial that would need to be overcome if we as Israelis are to live as equal citizens to Palestinians, in an open Middle East. Since then, year after year activists continue to fundraise for more convoys, for more ships, to collect donations of humanitarian aid, and to risk their lives against the Israeli Navy.
 
I don’t know what will be the straw that will break the camel’s back and that will finally bring to an end the brutal military occupation of the Palestinian Territories. It’s been seventy years since two-thirds of the Palestinian people were displaced from their lands and fifty years since the Israeli army imposed martial law on those remaining in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip. So long has the Occupation continued that its very existence has become a violation of international law. 
 
No one can know the cumulative effect of thousands of steps taken collectively towards the end of injustice. As someone born in the repressive, insulated regime of the Soviet Union I do know that these steps make an impact. In 1989, against all predictions, the Berlin Wall came tumbling down. In 1990, against all predictions, I was one of over a million Jews freed to leave to Israel, escaping Soviet anti-Semitism. In 1993, again against all predictions, Yasser Arafat and Yitzhak Rabin shook hands on the lawn of the White House, starting the tumultuous and yet-unfulfilled peace process. I know that change can come, that it can be within our lifetimes, and I thank wholeheartedly the courageous volunteers of the Canadian Boat to Gaza and the Freedom Flotilla Coalition as they risk their lives for change to manifest.
 

Lia Tarachansky, Israeli-Canadian journalist & filmmaker

You can donate to Canadian Boat to Gaza online (canadaboatgaza.org/donate) or by postal mail. Make out cheque or money order to Turtle Island Humanitarian Aid and mail it to:

Canadian Boat to Gaza
PO Box 1950, London Stn. B
London, Ontario N6A 5J4
CANADA

 

(Note: like many of our sister organizations, we would prefer to move away from dependence on PayPal for online donations. At this point, we are pleased to accept e-Interac transfers from Canadian bank accounts, and we hope to announce other payment methods soon. Please e-mail us if you have questions about this). 

Some (especially those who can benefit from a charitable tax receipt in the US) may wish to donate through the US Boat to Gaza page:

https://2018boatstogaza-nonviolenceinternational.nationbuilder.com/contribute
In other parts of the world, please consider donating through one our other partner campaigns in the Freedom Flotilla: Coalition:  https://sgf.freedom flotilla.org/donate

 

Whether your can donate financially or not, please help us spread the word about our campaign:

• share our messages with your family, friends and/or work colleagues and encourage them to join our mailing list; 
• send an endorsement message from your association, union, congregation or political party;
• organize and attend events to raise funds and awareness for our campaign;
• join a Freedom Flotilla campaign near you and encourage others to do so;
• follow us on the web, Facebook, Twitter (see below), and (new!) Instagram, and share our posts widely.

Twitter: @CanadaBoatGaza @GazaFFlotilla

www.facebook.com/CanadaBoatGaza        
www.facebook.com/BateauCanadienGaza 
www.facebook.com/FreedomFlotillaCoalition  

 

In late 2009, I joined a lifeline land convoy heading towards Gaza to break the illegal blockade that Israel imposed on Gaza’s Palestinian civilian population, now numbering over 2 million people. I was unable to continue with the convoy, and so in 2010, I joined the Freedom Flotilla which attempted to break the blockade by sea.

At the time, I had my camera in hand and was seeking to create a documentary film about the Freedom Flotilla event, which I hoped would culminate in our arrival in Gaza with our humanitarian aid and would put an end to the blockade. Instead, the Israeli military attacked our flotilla in international waters, killing 10 of our brothers, and wounding and imprisoning the hundreds of us who survived. I created a documentary film about this instead.
   
However, that attack and others have not deterred people of conscience globally from continuing in their attempts to break this illegal blockade, and alleviate the dire situation of the people of Gaza and restore their human rights. It behooves us to stand in support and solidarity with these brave souls (freedomflotilla.org), who risk putting their lives on the line, for fellow human beings in a faraway land.

Accordingly, I unequivocally support the efforts of the Canadian Boat to Gaza and endorse it, and invite you to do the same. I invite you to follow their news, promote their actions and bolster their work financially through donations (canadaboatgaza.org/donate) , to help fulfil their noble cause. Let us stand up and end this, since our governments will not.

In solidarity,
Rifat Audeh
Director – The Truth: Lost at Sea  https://truthlostatsea.com/

Those who can benefit from a charitable tax receipt in the US  may wish to donate through the US Boat to Gaza page:
https://2018boatstogaza-nonviolenceinternational.natio nbuilder.com/contribute
In other parts of the world, please consider donating through one our other partner campaigns in the Freedom Flotilla:  https://sgf.freedom flotilla.org/donate

Please share our messages and forward them; Merci de partager et de faire suivre nos messages.

Twitter: @CanadaBoatGaza @GazaFFlotilla
www.facebook.com/CanadaBoatGaz a/                      www.facebook.com/BateauCanadi enGaza/
www.facebook.com/FreedomFlotil laCoalition/  

Donate to Canadian Boat to Gaza online (canadaboatgaza.org/donate) or by postal mail. Make out cheque or money order to Turtle Island Humanitarian Aid and mail it to:

Canadian Boat to Gaza
PO Box 1950, London Stn. B
London, Ontario N6A 5J4
CANADA