Palestine solidarity march: Memorandum to the Israeli Embassy in the Republic of South Africa

21 October 2023

His Excellency, Mr Eliav Belotsercovsky

Ambassador and Plenipotentiary of the State of Israel to South Africa

As the African National Congress and various faith-based, civil society, community, trade unions, solidarity organisations, we are gathered here today, in protest against the continued oppression of the Palestinian people.

The recent events, which sees the State of Israel escalating the attacks on Gaza and West Bank, are but the latest in a series of atrocities against the people of Palestine, in violation of international laws.

We declare that at the root of the conflict is the denial of the right of self-determination and statehood to the Palestinians.

We acknowledge that international solidarity played a key role in the victory of the struggle against apartheid in South Africa. Accordingly, as the progressive forces in South Africa, we stand in solidarity with the People of Palestine and the Saharawi People, and called for an end to the blockade of Cuba by the USA.

Since the Nakba in 1948, the situation in occupied Palestinian territories have been getting worse. Over the last two decades in particular, the state of Israeli has subjected the Palestinian people to forms of racial oppression and brutal suppression no different to what the Black people experienced under the apartheid regime in South Africa.

South Africa stands with the Palestinian people today as we did during our long struggle for freedom and democracy in our motherland. We do so not because of their religion or the colour of their skin, but because we recognize our common humanity. Palestinian lives matter. Race or religion should not be used to determine our response to human catastrophe and injustice.

Our stance is consistent with UN Resolutions which call for Israel to withdraw from the occupied territories and the urgent implementation of the two-state solution — the independent State of Palestine existing side by side and in peace with the State of Israel.

Comrade Nelson Mandela, the global icon and founding President of our democratic nation, was unequivocal when he said: "We know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians".

We need lasting peace between Israel and Palestine. No amount of atrocities committed by the Israeli apartheid state will silence and suppress the Palestinian's thirst for freedom, self-determination and nationhood.

Through this March of Solidarity, we:

a) Call for an immediate ceasefire and the resumption of peaceful negotiations.

b) Demand that Israeli's ultimatum that over a million Palestinian should overnight leave their homes in preparation for what can only be to commit genocide. We condemn in the strongest terms the bombing of hospitals, homes and other civilian targets, which are gross violations of human rights.

c) Demand of the apartheid Israel government to heed to the call for safe passage of humanitarian aid, which include medical supplies and food. We condemn any blockade of such humanitarian aid as complicit to aggravating the humanitarian disaster and genocide against the Palestinian people.

d) Recognise that the current episode of the conflicts as of October 2023 follows years of murder of innocent Palestinians, including the murder of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by the Israeli regime with impunity.

e) Condemn the selective morality and unconscionable stance of the US and some EU countries that have spoken only about the killing of Israeli civilians by Hamas while saying nothing about the killing of Palestinian civilians by the apartheid state of Israel.

f) Call on the ICC to immediately indicate their intention to investigate the grave breaches by Israeli leaders of the crimes under the jurisdiction of the Rome Statute.

g) Call on young South Africans to refuse military call up by the Israeli war machine, as we called on young White patriots to refuse military conscription during the anti-apartheid struggle. None of our patriots should participate in committing a genocide in Palestinian territories.

h) Call for the speedy resolution of the conflict through the two-state solution, of Israel and of Palestine, premised on the 1967 borders and UN resolutions.

Issued by ANC, 21 October 2023