News Highlights:

• On March 30th, Land Day is marked by demonstrations and rallies both inside Palestine and abroad; the Global March to Jerusalem also takes place, as Israeli forces injure hundreds and kill one Palestinian man in Gaza.
• Palestinian detainee Hana Shalabi is deported to Gaza after ending her 43-day hunger strike, under an agreement criticized by human rights groups and the Int’l. Cmte. of the Red Cross.
• Palestinian Christians take part in Palm Sunday celebrations, and call on the Israeli government to end its occupation and annexation of East Jerusalem; Palestinians must have a permit to enter the Holy City, just one of the restrictions on freedom of movement.

Feature:

A special Eyewitness Palestine, with two reports highlighting the significance of both Land Day and the Global March to Jerusalem. The first was an eyewitness account by Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh of the activities he participated in on March 30th, as well as personal thoughts on the steadfast resistance of the Palestinian people. The second report was written by two Palestinians, one from the West Bank and one from the Galilee, giving the history of Land Day and why it is so pivotal in the Palestinian calendar.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a March 30th, 2012 report from the Badil Centre for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights about community and cultural activities they organized for Land Day, including tree planting to highlight the racist practices of the Jewish National Fund.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Israeli officials may consider force-feeding Palestinian detainee Ms. Hana Shalabi, who has been on hunger strike for 40 days to protest administrative detention.
• 8 Palestinian children are facing a sentence of being banned from their homes in the village of Beit Ummar, on false accusations of stone-throwing; Beit Ummar has a long history of resisting land confiscation and the apartheid wall.
• Israeli officials refuse to cooperate with the UN Human Rights Council investigation into the settlements, an investigation Canadian FM Baird alleged was “one-sided”.

Feature:

A conversation and poetry readings with indigenous poet and activist Lee Maracle. Lee joined us over the weekend during a brief visit to Vancouver to talk about the apartheid nature of settler colonialism, both here in Turtle Island (North America) and Palestine. She also read several of her moving pieces of poetry, in particular “Remembering Mahmoud” which is dedicated to the late Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of various March 26th, 2012 news reports about the recent Israeli Court decision to not allow the government to stall further on evacuating the largest illegal settlement outpost, a move Palestinian officials are skeptical will be implemented.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Hunger striking Palestinian detainee Ms. Hana Shalabi says she will stay on strike despite pressure to stop after 34 days without food; Shalabi is protesting the practice of administrative detention by Israeli authorities, which is incarceration without charge or trial.
• UN report says Israeli settlers have seized dozens of natural water springs in the occupied West Bank, limiting Palestinian access to scarce water resources.
• Palestinian Christian group, Kairos Palestine, denounces the recent oped by the Israeli ambassador to the US, which tried to deflect attention from the Israeli occupation and manufacture religious differences amongst the Palestinians.

Feature:

A live interview with Brian Campbell from the Seriously Free Speech Committee in Vancouver, about attempts by the Zionist lobby to silence any criticism of Israeli policy, especially here in Canada. Brian detailed how different levels of government, especially the Federal Conservatives, had been complicit in this campaign, in attempts to ban Israeli Apartheid Week on campuses and the defunding of organizations that supported the Palestinian people. He also noted how there were moves by the Israeli government against its own citizens to suppress debate and actually make it illegal to discuss certain subjects, like the Palestinian Nakba.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a March 16th, 2012 letter from the parents of Rachel Corrie, who were marking the 9th anniversary of her killing by an Israeli bulldozer in Gaza.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Gazan officials confirm Egypt negotiated an agreement to stop Israel’s military campaign against Gaza, which includes an end to its assassination policy.
• Israeli prison authorities reject MK Ahmed Tibi’s request to visit Palestinian hunger-striking detainee Ms. Hana Shalabi.
• Palestinian NGO Badil marks both Int’l. Womens Day and Israeli Apartheid Week with a series of activities in the occupied West Bank and Gaza.

Feature:

A live interview with Dr. Mazin Qumsiyeh from Bethlehem about upcoming activities for Israeli Apartheid Week IAW in Palestine as well as background on the Israeli laws of segregation against the indigenous Palestinian population. Mazin, who teaches at both BirZeit and Bethlehem Universities, detailed what is happening in various Palestinian towns to mark IAW and also talked about the daily discrimination Palestinians face in freedom of movement, housing, freedom of worship due to Israeli policies and regulations. There was further discussion of the discrimination against Palestinian Israelis, who even though they are citizens, do not enjoy equality. Mazin noted various anti-apartheid activities he has participated in over the last year, including the Freedom Riders protest, which highlighted the segregation on public buses, and called for listeners to support the Palestinian struggle.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a March 13th, 2012 report from the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination calling on Israel to eradicate apartheid policies or practices that severely affect the Palestinian population, including rights to property and access to land, housing and natural resources.

Here is an audio file of this show:

News Highlights:

• Palestinian female political detainee Hana Shalabi says she will continue her hunger strike against the practice of administrative detention; various human rights groups have called for Int’l Womens Day to be a day of solidarity with Ms. Shalabi.
• Israeli military forces arrest another 14 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, including 5 Palestinian minors with one as young as 12 years old.
• The annual AIPAC meeting in Washington DC, attended by Barack Obama and Newt Gingrich, faced a large group of protestors both outside and inside the conference.

Feature:

A live interview with Charlotte Kates about Israeli Apartheid Week IAW, its significance and the local and global activities going on in support of IAW. Charlotte, who is an organizer with the National Lawyers Guild Int’l. Committee and a member of Boycott Israeli Apartheid Campaign in Vancouver, first explained the history of IAW which started 8 years ago in Toronto, how its become a world-wide event and why its important that people support it. There was also discussion about the clearly biased reaction of Canadian political leaders criticizing IAW and the various techniques they have tried to use to suppress debate around these issues. Charlotte concluded by summarizing the activities happening in Vancouver and encouraging listeners to support the Palestinian struggle, especially the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement which is the focus of this year’s IAW.

Focus on Zionism:

Highlights of a March 6th , 2012 report from Maan News Agency about how Israeli settlement waste sewage is flowing into Palestinian communities and causing serious health problems.

Here is an audio file of this show: