UPDATE: Audacity of Hope Captain John Klusmire and Athens Justice

Audacity of Hope captain John Klusmire is my brother-in-law. His sister, Katherine Sheetz, organized the medical team for the U.S. boat. Klusmire is a professional who actually did this for his sister. He wasn't involved in any of the planning, had little knowledge of the issue, in fact, but once Kathy had explained some of the nature of Israeli regime's oppressive occupation and illegal blockade, he decided to offer his services to the cause. A kinder, more courteous gentleman you won't find. He did not deserve any of the disrespect and inhumane treatment the Greeks have imposed on him.

But he would say, i am sure, that being left hungry and thirsty without a bed for a day and a night in jail are nothing compared with what the Palestinians have to endure every day.

Kathy called me the morning of July 4th to tell me a very fine Parliamentarian of Greece, who was with the first Free Gaza voyage in August 2008 came to the prison and made sure John got a cot or sleeping pad, some food, water, toileting, and he affirmed the right of a fellow Free Gaza activist to give John, who was captain of that first Free Gaza boat also, some real food.

Tuesday morning in Athens, Greece, there is to be a hearing, at which let us pray the judge has the good sense and legal understanding to dismiss all charges against John, and the dignity to apologize for his unjust ill treatment.

Perhaps some of your readers saw the huge sign on the U.S. boat that was quickly put up after the Greek officials chose to be lackeys of Israel: "Poseidon or Netanyahu?" -- meaning, i believe, Who is the god of the sea for the people of Greece now?....

Respectfully,
Steve Greaves

I highly recommend people examine the UN report, UNRWA Appeal 2011 http://www.unrwa.org/userfiles/2010121464938.pdf, which details some of the devastating consequences of Israel's illegal collective punishment of Palestinians.

Gazan reality faces political spin as flotilla considers its next moves

Richard Lightbown describes the reality of extreme hardship in the Gaza Strip, “denied by world political leaders who know the facts better than anyone”, that has led to the formation of yet another flotilla for Gaza, and chronicles the Israeli, US and European dirty tricks aimed at aborting the humanitarian mission to the Strip.

Some aspects of the Gazan reality

In order to set the context I would like to begin by stating a few facts about Gaza.

1. The United Nations Relief and Workd Agency (UNRWA) annual report for 2010 found that the unemployment rate in Gaza is 45.2 per cent, which is believed to be the highest in the world.

2. For those in work the purchasing power of average monthly wages fell by 7.9 per cent during the last half of 2010. Purchasing power of workers has declined by 34.5 per cent since 2006.

3. It is estimated by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) that 300,000 Gazans live in abject poverty, subsisting on less than one dollar per day.

4. Ninety-five per cent of the water supply is considered unsafe for human consumption.

5. In June 2011 the deputy health minister of Gaza reported a major crisis in the health service of the territory which was receiving only one third of the required medicines and medical supplies. The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights reported that 178 types of medication, including many necessary antibiotics, have run out and that 123 types of necessary medical supplies were unavailable to various departments. On 13 June 2011 it reported that the Gaza Strip had not been supplied with medications and medical needs since the previous February. A Norwegian study in that month found that 100 out of 260 cancer patients were unable to receive treatment because the necessary drugs were unavailable.

6. Electricity supply is insufficient for the territory, resulting in frequent blackouts. OCHA reported in mid-2010 that less than half of the primary health centres were equipped with back-up generators: three of which were out of commission while a further eight centres were frequently out of fuel. This left a total of 15 centres out of 57 with back-up electricity supply. This situation is particularly dangerous for dialysis patients who have to be urgently disconnected from treatment during power cuts in order to avoid the formation of blood clots.

7. On 23 June 2011 the International Committee of the Red Cross reported that “The easing of the closure in June 2010 has had little impact on the daily lives of the residents in Gaza who continue to face many challenges as a result of the collapse of previously prosperous branches of the economy.”

This extreme situation has been brought about by the Israeli closure policy on the Gaza Strip, to which the response of the international community has been woefully inadequate. On 2 July, for example, the Middle East Quartet merely described the desperate humanitarian crisis in Gaza as “unsustainable conditions facing the civilian population”. The statement went on to note the “improved conditions over the last year, including a marked increase in the range and scope of goods and materials moving into Gaza, an increase in international project activity, and the facilitation of some exports”.

“Some exports” indeed! The Israeli organization Gisha, which campaigns for freedom of movement for Palestinians, reported on 29 June that not a single truckload of export goods had left Gaza since 12 May. This is despite Israel being a signatory to the 2005 Crossings Agreement providing for up to 400 truckloads of Gazan exports per day to be processed through the Karni Crossing by the end of 2006. In other words, the Crossings Agreement had anticipated that Gaza would have been able to export up to 19,000 truckloads of produce (amounting perhaps to more than 250,000 tons) during this recent 48-day period during which no exports have in fact been permitted.

Meanwhile, the total amount of goods passing into Gaza via Kerom Shalom Crossing has been the equivalent of about 2.6 kilograms per person per day for the 12 months since restrictions were eased in August 2010. Not only is this “unsustainable“, but it is totally insufficient for the maintenance of a healthy economy, which has been the intention of the Israeli government all along of course.

Some unreal responses to this reality

This is the reality, denied by world political leaders who know the facts better than anyone, that has led to the formation of yet another flotilla for Gaza.

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B Morgan July 5, 2011 10:50 am (Pacific time)

Regardless of the situation in Gaza, he was told not to leave the port of Pireus without permission. He did anyway. You do not defy the rules of the host house when you stay as a guest in that house. Greeks are anything but inhumane, and you need to respect their rules. Last year they lost some of their own going to Gaza. They know better, and they try their best to prevent another situation like it. Because you are an American you do not have the God given right to do whatever you please

Editor: Your perception of what is taking place is wrong, this is a humanitarian effort and there are endless examples of 'rules' imposed by government being totally illegal on an international level, as in the case of Hitler. And what Greeks were lost going to Gaza?

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