Hezbollah is an organization that has murdered, terrorized and kidnapped around the world. The Iranian-backed group exploded, quite literally, onto the global scene with the mass murder of 241 US Marines in Beirut in April 1983. Other outrages it stands accused of include the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community center in Buenos Aires, which claimed the lives of 85 people. Given all this and more, surely Hezbollah and democracy don’t mix?
According to one Belgian parliamentarian, they do. And even if his fellow parliamentarians don’t necessarily agree with him, they didn’t object to him booking a conference room in their building to host a meeting with two Hezbollah leaders earlier today:
Hussein Al Haj Hassan, a Lebanese MP, and Abdullah Kassir, head of the Al Manar TV station, which belongs to Hezbollah, spoke Monday afternoon at a conference in Brussels titled “Sufferings and Resistance of the Palestinian prisoners” organised by the International Union of Parliamentarians for Palestine. The conference room in the parliament was booked by Belgian MP Fouad Lahssaini, from the Green party Ecolo.
Al Manar was banned in several European countries including France and Germany for inciting to murder, racism and hate propaganda. In a statement, the Antwerp-based Forum of Jewish organisations said it was “deeply shocked” that Al Manar, which broadcasts anti-Semitic programs, be given a podium in the parliament, which represents the heart of democracy. All Belgian political parties apparently agreed to this conference as the decision was taken within the parliament’s “conference of presidents.”
The “International Union of Parliamentarians for Palestine” (IUPP) sounds like an august body. Since it’s just hosted a meeting in Brussels, you could be forgiven for thinking that it’s some kind of pan-European body.
It isn’t. It’s actually a front for the Iranian regime, having been set up at a conference in Tehran in April 2001. Most of its members are legislators from authoritarian states like Sudan, Syria and, unsurprisingly, Iran. A search of its members pages reveals that a few parliamentarians in European countries including Spain, Germany, Britain (a certain George Galloway, who is listed as representing his old constituency) and, unsurprisingly, Belgium, are also on board.
And like Hezbollah, the IUPP is unremittingly and irredeemably foul. Its website carries a feature, “Zionist Watcher,” which would be the envy of any neo-Nazi online outfit. Israel isn’t referred to as “Israel;” it’s the “Zionist entity.” And for good measure, the IUPP offers its solidarity to the Sudanese genocidaires in Darfur. An interminably lengthy statement issued at the end of its conference in May included this gem:
Supporting the efforts of Sudan to stop the war and achieving comprehensive peace, and condemning the Foreign conspiracy in collaboration with Zionism aiming at tearing the unity of Sudan and at distorting its identity in cooperation with the Justice and Equality Movement, which has entered into an armed military attack on the national capital Omdurman on May 10, 2008, aiming at destroying the countries current executive, legislative and constitutional authority.
One of the speakers at today’s meeting in the Belgian parliament was, according to the IUPP’s announcement, Greta Berlin of the Free Gaza Movement. So intense has hatred of Israel become that some western Palestine activists apparently have no trouble in sharing a big tent with Hezbollah terrorists and janjaweed rapists.
At least we know where we stand. But - please - let’s not call those who pander to some of the world’s most grotesque human rights abusers “human rights advocates.”
The third conference of the International Union of Parliamentarians for Palestine was held in Brussels on May 13, 14 and 15, 2008.
http://philosemitism.blogspot.com/2008/10/british-writer-david-hart-calls-for.html
Follow up of yesterday’s conference:
“IUPFP holds a succesful conference at the Belgian Parliament on the Paletinian Prisoners issue!
Despite attempts of the zionist Lobby in Belgium to prevent the activity of IUPFP on the subject of the palestinian prisoners and their resistance from being held at the Belgian federal parlaiment today, it went through and it was a great success. (…)
Dr. Hassan khrayshe the vice speaker of the Palestinian legislative council spoke about the balance of 60 years of Nakba. Years that were filled with killings, ethnic cleansing, genocide, abductions and other forms of Oppression. He gave some facts and figures, counting 10400 Palestinians in Israeli jails among which 340 children and 41 deputies. He mentioned that a European parliamentary delegation tried to visit their imprisoned colleagues but they were denied that right and when they demonstrated they were dispersed by force by the Zionists. He finally called upon Europe to halt all its partnership agreements with “Israel” because Europe has a historical responsibility in the creation of this problem, underlining that the essence of the Palestinian question is the right of return for the 7 million Palestinian refugees.
Then Dr Husain Haj Hassan MP in the Lebanese parliament for Hezbollah took the word. He spoke about the history of Israeli aggression against Lebanon and noted that the Israeli attacks on Lebanon started in 1947 long time before the foundation of the Lebanese resistance in 1982. Therefore it is clear that the resistance is a result of aggression and not that aggression is the result of resistance as many people try to suggest. Adding that all diplomatic means have been tried by the Lebanese government to liberate the land and free the prisoners and that none of these efforts has ever been successful. Only the way of the resistance delivered on the liberation of both land and prisoners.
IUPFP secretary Abdullah Kassir concentrated on the Human aspects of the conflict and considered that the core of the Palestinian cause is the rejection of oppression and the ethical attachment to justice as a value that is necessary to achieve peace. He said that IUPFP was born out of the sense of responsibility of parliamentarians who wanted to properly represent their peoples and act against a great injustice. The organization grew from a small group of 11 parliamentarians in 2001 to an organization of 350 member MP’s today and it will keep on defending the Palestinian cause in all possible venues.
Greta Berlin from the Free Gaza Movement gave an inspiring presentation on the Idea of breaking the siege through boat trips that started with small fishermen boats and now grew to become a systematic campaign that will continue to grow. She called upon people to take up their responsibility and to take part in these trips that are continuing despite all difficulties and intimidation and the lack of support. All by all it was a very inspiring and successful event that constituted a breakthrough both on the level of defending Palestinian rights but also on the level of legitimizing the resistance movements.
IUPFP International Director Dyab Abou Jahjah declared that new activities in other Parliaments in Europe are on the Agenda and will be announced at the right moment.
http://www.iupfp.com:80/news_detail.php?id=210
If one looks to the members of the organizing group
http://www.iupfp.com/members.php
one can see on the 100 pages mostly Iranians, Sudanese, Hamas and Hezbollah parlementarians. All eye for one very democratic persons applying human rights every day.
Belgium is an antisemitic country. Belgians are hypocrites. Belgium is a pathetic little country
with delusions of grandeur. I lived there and I
went to university there. The antisemitism I
encountered would never be tolerated in countries
like the USA. Their anti-Israel stance is a direct
consequence of that. Their political parties agree
on nothing, except when it comes to Israel: then they
all speak with one voice!