4pm Thursday May 15
BRISBANE SQUARE
River end of Mall next to city library
15 May 2008 is the 60th anniversary of Al-Nakba (the Catastrophe) – the day of the mass expulsion and the dispossession of the Palestinian people during the war which had broken out in Palestine.
A newly-created Israel forcibly seized around 675 villages and towns in historic Palestine.
Of these, 476 villages were totally destroyed and ethnically cleansed of their Palestinian inhabitants.
A Palestinian population of almost 1.5 million people ? the majority in their country ? was effectively reduced by an estimated 85 percent.
The USA and UK backed the Zionists in the creation of the State of Israel and the subsequent actions of that state because it suited their interests in the Middle East – to ensure security of oil supplies and to create a loyal ally which acted as a watchdog for their interests in the region.
Today, Western governments, including the Australian government continue their support for Israel despite the fact it is an apartheid state; despite the continuing land grabs and despite the ongoing violent repression of the Palestinian people.
The key has become a symbol of the hope of return. Many Palestinian refugees still have the keys to the homes they and their families were forced from 60 years ago.
Information Stalls * Street Theatre * Speakers * Organised by Fair Go for Palestine, Qld Palestinian Solidarity Campaign, Stop the War Collective.