Platform - Green Party US I. Democracy D. Foreign Policy 2. A Real Road to Peace in the Middle The Palestinian-Israeli ConflictOur Green values oblige us to stand against oppression, against settler colonialism and against the International crime of apartheid.
- We recognize that Jewish insecurity and fear of non-Jews is understandable in light of the history of horrific oppression and extermination of Jews in Europe.
However, we oppose as both discriminatory and ultimately self-defeating the position that Jews would be fundamentally threatened by the implementation of full rights for Palestinians.
We also reject the Zionist concept of an exclusive Jewish homeland at the expence of the indigenous Palestinian population.
- As U.S. Greens, we refuse to impose our views on the people of the region.
Still, we would turn the U.S. government towards a new policy, one that recognizes the equality, the inherent humanity, and the equal civil and human rights of Jews, Muslims, Christians, and all who live in the region.
- We recognize that the prevailing Palestinian view is that the two-state solution is neither democratic nor viable in the face of international law, material conditions and "facts on the ground" that now exist in historic Palestine.
We recognize that a growing number of Palestinians now supports a one-state solution which guarantees equal rights for all its citizens.
Given these realities the U.S. Greens recognize and reaffirm the right of self-determination for both Palestinians and Israelis, and their right to live in a single undivided secular and democratic state where all residents have full and equal rights, and freedoms.
- We reaffirm the right and feasibility of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes in Israel.
We acknowledge the significant challenges of equity and restitution this policy would encounter and call on the U.S. government to make resolution of these challenges a central goal of our diplomacy in the region.
- We reject the grossly unbalanced financial and military support of Israel by the U.S. while Israel occupies Palestinian lands, maintains and grows settler colonialism, expands an illegal apartheid system, and perpetuates violent military governance against non-Jews throughout the region.
Therefore, we call on the U.S. President and Congress to suspend all military and foreign aid, including loans and grants, to Israel until Israel withdraws from the Occupied Territories, dismantles the separation wall in the Occupied West Bank including East Jerusalem, ends its siege of Gaza and dismantles settler colonies and systemic apartheid toward its non-Jewish citizens.
- We also reject U.S. political support for Israel and demand that the U.S. government end its veto of Security Council resolutions pertaining to Israel.
We urge our government to join with the U.N. to secure Israel's complete withdrawal to, at least, the 1967 boundaries and comply fully with international law.
- We support a much stronger and supportive U.S. position with respect to all United Nations, Arab League and Palestinian-led initiatives, the Office the High Commission on Human rights (OHCHR) and UN Special Rapporteur advisories that seek a just end to Israeli settler colonialism and apartheid safeguarding human rights defenders and the human rights of all Palestinians.
- We call on the foreign and military affairs committees of the U.S. House and Senate to conduct full hearings on the status of human rights and war crimes by Israel as well as right of return for Palestinian refugees.
- Despite decades of continuous diplomatic attempts by the international community, all efforts to bring about Israel's compliance with international law or respect for basic Palestinian human rights have failed.
Despite abundant condemnation of Israel's policies by the UN, International Court of Justice, all relevant international conventions, and human rights organizations, Israeli violations, crimes of apartheid and ethnic cleansing against Palestinians continue with impunity.
- We recall that ending institutionalized racism (apartheid) in South Africa demanded an unusual, cooperative action by the entire international community in the form of a boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) campaign.
BDS can become an effective nonviolent means for achieving justice and genuine peace between Palestinians and Israelis, and for the region, through concerted international pressure similar to that which was applied to apartheid South Africa.
- Palestinian resistance to ongoing dispossession has mainly been nonviolent, including its most basic form—remaining in their homes, on their land; and while Palestinian armed resistance is legitimate under international law when directed at non-civilian targets, we believe that only nonviolent resistance will maintain the humanity of Palestinian society, elicit the greatest solidarity from others, and maximize the chance for future reconciliation between Israelis and Palestinians.
However, we also recognize that our appeal to Palestinians to continue to resist nonviolently in the face of ongoing existential threats from Israel is hypocritical unless accompanied by substantial acts of international support.
- We recall that in 2005, Palestinian Civil Society appealed to the international community to support a BDS campaign against Israel, and that in response the Green Party of the US endorsed this BDS campaign in 2005.
Therefore, we support the implementation of boycott and divestment initiatives against Israel similar to those applied to South Africa in the apartheid era, which includes pressuring our government to impose targeted embargoes and sanctions against Israel.
We support maintaining these nonviolent punitive measures until Israel meets its obligation to recognize the Palestinian people's inalienable right to self-determination and fully complies with the precepts of international law by:
⋄ Ending its occupation and colonization of all Palestinian lands and dismantling the Wall in the West Bank.
⋄ Recognizing the fundamental rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel and Palestinians to full equality; and
⋄ Respecting, protecting and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties as stipulated in UN resolution 194.
- In addition, we are committed to building solidarity among the U.S. population for the global BDS movement as well as with Palestinian, Israeli and international human rights organizations which fight against Israeli Apartheid.
- We recognize the structures and systems put in place for a just and peaceful future are for the people to decide without the scale tipping towards the colonizers who hold drastically greater power.
- Should the United Nations and International Civil Society conduct Palestinian-led peace negotiations, we recognize the usefulness of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission whose inaugurating action could be mutual acknowledgement by Israelis and Palestinians that they have the same basic inherent rights, including the right to exist and flourish in the same, safe and secure place of a homeland.