Dear Comrades,
As YouthWritingHistory, an international network consisting of youth organizations from the Middle East, Africa, Abya Yala, Asia and Europe, we greet the resistance of the Palestinian people, the student protests and everyone standing up for peace in Palestine and the whole of Middle East and express our deepest solidarity !
Initiated by the Youth League of Abahlali BaseMjondolo, the shack dwellers movement from South Africa, we want to share this call for solidarity with you :
As young activists committed to the principles of socialism and equality, we stand shoulder to shoulder with all those who are oppressed, marginalized, and denied their basic rights. As we declared at the end of the First Youth Conference in Paris:
“We are united in our fight against all forms of occupation and colonialism we consider one of the most urgent internationalist duties of the youth in struggle to first of all fight resolutely against the imperialist policies spreading from our respective homelands. We defend the right to self-determination of all peoples and declare our solidarity with all oppressed peoples, especially the Palestinian people and the Kurdistan liberation movement.”
The recent escalation of violence in Palestine has once again brought to light the urgent need for international solidarity and action. The indiscriminate bombing of civilian areas, the displacement of families, and the systemic oppression faced by Palestinians are not only violations of human rights but also crimes against humanity. We cannot remain silent in the face of such injustice.
We also stand in solidarity with students of universities who have been arrested for daring to speak out against injustice. The right to peaceful protest and dissent is a fundamental human right, and we condemn any attempts to suppress it. Looking at history, we see that the youth always took their place at the forefront of the struggle for freedom, leading the masses and putting their lives at risk for their people.
We saw it during the student protests of the ‘68 movement, where it was the youth that initiated and brought forward the strongest resistance against the Vietnam war. We see that the youth today is continuing in following this path, showing resistance against the powerfuls of the world and saying loud and clear, that they do not accept the attacks from the statist and capitalist forces.
As the vanguard of society, the youth always was and still is rising against foreign rule, war and destruction. Now, more than ever, it is imperative that we come together as young people to demand an end to the occupation of Palestine, the siege of Gaza, and the apartheid regime that denies Palestinians their most basic rights. We must continue to mobilize, to educate, and to organize in our communities and beyond. Our voices matter, and our actions can make a difference.
Let us remember that our struggle for justice is interconnected. Whether it’s in South Africa, Palestine, or any other part of the world, the fight against the oppression and exploitation, that is one and the same. We must reject imperialism, colonialism, patriarchy and capitalism in all their forms, and work towards a world where all people can live in dignity and peace.
Until we do not understand humanity as a whole body composed by the different colors of each group of people, that works well only if each part of its system is in harmony, we will not be able to defeat the cancer of capitalist modernity that in the last three hundreds years has infected it and has brought nothing than death and destruction.
We have reached a point where doing nothing or being indifferent to what is happening in Palestine and against all the oppressed peoples of the world is like being responsible for the deaths of thousands of people.
Remembering the words of Nelson Mandela: “Our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians” and of Ernesto Che Guevara: “Solidarity is the tenderness of the people”, we must continue to defend the values of life everywhere and not allow ourselves to be blinded by artificially drawn borders. We must see ourselves as a unity that marches and protests together for nothing less than the preservation of humanity.
In the legacy of those who fought before us,
with anger over those who have fallen victim to this war
with love for those who continue to resist and stand up for humanity every day,
we declare our fullest solidarity with the people of Palestine and call on everyone to join in protests and resistance!
In solidarity and struggle,
07.06.2024
Abahlali baseMjondolo Youth League
Network YouthWritingHistory
