Three Major Conferences on the Centenary of Balfour Declaration and its Consequences

 


1. Britain and Palestine 1917-2017 One hundred years of broken promises

Liverpool Friends of Palestine, Liverpool

Liverpool, Saturday 21st October 2017 10am – 4.15pm (arrive from 9.30am for prompt start)

 

2. Balfour and Palestine – 100 years of British responsibility

Joint National Education Union – NUT Section and Palestine Solidarity Campaign Conference

London, Saturday 7 October 201, 10am-4.30pm

 

3. Palestine, Britain & the Balfour Declaration 100 years on

Middle East Monitor

London, Saturday 7th October 2017, 09:30 – 17:30


 

1. Britain and Palestine 1917-2017 One hundred years of broken promises

Liverpool: Saturday 21st October 2017 10am – 4.15pm (arrive from 9.30am for prompt start)

This free conference in the heart of Liverpool will explore the history and lasting legacy of Britain’s role in Palestine / Israel since the Balfour Declaration of 1917. It will be for all those who would like to know more about Britain’s role, both in its promised support for a national home for Jews on land belonging to the Palestinian people, and in how we arrived at the current tragic situation. Everyone is welcome.

You are advised to book free tickets by writing to: [email protected] Tickets must be booked individually.
Further details at: www.liverpoolfriendsofpalestine.co.uk
Facebook page: www.facebook.com/liverpoolpalestine

Venue: Quaker Meeting House School Lane, L1 3BT (Tel: 0151 709 6957) (about 6 minutes walk from Lime Street Station)

Speakers:

Ilan Pappe Israeli citizen, historian, Professor at Exeter University, Director of the European Centre
for Palestine Studies, author of many books on Palestine

Ben Jamal British born Palestinian, Director of Palestine Solidarity Campaign

David Cronin Journalist, Deputy Editor of Electronic Intifada and author of “Balfour’s Shadow” (2017)

Chair: The Very Revd. Nicholas Frayling
Rector of Liverpool 1987-2002, Dean Emeritus of Chichester and Trustee of the Balfour Project

There will be a bookstall courtesy of News from Nowhere and other stalls. Coffee, tea, biscuits and lunch provided for which donations will be welcome.

Further information

Liverpool Friends of Palestine have organised a major day conference under this title on Saturday, October 21st at the Quaker Meeting House in central Liverpool. We have some very experienced and knowledgeable experts who will speak during the morning and then participate in the discussions and decisions of the afternoon.

Ilan Pappe is one of the foremost Israeli “new historians” who have gone to Israeli government documents to trace the events during the tumultuous years leading up to and following the foundation of the State of Israel. His conclusions and activism caused him to leave his native Israel to become a professor at Exeter University where he is also the Director of the European Centre of Palestine Studies. He is a prolific author of both books and articles.

Ben Jamal is partly from Palestinian descent, son of an Anglican priest, his great uncle having been the secretary to a year-long delegation lobbying Churchill for justice as early as 1921, which was ultimately unsuccessful. Ben is a leading activist for Palestinian rights in this country.

David Cronin, Irish in origin, is a journalist specialising in European politics. He is an associate editor of the on-line Electronic Intifada and author of several books including his latest – “Balfour’s Shadow – a Century of Support for Zionism and Israel”.

Chair for the day is an Anglican clergyman well-known in Liverpool, The Very Rev. Nicholas Frayling, who went on from the church of Our Lady and St. Nicholas on the waterfront to become Dean of Chichester Cathedral. Now retired, he is a member and trustee of The Balfour Project, founded “to promote justice, security and peace for both Israelis and Palestinians”.

__________________________

This conference has been planned to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration which was the statement issued by the then British Foreign Secretary, Arthur Balfour, promising to ‘view with favour the establishment in Palestine of a national home for the Jewish people’. It went on to say, ‘it being clearly understood that nothing shall be done which may prejudice the civil and religious rights of existing non-Jewish communities in Palestine’. The Declaration was the start of the process which led to the founding of the State of Israel and a continuing disaster for the Palestinian people. Britain’s responsibility is onerous and unfulfilled.

We hope the conference will be of interest to all who want to know more about this little- known period and place of our colonial history; to those who know about Britain’s crucial role during those years of colonial rule and are therefore concerned at the failure to bring about the justice that was promised to the Palestinian people; and to those who want to discuss ways forward in what appears such an intractable conflict. After listening to the speakers in the morning we shall break into smaller discussion groups in the afternoon so all who attend will have an opportunity to input their ideas and concerns. Finally we shall reconvene in plenary, when we hope that it will be possible to formulate an agreed list of positive proposals about the way forward.

Liverpool Friends of Palestine look forward to you for a stimulating and thought-provoking day on 21st October.


2. Balfour and Palestine – 100 years of British responsibility

Joint National Education Union – NUT Section and Palestine Solidarity Campaign Conference

London Saturday 7 October 2017

10am- 4.30pm,
 Hamilton House, Mabledon Place, London WC1H 9BB

Map here

This year PSC is working with a range of partners including key Palestinian community organisations to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. We are organising a conference on the 7th October, and a national march and rally in central London on Saturday the 4th November, to raise public awareness of Britain’s central role in the dispossession of the Palestinian people, and for Britain to fulfil its role and responsibilities as a key member of the international community. Britain has a particular responsibility for ensuring that Palestinian human rights are protected and respected.

For the past 100 years Palestinian rights have been disregarded. As we approach the centenary of the Balfour Declaration – on the 2nd November – which built the path for their dispossession, we are demanding justice and equal rights for Palestinians now.

The conference will feature panel sessions on:

  • A Century of British complicity
  • The historic significance of Balfour
  • Going forward: Challenging British responsibility
  • Entrance: £5 / £3 Unwaged
Details and to register: palestinecampaign.org/events/conference-balfour-palestine- 
100-years/

 

Speaker’s Biographies 


Tariq Ali is a British Pakistani writer, journalist, historian, film maker and political activist. He is a member of the editorial committee of New Left Review and Sin Permiso. Among the publications he contributes to are the Guardian, CounterPunch and the London Review of Books. He is the author of a number of books. He is well known for his contribution to the anti-imperialist movement over many years, and a popular speaker at demonstrations and meetings.

 

David Cronin is a contributing editor with The Electronic Intifada, a website focused on Palestine. His latest book is Balfour’s Shadow: A Century of British Support for Zionism and Israel (Pluto, 2017). His earlier books are Europe’s Alliance With Israel: Aiding the Occupation (Pluto, 2011) and Corporate Europe: How Big Business Sets Policies on Food, Climate and War (Pluto, 2013).

 

Badia Dwaik is a human rights and peace activist from Hebron. He obtained a degree in Social Work from Al Quds Open University before being arrested and serving 3 years in Israeli jail in his twenties. Badia Founded the Human Rights Defenders, a group that exposes the daily atrocities committed against Palestinians. It teaches Palestinian civilians how to understand when human rights abuses have been committed against them and how to report them. Badia has also co-founded a number of additional campaigns and projects including Youth Against Settlements, the Capturing Camera Project training students in documenting of human rights abuses and the Free Shireen Issawi campaign.

Yara Hawari is a British Palestinian scholar-activist, a PHD candidate in Palestinian Studies at the University of Exeter. Originally from Galilee, she has spent her life between Palestine and the UK. She is an Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst and Member. Yara has written for a number of publications, including the Independent, Morning Star, Open Democracy, The Electronic Intifada, and Al-Shabaka.

Dr Ghada Karmi is a Palestinian doctor of medicine. She was born in Jerusalem, and forced to leave her home in 1948. She held a number of research appointments at SOAS and the Universities of Durham and Leeds. She was an Associate Fellow of the Royal Institute of International Affairs, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. She is currently a Research Fellow and the University of Exeter. Ghada is the author of a number of books, and one of the best known Palestinian campaigners in Britain, as well as a Patron of PSC.

Ken Loach is an internationally renowned film maker with credits for directing, writing and producing. His provocative and socialist perspective has garnered 98 awards and 75 further nominations. His work has been honoured at festivals in Berlin, Cannes, Dublin, Havana, Rio de Janeiro, Seville, Stockholm, Sydney, Venice, Vancouver and many other places. His recent “I, Daniel Blake” won a BAFTA for “Outstanding British Film of the Year”. Ken is a Patron of PSC and a supporter of BDS, and every penny from the sale of “I, Daniel Blake” for Israeli distribution is given to grassroots Palestinian organisations.

Lowkey is a rapper and political activist of Iraqi and British descent. He has released a number of albums and singles including “Long Live Palestine”. He has performed his work on Palestinian demonstrations in Britain. After taking a number of years out for his studies, he has returned to recording and touring. He has visited refugee camps in the West Bank, and was detained by Israeli police. He was involved in bringing medical aid to Gaza and was detained again in 2010. Lowkey is a patron of PSC.

Ben Jamal is Director of Palestine Solidarity Campaign, and a previous member of its executive committee. His father’s family was driven out of Jerusalem and into exile in 1948 when Israel was created in the land they had called home for generations. Ben was the Chair and an activist in the Kingston and Richmond branch of PSC for many years.

Leanne Mohamad is a British Palestinian, school student, public speaker and human rights activist. Her speech “Birds not Bombs” won the Redbridge borough final in the Jack Petchey “Speak Out” Challenge, subsequently she was subjected to a campaign of on-line abuse.

Andrew Murray is Chief of Staff for Unite the Union. He was seconded to Labour Party Headquarters for the recent General Election. He was Chair of Stop the war Coalition from 2001 – 2011, and again from 2015-16. He is author of a number of books on national and international politics. A long standing supporter of the Palestinians, he has played an important role in many of the major mobilisations of recent years.

Bernard Regan is Visiting Research Fellow at St.Mary’s University. He was a founding member of PSC and is currently a member of the Executive Committee. He is a long standing trade union activist, currently NUT Trustee. He is National Secretary of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign. His book “The Balfour Declaration : Empire, Mandate and Resistance in Palestine” is due for publication this autumn.

Professor Jonathan Rosenhead Emeritus Professor of Operational Research, LSE; Chair since 2008 of British Committee for the Universities of Palestine (BRICUP); Advisor to the Venezuelan Minister of Planning and Finance Minister 2000-2014; Trustee of the Science and Society Trust, and the Human Nature Trust.

Maz Saleem is an anti-war and anti-racist campaigner. She is the daughter of Haji Mohamed Saleem, who was murdered in Birmingham by a far-right terrorist. She is an officer of the Stop the War Coalition. She has written for a number of publications including the Independent, Middle East Eye, 5 Pillars, Counterfire and Stop the War website.

Chairing the panel sessions will be:

Louise Regan, President NEU-NUT Section, 
Kiri Tunks, Vice Chair PSC & Vice President NEU-NUT Section , Hugh Lanning, Chair PSC ==================================


3. Palestine, Britain & the Balfour Declaration 100 years on

Middle East Monitor, London 7th October 2017

Book through Eventbrite

2017 is the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration.

The 1917 Balfour Declaration is widely regarded as one of the most formative and far-reaching documents in the modern history of the Middle East. It was the cornerstone of the Zionist project to transform Arab Palestine into a ‘Jewish state’. The Declaration and subsequent events changed not only the demographic map of the region but also its political, social and military configuration as well.

How did it come about; and what were the consequences of this pivotal document?

Join Middle East Monitor on the 7th of October at the British Library in Central London to learn more about and discuss the declaration, how it came about, it’s legal standing and consequences, and to look at Britain’s role in the continued oppression of Palestinians.

Panelists:

Prof. Avi Shlaim, renowned Israeli historian and professor of International Relations at the University of Oxford

Clare Short, former cabinet minister serving as the Secretary of State for International Development (DFID)

Prof. Penny Green, professor of Law and Globalisation at the University of London (Queen Mary)

Peter Oborne, Associate Editor of the The Spectator, and a columnist for the Daily Mail and Middle East Eye

Prof. John Dugard, former UN Special Rapporteur of Human Rights in Palestine, and a judge at the International Court of Justice

Dr Basheer Nafi, a senior research fellow at the Al-Jazeera Centre for Studies and a regular columnist for several publications

Prof. Jonathan Schneer, a celebrated author and a modern British historian at the Georgia Institue of Technology

Dr Peter Shambrook, is a Historical Consultant to The Balfour Project, as well as an author and academic.

Dr Victor Kattan, author of the critically acclaimed book From Coexistence to Conquest and a senior research fellow at the Middle East Institute

Salma Karmi-Ayyoub, a criminal barrister and legal consultant for the Palestinian human rights organisation Al-Haqq

Dr Mohsen Saleh, General Manager of Al-Zaytouna Centre for Studies and Consultations, and Editor-in-Chief of the Palestinian Strategic Report

David Cronin, author, journalist and political activist, as well as a contributing editor with the Electronic Intifada

Dr Jacob Cohen, a former member of the Zionist youth movement, and now an author and commentator on French-Israel relations

Comments (3)

  • give says:

    When I oгiɡinally commentеd I clicked the “Notify me when new comments are added” checkbox and
    now eacһ time a comment is added I gеt three emails with the same comment.
    Is tһere any ԝay yoᥙ can remove people fгоm that service?
    Τhanks a ⅼоt!

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    • Mike Cushman says:

      In fact you get one notification per comment but there were three different comments on the same article so three notifications appeared.

      I am experimenting at the moment to see if it is worth keeping sending notification of comments, it depends on how much commenting we get. I do want to keep on notifying of posts to people who want it but he system doesn’t allow me to send comment notification to some but not all.

      Can you live with the situation for a couple of weeks to see how the flow goes.. I like to see lots of comments on articles but I don’t want to overwhelm our members and we will have to make a judgement after conference.

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    • admin says:

      I wish we could do something about it, but it is beyond our control! Sorry.

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