Youth ’FREE PALESTINE’ march draws thousands in Nelson Mandela Bay

By ANA Reporter Last updated May 17, 2021

ANAPIX: South Africa – Nelson Mandela Bay/Gqeberha – 16 May 2021 – A woman holds a poster during an almost four-thousand strong march on Sunday in Nelson Mandela Bay, to protest in solidarity with Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah, in East Jerusalem. The area has has been bombed in two weeks of air strikes and attacks from Israel, killing nearly 200 Palestinians, of whom at least 58 are children. The demonstration was organised by the Young Hearts for Palestine and supported by the Palestinian Solidarity Committee, as well as other political organisations. Israel has come under blistering attack from across the world for its repression of the Palestinian people and the brutal attacks in the past two weeks, with growing calls for a ceasefire blatantly ignored by its Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, who has said on Monday that the attacks will rage on. Picture: Naomi Mackay/African News Agency (ANA)

GQEBERHA, May 16 (ANA) – An almost four-thousand strong crowd marched to protest in solidarity with Palestinians in Sheikh Jarrah on Sunday in Nelson Mandela Bay.

The march, which started at Kings Beach in Humewood, Gqeberha, was organised by youth group, Young Hearts for Palestine and supported by the Palestinian Solidarity Committee (PSC), as well as other political organisations and formations.

Led by Reverend Roxanne Cleavens-Jordaan, Bram Hanekom of the PSC, as well as Alvin Botes, deputy minister of international relations and cooperation, the almost 4km march made its mark as it wound down Beach Road to Hobie Beach in Summerstrand, a busy part of the Bay frequented by locals and tourists alike.

Speaking at the end of the March, Cleavens-Jordaan called for solidarity with the Palestinian people as a whole.

Dismissing the Israeli notion of a conflict or a religious war, Cleavens-Jordaan said that the illegal occupation by the Zionists of Palestinian territory had brought untold suffering on innocent people who were denied any rights in their own country.

She called for a just peace in Palestine, and for an end to the war by Zionists against the Palestinian people.

Commending the young women who had organised the march, which comes on the back of the commemoration of Nakba Day on May 15 (Saturday) and also known as the Palestinian Catastrophe, the PSC’s Hanekom called for an end to the brutalisation of the Palestinian people at the hands of Israel.

Hanekom called on South Africans to condemn the attacks on the people of Sheikh Jarrah, saying the world could not turn a blind eye to the atrocities of the Israeli government against Palestine.

To loud applause, Hanekom recognised other political parties and entities who supported the march, but said that those who vote should consider carefully the support they give to political parties that actively engage and support the Israeli government.

Giving the keynote address, deputy minister Botes said the African National Congress (ANC) had supported the struggle of the Palestinian people for decades and emphasised that South Africa had a responsibility to support the struggle for a free Palestine.

Botes said that it was pertinent that the attacks on al-Aqsa Mosque happen at a time when Palestine was embarking on a historic election programme .

The 2021 Palestinian legislative election for the Palestinian Legislative Council, originally scheduled for 22 May 2021, President Mahmoud Abbas in April said is: “Facing this difficult situation, we decided to postpone the date of holding legislative elections until the participation of Jerusalem and its people is guaranteed.”

He was scathing of the Israeli attacks on innocent children and women, in East Jerusalem and now Gaza, and worse so as they took place during the most holy month of Ramadaan.

Adele Allan from Amnesty International said that Palestine needed the support of the world in its struggle to be free. She lamented the hatred that was fomented in young minds under the repressive Zionist state of Israel, calling for tolerance.

The march ended abruptly when Democratic Alliance (DA) member, Yusuf Carrim entered the stage and declared the unequivocal support of his party for the Palestinian cause.

Carrim lambasted speakers at the gathering for using the event as an electioneering tool and for misrepresenting the “DA’s position on Palestine”.

However, save for his account of personal experiences of the sufferings of the people of Palestinians, Carrim gave no real content to the DA’s policy position on the Palestinian question, nor did he express any real condemnation of Israel’s role in the devastation of 73 years of Israeli oppression of Palestinians or the current violence against Palestine.

Protesters heckling the DA leader called on him to make his statements “in Parliament“ and to ”stop lying“ about the DA’s support for the Palestinians.

And even as the calls for a ceasefire in Palestine grow around the world, Israel’s brutal attacks against Palestine and its people continue, and will intensify, Israel has said.

– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Devereaux Morkel