Welcome to ccp web site

The solution is not military
Peaceful coexistence between people is not founded on the use of armed force, but on establishing relationships based on justice and equality. Peace is built on the ground in civil society, supported by networks of committed citizens on both sides, in favour of democracy and human rights.

All violence is an obstacle to the resolution of the conflict
By denying Palestinian citizens freedom of movement, by preventing them from being educated, from cultivating their land, by demolishing their houses and their orchards, by building the security fence, by marginalising their leaders and by applying hurtful and humiliating measures the Israeli government’s military action is not waging war on terrorism nor fighting an army; it is waging war on a whole people.
The suicide attacks against Israeli civilians will not lead to either a military or a political solution to the conflict. Humiliation and despair can lead young Palestinians to believe that faced with the tanks, planes and missiles that are an outrage against their people in the eyes of the whole world, terrorism is the ultimate solution. However, even this cannot justify terorism nor make it acceptable.

Each brandishes the other’s crimes to justify their own murders in the name of self-defence. At the end of the day, this policy makes both sides losers

Respect of the international law : a just and longlasting peace in this region has to be based on the Geneva Conventions and on the resolutions adopted by the United Nations. Those resolutions reiterate the right of all peoples to live in security in an independent state recognised by its neighbours. They are a solid international basis, which should serve as a reference in the resolution of conflicts. It is vital that the law be respected, so that these populations can live together in security and dignity in Israel and in Palestine.

Peace will be built by civil society, and by those Israelis and Palestinians working for peace.
The civil societies to which each of the two parties to the conflict belong will be called upon to play a decisive role in finding a political solution allowing them to construct a lasting peace. Already, citizens’ networks within the communities have the farsightedness and courage to oppose the logic of war. These networks must be supported by the solidarity of the international community.

For all these reasons, this campaign must encourage Israelis and Palestinians who are working for peace to re-appropriate the stakes of the conflict (which have been taken over by the logic of war), and allow for the creation of the preconditions necessary for resolving the conflict.
Creating and sending an international civil intervention force to the Middle East aims therefore at contributing to a significant drop in the level of violence and at reinforcing the conditions for dialogue in the civil societies. Principles of a non-violent European civil intervention force

To take action in civil society
The peace process cannot be reduced to the diplomatic initiative of political leaders. It is essential in the meantime to create an intervention strategy involving the civil society, because it is just as urgent to create the pre-conditions for peace between peoples as it is to make peace between political leaders.
Israeli and Palestinian organisations work daily for peace and the respect of right, justice and dialogue between Palestinians and Israelis. The presence of volunteers is needed alongside them.

Examples of Israeli and Palestinian peace organisations :
- Rabbis for Human Rights : an organisation of rabbis denouncing injustice to the Palestinians, working with Jewish students and supporting Palestinians for the olives harvest for example.
- Arab Educational Institute : a Palestinian organisation working for intercultural exchange, education in non-violence and peace
- Wi’am : a Palestinian organisation working for a non-violent solution to the conflict and the creation of jobs for the community...
- New Profile : an Israeli feminist organisation that criticizes the militarization of Israeli society and supports Israeli army refusniks.

A third party, working alongside both parties
The dividing line today is not between Israelis and Palestinians but between those in the Middle East who want to live together and those who advocate fanaticism and a withdrawal into their own community. Thus the intervention of a third party must take into account, in its principles and in its actions, the concerns of both Israelis and Palestinians. The international civil intervention force on the territories of Palestine and Israel must affirm its solidarity with both sides.

With the support of the parties to the conflict
The deployment of a European civil intervention force is only possible with the agreement, or at least the tolerance, of the parties to the conflict. The presence of unarmed volunteers does not constitute an agression or an occupying force.

The objectives of an international civil intervention force
- To encourage a political solution of a conflict by mediation and observation
- To reduce fears and feelings of insecurity. The presence of international volunteers is intended to bear witness to the attention paid by the international community to the fate of the civilian population, whoever they are and wherever they live.
- To discourage acts of violence against civilians no matter what the justification. This obviously requires a sufficiently large number of volunteers.

In the field...
Unarmed volunteers will :
- Accompany those working for peace in order to make them more visible, to give them the support of an international third party.
- Reinforce the conditions for dialogue between civil societies by mediation activities in order to facilitate the dialogue between the Israeli and Palestinian civil societies.
- Act as human rights observers at sensitive sites

Training Volunteers
Volunteers can undergo training in Civil Peace Intervention. They can be taught how to find non-violent solutions to conflicts, how to analyse risks and how to face them using non-violent methods. They will learn, for example, how to deal with personal attitudes, how to work as a team in situations of conflict, and they will work on volunteers' civil intervention mandates.

The European Union wants to work for a multipolar world. It is trying to develop alternative, non-military ways of solving crises. Solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the chance to practice political orientation. However the international civil intervention force will have to be mandated by an international organisation, such as the UN.

OBJECTIVE

By this campaign, we ask the European Union to create and to send an international civil intervention force to Israel and Palestine.
This force will have the mission to work with local peace organisations in order to reinforce dialogue between the civil societies.
In the short term we ask the European Union to carry out a feasibility study on the conditions for creating this force.
This campaign is carried out in partnership with peace organisations in Israel, Palestine and Europe.

WHO IS THE CAMPAIGN AIMED AT ?
We are asking the Foreign Minister and officials of the European Union to :
- Do a feasability study on conditions for creating an international civil intervention force in Israel and in Palestine.
- Set up all means necessary for creating and sending the civil intervention force, mandated by an international organisation and make of unarmed volunteers.
Carry on diplomacy with the Israeli and Palestinian authorities so that they accept the volunteers.

HOW and WHY TO SUPPORT THE CAMPAIGN ?
To take part, you can:

- Send post cards to the national and European authorities to help us show that many citizens want the setting up of means of civil intervention, which can work closely alongside the communities.
- Volunteer to follow a training course funded by the institutions, in order to prove the existence of a large number of potential peace volunteers.
- Order the campaign leaflets and distribute them.
- Give financial support to the campaign committee

To contact our partners :
- Association Palestine 45 : www.palestine45.net
- Coordination de l'Action Non-violente de l'Arche de Lanza del Vasto (CANVA) : www.canva.org
- Mouvement contre le Racisme et pour l'Amitié entre les Peuples (MRAP) : www.mrap.asso.fr
- Pax Christi – France : http://paxchristi.cef.fr/
- Secours catholique/Caritas France : www.secours-catholique.asso.fr
- Union générale des étudiants de Palestine (GUPS) : www.gupsfrance.org

More information
A double issue was published in December 2003 by the Research review " Non-violent Alternatives " (N°128-129) " Palestinians and Israelis : giving voice to non-violence " : a dozen Palestinian, Israeli and European authors, including Dominique Vidal from the Monde Diplomatique, Fabienne Messica, Abdel Abu Srour... as well as an interview on this campaign.
N°128-129 can be order from the MAN : 114 rue de Vaugirard, 75006 Paris - France. Payment can be made by a cheque for 24 euros (21 euros + 3 euros postage) payable to MAN.

www.interventioncivile.org
All activities and campaign documents will be available on this site.

To contact us :
Israël-Palestine Campaign Committee c/o MAN - 114 rue de Vaugirard 75006 Paris - France
Tel : 01 45 44 48 25 ; Fax : 01 45 44 57 13
mail : interventioncivile@free.fr
web site : www.interventioncivile.org

Supplement to :; La paix en marche, N 5 CPPAP 0407G81849 ; Nouvelles de l’Arche, N°4 (year 2004) CPPAP 637841
Layout: Julien Bidoret ; Printing : Imprimerie Jacq

MAN - 114 rue de Vaugirard, 75006 Paris - France, Tel : 01 45 44 48 25 ; Fax : 01 45 44 57 13 ; email : manco@free.fr; web site: http://manco.free.fr

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		Mouvement pour une Alternative Non-violente VIOLENCE IS NOT THE ANSWER ! Israel-Palestine : Towards an international civil intervention force help create a space for dialogue between those working for peace create the preconditions for a political solution to the conflict overcome the logic of violence In partnership with : Association Palestine 45 ; Coordination de l'Action Non-violente de l'Arche de Lanza del Vasto (CANVA) ; Mouvement contre le Racisme et pour l'Amitié entre les Peuples (MRAP) ; Mouvement de l'Objection de conscience (MOC) ; Pax Christi-France ; Secours Catholique/Caritas France ; Union Générale des Etudiants de Palestine (GUPS) With the support of : Abnah Philistine, Action des Chrétiens pour l’Abolition de la Torture (ACAT), Assemblée Européenne des Citoyens (AEC) ; Civimed Initiatives ; Collectif judéo-arabe et citoyen pour la Paix ; Cultivons la Paix ; Ecole de la Paix ; Equipes de paix dans les Balkans (EpB) ; Femmes en Noir – Paris ; Femmes en Noir – Isère ; Institut de recherche sur la résolution non-violente des conflits (IRNC) ; Mouvement de la paix ; Service Civil International - Branche Française ; Solidaires des Israéliens contre l'occupation (SICO) In Europe and in the world : Association pour l'étude, la promotion et le respect de la non-militarisation et de la démilitarisation (APRED) (Switzerland) ; Centro Studi Sereno Regis (Italy) ; Christian Peacemaker Team (CPT) ; Netherlands Expertise Centre Alternatives to Violence (NEAG) (Netherlands) ; Associazione. Papa Giovanni XXIII - Operazione Colomba (Italy); Université de la paix (Belgium) In Israel and Palestine: Arab Educational Institute ; Bustan ; Christian Peacemaker Team ; Center for reconciliation and conflict resolution ; International Palestinian Youth League (IPYL) ; Jerusalem Center for women (JCW) ; One Voice – Palestine ; Wi'am www.interventioncivile.org Act in favour of a non-violent resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict The solution is not military Peaceful coexistence between people is not founded on the use of armed force, but on establishing relationships based on justice and equality. Peace is built on the ground in civil society, supported by networks of committed citizens on both sides, in favour of democracy and human rights. All violence is an obstacle to the resolution of the conflict By denying Palestinian citizens freedom of movement, by preventing them from being educated, from cultivating their land, by demolishing their houses and their orchards, by building the security fence, by marginalising their leaders and by applying hurtful and humiliating measures the Israeli government’s military action is not waging war on terrorism nor fighting an army; it is waging war on a whole people. The suicide attacks against Israeli civilians will not lead to either a military or a political solution to the conflict. Humiliation and despair can lead young Palestinians to believe that faced with the tanks, planes and missiles that are an outrage against their people in the eyes of the whole world, terrorism is the ultimate solution. However, even this cannot justify terorism nor make it acceptable. Each brandishes the other’s crimes to justify their own murders in the name of self-defence. At the end of the day, this policy makes both sides losers Respect of the international law : a just and longlasting peace in this region has to be based on the Geneva Conventions and on the resolutions adopted by the United Nations. Those resolutions reiterate the right of all peoples to live in security in an independent state recognised by its neighbours. They are a solid international basis, which should serve as a reference in the resolution of conflicts. It is vital that the law be respected, so that these populations can live together in security and dignity in Israel and in Palestine. Peace will be built by civil society, and by those Israelis and Palestinians working for peace. The civil societies to which each of the two parties to the conflict belong will be called upon to play a decisive role in finding a political solution allowing them to construct a lasting peace. Already, citizens’ networks within the communities have the farsightedness and courage to oppose the logic of war. These networks must be supported by the solidarity of the international community. For all these reasons, this campaign must encourage Israelis and Palestinians who are working for peace to re-appropriate the stakes of the conflict (which have been taken over by the logic of war), and allow for the creation of the preconditions necessary for resolving the conflict. Creating and sending an international civil intervention force to the Middle East aims therefore at contributing to a significant drop in the level of violence and at reinforcing the conditions for dialogue in the civil societies. Principles of a non-violent European civil intervention force To take action in civil society The peace process cannot be reduced to the diplomatic initiative of political leaders. It is essential in the meantime to create an intervention strategy involving the civil society, because it is just as urgent to create the pre-conditions for peace between peoples as it is to make peace between political leaders. Israeli and Palestinian organisations work daily for peace and the respect of right, justice and dialogue between Palestinians and Israelis. The presence of volunteers is needed alongside them. Examples of Israeli and Palestinian peace organisations : - Rabbis for Human Rights : an organisation of rabbis denouncing injustice to the Palestinians, working with Jewish students and supporting Palestinians for the olives harvest for example. - Arab Educational Institute : a Palestinian organisation working for intercultural exchange, education in non-violence and peace - Wi’am : a Palestinian organisation working for a non-violent solution to the conflict and the creation of jobs for the community... - New Profile : an Israeli feminist organisation that criticizes the militarization of Israeli society and supports Israeli army refusniks. A third party, working alongside both parties The dividing line today is not between Israelis and Palestinians but between those in the Middle East who want to live together and those who advocate fanaticism and a withdrawal into their own community. Thus the intervention of a third party must take into account, in its principles and in its actions, the concerns of both Israelis and Palestinians. The international civil intervention force on the territories of Palestine and Israel must affirm its solidarity with both sides. With the support of the parties to the conflict The deployment of a European civil intervention force is only possible with the agreement, or at least the tolerance, of the parties to the conflict. The presence of unarmed volunteers does not constitute an agression or an occupying force. The objectives of an international civil intervention force - To encourage a political solution of a conflict by mediation and observation - To reduce fears and feelings of insecurity. The presence of international volunteers is intended to bear witness to the attention paid by the international community to the fate of the civilian population, whoever they are and wherever they live. - To discourage acts of violence against civilians no matter what the justification. This obviously requires a sufficiently large number of volunteers. In the field... Unarmed volunteers will : - Accompany those working for peace in order to make them more visible, to give them the support of an international third party. - Reinforce the conditions for dialogue between civil societies by mediation activities in order to facilitate the dialogue between the Israeli and Palestinian civil societies. - Act as human rights observers at sensitive sites Training Volunteers Volunteers can undergo training in Civil Peace Intervention. They can be taught how to find non-violent solutions to conflicts, how to analyse risks and how to face them using non-violent methods. They will learn, for example, how to deal with personal attitudes, how to work as a team in situations of conflict, and they will work on volunteers' civil intervention mandates. The European Union wants to work for a multipolar world. It is trying to develop alternative, non-military ways of solving crises. Solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the chance to practice political orientation. However the international civil intervention force will have to be mandated by an international organisation, such as the UN. OBJECTIVE By this campaign, we ask the European Union to create and to send an international civil intervention force to Israel and Palestine. This force will have the mission to work with local peace organisations in order to reinforce dialogue between the civil societies. In the short term we ask the European Union to carry out a feasibility study on the conditions for creating this force. This campaign is carried out in partnership with peace organisations in Israel, Palestine and Europe. WHO IS THE CAMPAIGN AIMED AT ? We are asking the Foreign Minister and officials of the European Union to : - Do a feasability study on conditions for creating an international civil intervention force in Israel and in Palestine. - Set up all means necessary for creating and sending the civil intervention force, mandated by an international organisation and make of unarmed volunteers. Carry on diplomacy with the Israeli and Palestinian authorities so that they accept the volunteers. HOW and WHY TO SUPPORT THE CAMPAIGN ? To take part, you can: - Send post cards to the national and European authorities to help us show that many citizens want the setting up of means of civil intervention, which can work closely alongside the communities. - Volunteer to follow a training course funded by the institutions, in order to prove the existence of a large number of potential peace volunteers. - Order the campaign leaflets and distribute them. - Give financial support to the campaign committee To contact our partners : - Association Palestine 45 : www.palestine45.net - Coordination de l'Action Non-violente de l'Arche de Lanza del Vasto (CANVA) : www.canva.org - Mouvement contre le Racisme et pour l'Amitié entre les Peuples (MRAP) : www.mrap.asso.fr - Pax Christi – France : http://paxchristi.cef.fr/ - Secours catholique/Caritas France : www.secours-catholique.asso.fr - Union générale des étudiants de Palestine (GUPS) : www.gupsfrance.org More information A double issue was published in December 2003 by the Research review " Non-violent Alternatives " (N°128-129) " Palestinians and Israelis : giving voice to non-violence " : a dozen Palestinian, Israeli and European authors, including Dominique Vidal from the Monde Diplomatique, Fabienne Messica, Abdel Abu Srour... as well as an interview on this campaign. N°128-129 can be order from the MAN : 114 rue de Vaugirard, 75006 Paris - France. Payment can be made by a cheque for 24 euros (21 euros + 3 euros postage) payable to MAN. www.interventioncivile.org All activities and campaign documents will be available on this site. To contact us : Israël-Palestine Campaign Committee c/o MAN - 114 rue de Vaugirard 75006 Paris - France Tel : 01 45 44 48 25 ; Fax : 01 45 44 57 13 mail : interventioncivile@free.fr web site : www.interventioncivile.org Supplement to :; La paix en marche, N 5 CPPAP 0407G81849 ; Nouvelles de l’Arche, N°4 (year 2004) CPPAP 637841 Layout: Julien Bidoret ; Printing : Imprimerie Jacq MAN - 114 rue de Vaugirard, 75006 Paris - France, Tel : 01 45 44 48 25 ; Fax : 01 45 44 57 13 ; email : manco@free.fr; web site: http://manco.free.fr TOP