CNN – “Sudan: Special reps brief U.N. Security Council on Sudan”
— CNN reports: “U.N.-AU Representative Gambari explained that parts of Darfur remained ‘tense and volatile,’ with 447 deaths reported in May alone. He told Council members that this recent upsurge in violence has created ‘very serious hindrances to the effective implementation’ of his protection mandate, as well as to humanitarian assistance efforts for ‘those in dire need of such support.'”
— “The Oxfam International aid organization released a statement coinciding with the Security Council meeting, saying that international attention has shifted away from Sudan and the Darfur conflict ‘at a time when it is desperately needed.'”
— U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice states: “With respect to elections, let me reiterate that the April elections were characterized by serious irregularities.” “She explained how ‘the international community stands ready to provide diplomatic and technical support,’ but only if there are sincere efforts to address the serious and difficult issues facing the country.”
— “Monday’s meeting followed a Security Council update Friday from International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo, which Rice called ‘disturbing’ during her statements on Monday.”
— “Moreno-Ocampo told Council members that attacks against civilians persist, and ‘the crime of extermination against millions of displaced into camps continues.’ He called on the U.N. to produce an updated comprehensive report on the situation in camps and villages ‘to allow the international community to consider the current extent of the suffering of civilians.'”
— “The ICC issued an arrest warrant for Sudan’s sitting President, Omar al-Bashir in March 2009 for various war crimes, including ‘extermination.'”
— “‘The crime of extermination does not require killing by bullets,’ Moreno-Ocampo told the Security Council. He said ‘the deprivation of access to food and medicine, calculated to bring about the destruction of part of a population’ also applies.”
— “Although the US is not a member of the Court, Rice said Monday that ‘the United States strongly supports international efforts to bring those responsible for genocide and war crimes in Darfur to justice.'”
Year: 2010
DC Public Remembers Attack on U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum
On a hot and rainy day in Washington DC, on Sunday, June 13, 2010, volunteers of diverse religions, races, ethnic backgrounds, genders, and age groups came together to remember the June 2009 attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and to remember the tragic death of museum guard Stephen Tyrone Johns a year ago on June 10, 2009.
The public remembrance at Washington DC’s Freedom Plaza was organized by Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.), a human rights volunteer group that pulls together coalitions of volunteers from among the public for activism and public awareness on human rights issues. Among R.E.A.L.’s core issues are religious freedom/pluralism and racial equality, which R.E.A.L. saw the June 10, 2009 attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum as defying such freedoms, urging “Never Again” to hate.
Speakers from among the public included R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm, Elisa Tetreault, Mrs. N. Washington, and Damanga Executive Director Mohamed Yahya. Other volunteers came to help organize, record, and promote the event among the public. Attendees included an employee of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum who attended as a private individual, and who expressed his appreciation for the volunteers’ public remembrance. Media attendees included FOX 5 News and a contributor to the Washington Jewish Week.
The event began with a brief rain shower, but the location of the event on the east side of Freedom Plaza provided some natural protection by nearby trees, and the shower quickly passed. With a breeze that periodically gusted, volunteers held signs reading “We Remember June 10 Attack on U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum,” “We Remember Stephen Johns,” “Together for Love and Tolerance,” and “Choose Love, Not Hate, Love Wins.”
R.E.A.L. YouTube Video of Excerpts of Public Remembrance
Jeffrey Imm spoke of the need to have a public remembrance on the June 10 attack and the murder of Stephen Tyrone Johns, in addition to the museum’s private remembrance on the morning of June 10. He stated that the volunteers had gathered to share the grief of Mr. Johns’ family and also to stand united to defy hate and to urge “our fellow human beings to Choose Love, Not Hate.” He also stated that he recognized that some had told him that they were afraid to come to a public remembrance, but we should not let fear terrorize us from standing up for equality, liberty, dignity, and love for our fellow human beings.
He stated that “Some believe that this attack was someone else’s problem. They believe that the attacker James Von Brunn’s white supremacist hate is only a problem for non-whites, and has nothing to do with the Jewish public. Some believe that his Holocaust Denial is only a problem for those remember the Holocaust, and this is only a problem for the Jewish world. But the fact is that terrorist attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum was attack based on hate. No one could possibly doubt that an attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum was a attack on all Jews – not just one type of Jew, American Jews, or Jews in Washington DC – but an attack on all Jewish people everywhere around the world. Moreover, the attacker’s Holocaust Denial is an attack against the terrible truth of the Holocaust itself. No one could possibly doubt that this attack by a white supremacist also was hatred against black Americans.”
“But the attack was not just against Jews and black, not just in Washington DC, and not just Americans. The attack was one motivated by hate itself. The terrorist Von Brunn himself documented his philosophy in writing to a Nazi sympathizer in Germany, stating that hate was ‘natural, normal and necessary,’ and that ‘compassionate nations’ would ‘die.’ Such an attack of hate was one that speaks to the violence against all people that have compassion, all people that defy genocide, all people that seek justice, and yes all people that seek to love their fellow human beings. The cancer of hate leads to that much destruction. We stand here today united, not just to remember that attack on June 10, 2009, but also to reject that hate that motivated it. We stand here today to remember the awful consequences of allowing hate to go unchallenged. We stand here today to say ‘Never Again’ to such hate, not just in others, but also in ourselves. But in our challenge to hate, in our unwillingness to be afraid, we don’t offer an upraised fist, but we offer an outstretched hand. We urge those who hate to drop the burden of hate from their hearts. We urge them to Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.”
Elisa Tetreault that all “men and women are equal before the law, without discrimination because of sex, blood, language, social origin, or religion. Equality is not something that you should practice because it is the law, but something you should practice because it is right.” She urged others “to take a look at who we are, take a look at who we are standing next to. It can be men, women, gay, straight, black, white, Latino, Asian, Christian, Jewish, Muslim. Each of us are fighting for justice in different ways.”
She stated that: “On June 10, 2009, Stephen Tyrone Johns was shot to death by a white supremacist and Holocaust Denier. It is tragic when anyone loses their life, especially at the hands of hate. It is hard to believe that the actions of one person can cause so much hurt. The truth is that all it takes is one person. What I have learned is that we all make a difference. A wise man once said ‘I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.’ This is what we are here for. This is what we are fighting for. It does not matter your skin color or the religion you practice or your sexual orientation, we are all equal, we all bleed the same color. I stand here before you to say that one person can make change. Act as if what you do makes a difference, because it does. Remember to Choose Love, Not Hate.”
Damanga Executive Director Mohamed Yahya has great experience in fighting against hate in the ongoing genocide in Sudan’s Darfur. Mr. Yahya spoke of his sympathy and grief for Stephen Tyrone Johns in his efforts to protect the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum as a real hero and a great, great man. He spoke of how America is viewed around the world as a nation that prizes freedom, equality, liberty, and compassion toward others – freedoms and dignity that is lost in many other parts of the world, including his war-torn home of Darfur and Sudan. Mohamed Yahya has been recognized as a leading fighter against genocide by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Mrs. Washington spoke of the importance of remembering the attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum was not a random act of violence, but was a targeted attempt to attack and terrorize Jewish Americans and to deny the reality of the Holocaust itself. Mrs. Washington also pointed to the importance of where this public remembrance was being held – Freedom Plaza, and the important symbolic nature of this location. The Freedom Plaza in Washington DC is named in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., who worked on his “I Have a Dream” speech in the nearby Willard Hotel. In 1988, a time capsule containing a Bible, a robe, and other relics of King’s was planted at the site.
Mrs. Washington urged the public to stop and take a moment to reflect on such critical issues for our freedom as the need to stand defiant against hate and the need to understand that an attack on the human rights of one of us represented an attack on such rights for all of us. Mrs. Washington pointed to the need to continue to realize this dream of equality and liberty, dignity, respect, and love for all of our fellow Americans and fellow human beings.
The volunteers stood together at the Freedom Plaza area to urge others to Choose Love, Not Hate.
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) applauds the efforts by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum to continue to record and share the concerns and sympathies of the public regarding this terrorist attack, and urges the public to also publicly pledge their support against hate. R.E.A.L. also urges all to make a gift to the USHMM Stephen Tyrone Johns Summer Youth Leadership Program Endowment Fund.
Love Wins: Volunteers Offer Love, Tolerance to White Nationalist Heckler at Holocaust Memorial Museum Remembrance
On June 13, 2010, volunteers from the Washington DC area joined together to have a public remembrance of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum attack on June 2009 and to remember the tragic murder of museum guard Stephen Tyrone Johns by white supremacist, Holocaust Denier James Von Brunn. We also remember that there were those whose hearts were burdened by hate, who praised Von Brunn’s terrorism, and that the struggle against white supremacism and anti-Semitism continues.
Near the end of the public remembrance of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Musaum attack, two members of a Charlottesville, Virginia-based “white nationalist,” anti-Semitic group, Occidental Dissent, sought to heckle speakers at the public remembrance. The Occidental Dissent group claims to seek “the creation of a Jew-free, racially exclusive White ethnostate in North America.” The group also has a history of seeking to deny women’s rights, and has publicly stated its goals are to infiltrate political organizations to promote “white nationalism.” The visitors included the group’s leader who calls himself the pseudonym “Hunter Wallace” or “Prozium” (based on the movie “Equilibrium”) and Mike Capatano (who left after a moment). The group’s leader “Hunter Wallace” remained behind, wearing a yellow Gadsden Flag shirt.
The group leader briefly heckled Mohamed Yahya, who is a well-known leader in fighting against genocide who has been recognized by the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. The group has previously criticized the efforts of Mr. Yahya and others in struggling against genocide, as well as those defying racial hatred.
As shown in a video of our encounter with the visitor, Mohamed Yahya’s response was “I love you… if you hate me, I give you love.”
R.E.A.L. founder Jeffrey Imm quickly reached out to the Occidental Group group leader, as one of our brothers and sisters in humanity who we must work to reach, and indicated this demonstrated an important reason why we held such a public remembrance. The R.E.A.L. founder pointed out that we do not offer an upraised fist against white supremacism and anti-Semitism, but we offer an outstretched hand to all to choose love, not hate. R.E.A.L.’s Jeffrey Imm then in fact extended such an outstretched hand to the group’s leader and urged him to choose love, not hate.
A prayer was later said to call upon us all to remove the burden of hate from all of our hearts.
Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.
June 13: If it Rains, We Will Meet in Front of National Theater – Across the Street
On June 13, at 2 PM, for our public remembrance of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum Attack and the tragic death of Stephen Tyrone Johns, if it rains we will meet under the marquee of the National Theater across the street from Freedom Plaza. There are no shows at the National Theater on June 13, and we submitted an Assembly Notification to the Washington DC Police for that location as alternative. The National Theater is at 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20004
— Map Showing Location of Freedom Plaza in Washington DC
— Street Level Photographic View of Freedom Plaza Area
The photo below shows Freedom Plaza on the RIGHT and the National Theater marquee on the LEFT. We just walk across the street.
— Freedom Plaza is an open air plaza which is in front of The National Theater, whose address is 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20004. Directions to Freedom Plaza are essentially not much different than going to the front of the National Theater (National Theater driving directions, street map of area, parking directions, Metro directions).
Wisconsin: Wilson Mosque Vandalism
The Sheboygan, Wisconsin Crime Stoppers report on vandalism against the Wilson, Wisconsin mosque that was the source of protests.
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SHEBOYGAN COUNTYWIDE CRIME STOPPERS
1-877-283-8436 (TOLL FREE)
CRIME OF THE WEEK
DATE OF CRIME: FRI, JUNE 4TH OR SAT, JUNE 5TH
LOCATION OF CRIME: 9110 SAUK TRAIL RD, ISLAMIC SOCIETY MOSQUE TOWN OF WILSON
TYPE OF CRIME: VANDALISM
On Saturday, June 5th the Sheboygan County Sheriff’s Dept. took a report of vandalism to the Islamic Society Mosque located at W9110 Sauk Trail Rd in the Town of Wilson. Sometime overnight on Friday, June 4th into Saturday, June 5th large asphalt chunks were thrown at the East side windows of the building causing damage to the screens and windows.
If you have information about this crime or any other crimes please call Crime Stoppers at 1-877-283-8436, 1-877-CUF-THEM. You will remain anonymous and could be eligible for a reward up to $1000.
Detective Ethan J Weber Phone: (920) 459-3857
Detective Mark Mancl Phone: (920)459-3112
Sheboygan County Sheriff’s Department
FAX (920)459-4305
Egypt: Alexandria Man Khaled Said Beaten to Death – Reportedly by Police
al-Masry al-Youm is reporting on the death of a young Alexandrian man who was reportedly beaten to death by Egyptian police. Supporters of his concerned about human rights have created a Facebook page on this topic.
al-Masry al-Youm reports: “Policemen beat young Alexandrian man to death”
— “Khaled Said, a 28-year-old Alexandrian man was beaten up to death by two policemen as he refused to give them money, a human rights group said on 10 June.”
— “Witnesses called el-Nadeem Center for the Rehabilitation of the Victims of Torture and recounted to its lawyers the incident.”
— “‘On Sunday, Khaled was at cyber cafe at around 11:30 in the evening. Two policemen asked him for money and when he said he didn’t have, they beat him,’ Muhammad Abdel Aziz, lawyer with el-Nadeem, told al-Masry al-Youm. ‘As he was beaten up, his head hit a marble table and he started bleeding.'”
— “According to Abdel Aziz, the policemen took Said out of the cyber cafe and continued to beat him. ‘He screamed at them saying ‘I am dying, leave me’, and he fell on the floor.'”
— …”The police has ordered an autopsy of Said’s body.”
— Associated Facebook Web Site
A Terrorist Attack We Must NOT Forget
A year ago, on June 10, 2009, in Washington DC, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum was attacked by a white supremacist, Holocaust denier James Von Brunn, who sought to enter the museum with a rifle to kill Jews. In his murderous rage, he shot and killed black security guard Stephen Tyrone Johns, who was in Von Brunn’s way. The terrorist James Von Brunn was shot and stopped by security guard Harry Weeks and other security guards, and Von Brunn died in a prison hospital on January 6, 2010.
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) has been reporting on the growth of white supremacist and anti-Semitic hatred (as well as other identity group hatred) long before last year’s attack, and long after it. We have continued to report on the June 10, 2009 Holocaust Memorial Museum attack news reports, as well as the related news not reported by major media outlets. We pointed out how some sought to use the terrorist attack to prevent hate crime laws from being passed. We pointed out out those who supported Von Brunn’s terrorism and called for further acts of hate and violence. We pointed out those who sought to promote racial hatred in America’s national capital. Moreover, we didn’t just passively report such issues, but we held public events to raise awareness on these issues, and we actively protested such hate. We felt that was part of our obligation in being “responsible for equality and liberty.”
We don’t see anything “left-wing” or “right-wing” about defying such hate. We just view defying hate as simply following the truths that we hold self-evident as Americans, and the dignity that we should all enjoy as human beings.
We know that the June 10, 2009 terrorist attack was motivated by HATE.
The terrorist Von Brunn himself documented his philosophy in writing to a Nazi sympathizer in Germany, stating that hate was “natural, normal and necessary,” and that “compassionate nations” would “die.”
This philosophy of terrorist hate should give us all pause to reflect. If anything were to be learned from the June 10, 2009 terrorist attack, it is the cancerous destruction that hate will cause.
In our support for our universal human rights of equality and liberty, we offer another approach. While we defy hate, we also offer an outstretched hand, not an upraised fist, to those who hate. We urge those who hate to release such burden of hate from their hearts and to join us in defending our human rights, which are also their human rights.
The U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum is intended to remember the worst atrocity committed against an identity group in human history. When such a place is itself the target of terrorist hatred, it should be a severe warning signal for Americans and all human beings. But that warning signal has been scrupulously ignored, as has the terrorist attack itself been largely forgotten. Even worse, some have sought to rationalize hate against other identity groups themselves, and sadly like Von Brunn, have come to view that compassion is only for the weak.
The cancer of hate has continued to spread. Months after the June 10, 2009 terrorist attack, I saw some people with signs in the streets of Washington DC promoting racial hatred, some carrying signs with swastikas, and some with signs spewing vulgar and obscene messages. Racial supremacist and anti-Semitic groups have sought to promote their cause in our nation’s capital and around the country. On our public airwaves, there are those openly call for bombing houses of worship, who openly promote racist views, who question American legislation designed to guarantee our civil rights, and who ultimately believe that hate is the answer to our nation’s and to the world’s problems.
The lesson that has been taught by the Holocaust has been summarized as “Never Again.”
The lesson that the June 10, 2009 terrorist attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum must teach us is “Never Again to Hate.”
That is a lesson that too many are not interested in hearing about. But if we ever seek to be responsible for equality and liberty, it is our most vital lesson to be learned.
For many reasons, the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum terror attack must not be forgotten. But on June 10, 2010, a year later, there was little interest in remembering it. Washington DC area mainstream newspapers only posted AP wire reports to their web sites buried in the “local news sections,” and the private remembrance by staff of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum was covered primarily by Washington DC television stations on their web sites that cover “local” news. Such a terror attack of hate is no longer viewed as “national” news.
In addition to the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum‘s private event, the USHMM has also urged citizens to make a donation to the Stephen Tyrone Johns Summer Youth Leadership Program Endowment Fund, and it has posted a web link to some of the comments by Americans over the past year about the attack and the murder of Stephen Tyrone Johns. We applaud their efforts to remember.
In terms of public activism, however, we believe that American citizens also have an obligation to do their part, in remembering this terrorist attack. We are holding a public event to remember the event. We also urge those who seek to express their commitment to challenging hate to share your thoughts with us at info@realcourage.org, and we will share your statements on our web site.
On Sunday, June 13 at 2 PM, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) is hosting a public remembrance in Washington DC of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum attack and the murder of Stephen Tyrone Johns. We have invited the public to join us in this public remembrance, and to share their testimonies of the need to promote tolerance, dignity, respect, and equality for our fellow human beings.
We will hold this public remembrance at Freedom Plaza in Washington DC, near where Martin Luther King, Jr. worked on his speech “I Have A Dream.” We too, have a dream, of human dignity, of human rights, and of equality and liberty – not just for all American, but also for all human beings. We have a dream of our fellow human beings united to be responsible for equality and liberty.
But we know that we cannot begin to make that dream a reality without defying and denying the cancerous growth of hatred in our nation, in our society, and around the world.
On June 13, when we publicly remember the terrorist attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, our united message will be “Never Again to Hate.”
Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.
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June 13 – “Never Again” to Hate Public Remembrance
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.)
https://www.realcourage.org/never-again/
On Sunday June 13, 2010, at 2 PM, Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) invites Washingtonians to a public event to remember the June 10, 2009 attack on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum and to remember the loss of Stephen Tyrone Johns. Choose love, not hate.
We will recall the attack by white supremacist and Holocaust denier James Von Brunn on the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum on June 10, 2009, and urge our fellow American to commit to “never again” to such hate and violence. (Flier for distribution: Microsoft Word format flier 1, Adobe Acrobat format flier 1, Word format flier 2, Adobe Acrobat format flier 2).
We will meet at the Freedom Plaza in Washington DC, near where Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. worked on his speech “I Have a Dream,” and will stand united in our diverse religions, ethnicity, and races. We will stand united for equality. We will also say “Never Again” to hate.
We will remember black security guard Stephen Tyrone Johns who was shot to death on June 10, 2009 while on duty defending a museum that stands in remembrance to the Holocaust. We vow that his death will not be in vain, but that such sacrifices will remind us of the need to be ever-vigilant and defiant against the forces of hate that seek to spread in Washington DC and throughout America.
As those who promote hate seek to create ever-increasing numbers of hate groups in America, our message to them is that America will never retreat on hate. But we don’t answer hate with hate. Instead of an upraised fist, we offer outstretched hands and hearts to those who do hate, to urge them to release the burden of hate from their hearts, and join us in defending the universal human rights and dignity of all people.
We urge all – Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.
We also urge all to make a gift to the USHMM Stephen Tyrone Johns Summer Youth Leadership Program Endowment Fund.
Rally Logistics:
— Date: Sunday, June 13, 2010
— Time: 2 to 4 PM Eastern Daylight Savings Time
— Location: Freedom Plaza, Washington DC, 20004 – on Pennsylvania Avenue NW between 13th and 14th Streets NW
— Contact: Jeffrey Imm, info@realcourage.org, 301-613-8789
The Freedom Plaza in Washington DC is named in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr., who worked on his “I Have a Dream” speech in the nearby Willard Hotel. In 1988, a time capsule containing a Bible, a robe, and other relics of King’s was planted at the site.
Directions:
— Map Showing Location of Freedom Plaza in Washington DC
— Street Level Photographic View of Freedom Plaza Area
— Washington DC Metro Subway Stop: Metro Center (Central Station – for Red, Blue, Orange Lines)
— Washington DC Metro Subway Planner Tool
Walking Directions for Metro Center Subway:
— Metro Center Metro Station to Pennsylvania Ave NW & 14th St NW:
1. Exit station through 13TH ST NW & G ST NW entrance.
2. Walk approx. 1 block S on 13th St NW.
3. Turn right on Pennsylvania Ave NW.
4. Walk approx. 1 block W on Pennsylvania Ave NW.
— Parking lots: the nearby National Theater reports the following parking lot areas include:
— PMI
— 1220 E Street, NW – Enter on E Street between 12th and 13th Streets
— 424 11th Street, NW
— 1325 G Street, NW – Enter on G Street between 13th and 14th Streets
— QUICK PARK
— 1301 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW – Enter on 13th Street between E and F Streets
— Freedom Plaza is an open air plaza which is in front of The National Theater, whose address is 1321 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20004. Directions to Freedom Plaza are essentially not much different than going to the front of the National Theater (National Theater driving directions, street map of area, parking directions, Metro directions).
Afghanistan: Protesters, Parliament Members Threaten Christians
In Afghanistan, over 1,000 protesters have demonstrated in Mazar-e-Sharif in northern Afghanistan against foreign Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and allegations of proselytizing by two Christian aid organizations, with protesters calling for punishment against Christian converts.
This June 8 protest follows a previous demonstration on May 31, 2010, where hundreds of protesters at Kabul University called for the death or expulsion of any those who might seek to convert Afghans to Christianity.
The latest protest demonstration in Mazar-e-Sharif on June 8, 2010, called for organizations that proselytized in Afghanistan be banned and burned an effigy of Catholic Pope Benedict XVI. The hour-long protest in Mazar-e-Sharif was composed mostly of students, who chanted “Death to America! Long live Islam!” (See also link to 3 News video.)
New Zealand’s 3 News quoted one protester Zabiullah Khan as stating: “We want those who have converted from Islam to be punished. We also want the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan to ban all the churches that have been established and any organization spreading Christianity here.” On May 31, 2010, Radio Free Europe/Radio Free Liberty reported that “Those found to be promoting Christianity or any other non-Muslim creed can face the death penalty.” Previously Afghanistan judges, prosecutors, clerics, and Parliament members have called for the death penalty for Afghans who converting to Christianity.
The US-based World Church Service and the Norwegian Church Aid were suspended from operations in Afghanistan after a local television claimed that they were promoting Christianity, which is illegal in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, despite claims in its Constitution observes the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Both organizations denied these accusations.
The Church World Service Deputy Director and Head of Programs Maurice A. Bloem stated that “Our work is entirely humanitarian — meaning we are impartial, neutral, and independent. We fully adhere to and support the Red Cross/Red Crescent Code of Conduct, which mandates that Ingots do nothing to further a religious agenda. We have never and will never engage in any religious proselytism. Such activities are contrary to our mandate as a humanitarian organization, and we fully respect the religion of the communities we serve. Any allegations that we have engaged in proselytism are entirely false — and we are fully cooperating with the investigation by the Ministry of Economy and look forward to its result.”
The Norwegian Church Aid denied this allegation stating that “In Afghanistan, as in the rest of the world, Norwegian Church Aid does not work to convert people to another religion.”
On June 1, 2010, a member of the Afghanistan Parliament called for the death penalty for any possible Christian converts. AFP and ICC reported that Abdul Sattar Khawasi, deputy secretary of the Afghan lower house in parliament, called for the death penalty of Afghanistan citizens choosing to become Christians, shown in a television program showing Afghans being baptized with water. Khawasi stated: “Those Afghans that appeared in this video film should be executed in public, the house should order the attorney general and the NDS (intelligence agency) to arrest these Afghans and execute them.” RAWA also reported that “Qazi Nazir Ahmad, a lawmaker from the western province of Herat, said killing a converted Muslim was ‘not a crime.'”
The Afghanistan Parliament has previously called for the death of other Afghans who converted to Christianity. In the report of a previous Christian convert, the Afghanistan Parliament demanded that the individual not be allowed to flee the country to escape the death penalty for his freedom of conscience.
Such rejection of freedom of conscience is contrary to the Afghanistan Constitution which claims to “observe” the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , according to Article 7 of the Afghanistan Constitution which reads: “The state shall observe the United Nations Charter, inter-state agreements, as well as international treaties to which Afghanistan has joined, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.”
Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) supports our unqualified, universal human rights for all people – including their freedom of religion, freedom of worship, and freedom of conscience, as defined in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: “Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and observance.” Our unqualified support for such universal human rights do not apply just for those we like or those who are like us, but for all people, everywhere, whether it is convenient or not, and whether it is popular or not.
We offer an outstretched hand, not an upraised fist, to those who reject such freedoms, and urge them to understand that such human rights are for us all.
We urge the Afghan people, the Afghanistan government to accept such universal human rights for all people. We call upon the United States government, international governments, international bodies, and the American and European people involved in the Afghanistan war to demand genuine support of such universal human rights by the Afghanistan government – and to be Responsible for Equality And Liberty.
We urge those who support hatred and violence to people of different faiths and different identity groups, to release the burden of hate and violence from your hearts. Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.
Israel: Omar Bin Khattab Mosque Vandalized
In the Bedouin village of Ibtin near Haifa in northern Israel, the Omar Bin Khattab Mosque was defaced with graffiti, calling for the mosque’s “demolition.” The mosque was previously attacked by arsonists in 1988.
Media reports stated that the mosque had Hebrew graffiti which stated that the mosque was “slated for demolition,” with images of the Star of David painted on the mosque, as well as comments that stated “Price Tag,” and “War will break out in Judea and Sumaria.”
Yedioth Ahronoth reported that police were investigating the incident, and stated that local individuals “suspect residents of nearby Rechasim community” in the vandalism. Yedioth Ahronoth also quoted Ibtin mosque keeper Muhammad Umriyeh (Mohammad Omaria), who had seen teenagers that stated they were from the Rechasim community, “When we started asking around someone said he saw three teens in the village center last night who wore yarmulkes. He asked them what they were doing and they said they were searching for a lost dog.” Haaretz reported that he also stated that “this is a serious crime that cannot be ignored.”
Israeli Minister of Minorities Avishay Braverman denounced the graffiti and vandalism stating that “This is an act of loathsome vandalism done by extremists with one aim — to harm the relations between Jews and Arabs.”
In April, there were reports of vandalism and destruction in the West Bank, including similar vandalism of the Bilal Ibn Rabah mosque in Huwwara, burning of vehicles, and attacks on a Muslim cemetery and other sites. In December 2009, there was an attack on the Kfar Yasuf Mosque,which led to arrests of Israeli settlers in December 2009 and in January 2010.
In 1965, the Bedouin village of Ibtin was created to provide a permanent settlement for the Bedouin in that area. Villagers are part of the Amria tribe.
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Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) supports our unqualified, universal human rights. We defend freedom of religion, freedom of conscience, and freedom of worship – for all people. We urge all, to Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.
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Update:
Jerusalem Post: “Mosque vandals ‘influenced by flotilla'”
— Jerusalem Post reports: “Four yeshiva youths arrested by police on Wednesday on suspicion of spraying graffiti on a mosque in the northern village of Ivteen ‘were influenced by the Gaza flotilla’ and ‘events in the West Bank,’ but do not appear to be part of an organized extremist cell, the detective leading the investigation told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.”
— “Officers from the Coastal police’s central arrested the four men, who study at a yeshiva at Kfar Hasidim, one day after a Star of David was spray painted on the mosque’s wall, as well as the messages, ‘There will be war over Judea and Samaria,’ and ‘This structure is marked for demolition.'”
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Other Media Reports:
Haaretz: Mosque vandalized in Bedouin village near Haifa
Yedioth Ahronoth: Malicious graffiti sprayed on Ibtin mosque
Yedioth Ahronoth – Braverman: Mosque attack act of loathsome vandalism
JTA: Bedouin mosque vandalized
AP: Police: Mosque vandalized in northern Israel
AFP: Mosque desecrated in northern Israel
Ma’an News Agency: Mosque vandalized in northern Israel
Related Reports:
Attack on Bilal Ibn Rabah Mosque – Israel Army Condemns Mosque Vandalism
West Bank: Media Reports Allege Israeli Settlers Responsible for Arson Attack on Kfar Yasuf Mosque
Israel: Settler Teen Arrested Over West Bank Kfar Yasuf Mosque Arson
West Bank: 2 West Bank mosque arson suspects released to house arrest
Israel: Teens suspected of planning Molotov cocktail attack over raid
Israel: Teens suspected of planning Molotov cocktail attack over raid
— Yedioth Ahronoth reports: “Judge extends remand of 2 youths from Tarshiha who planned to hurl firebomb on Jewish vehicles following IDF raid on aid flotilla”
— “During their investigation the teens said they were motivated by the killing of civilians by the IDF and noted they learned how to make the explosive device on the internet.”
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Responsible for Equality And Liberty (R.E.A.L.) urges all to Choose Love, Not Hate. Love Wins.