The exhibit is a violation of international law!
The
Dead Sea Scrolls, confiscated from East Jerusalem
during Israel's 1967
military invasion and occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, are in
Toronto, on exhibit at the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM). The (ROM) agreed
to host a six-month exhibit of the Dead
Sea Scrolls, in co-operation with the Israel Antiquities Authority
(IAA),
scheduled from June 27, 2009 through January 3, 2010.
The move is part of Israel consul general Amir Gissin's official
"Brand Israel" campaign
that attempts to 'rebrand' apartheid Israel beyond its systematic
repression of the Palestinian
people. The aim of the Israeli Foreign Ministry's Brand Israel campaign is to shift the attention away
from Israel's continuing
violations of international
humanitarian law by presenting a more 'benign' vision of Israel to a Canadian public growing increasingly
wary of Israel's
war-crimes and apartheid policies towards the Palestinians.
Since 1967, hundreds of thousands
of precious artifacts have been illegally removed by the Israeli Antiquities
Authority, Israeli soldiers, and illegally operating antiquities dealers from
the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip. These
removals of the joint cultural
heritage of the region are in direct contravention of at least
four international conventions or protocols on the treatment of illegally
obtained cultural goods.
The
bulk of the artifacts were excavated from Qumran in the West Bank, between 1947
and 1956 by the Palestine
Archaeological Museum
in a joint expedition with the Department of Antiquities of Jordan and the
Ecole Biblique Francaise. The Scrolls were displayed at the Palestine Archaeological
Museum (the Rockefeller
Museum) in East Jerusalem until 1967,
when the Israeli military occupied East Jerusalem
and looted the artifacts.
We Call on Canada to Cancel the Show!
The ROM
was approached by members of the Palestinian community and concerned citizens, but
has refused to make public the documents it claims prove the legality of the
exhibit. It has also refused to seek a UNESCO opinion on the matter.
Women
in Solidarity with Palestine (WSP) and IJAN-Toronto have been holding our
regular weekly vigils in front of the Israeli Consulate building, directly
across the street from the ROM.
Since mid-April, we have distributed handouts detailing the theft of the Dead
Sea Scrolls from Palestine,
with a call to boycott the exhibit and to write letters to the ROM demanding
that the exhibition be shut down.
In
light of the ROM's absolute disregard for the concerns of Canada's Palestinian community and
those of its supporters, the Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid (CAIA), Women
In Solidarity With Palestine, and IJAN-Toronto have launched a weekly picket,
to be held at the same location as the weekly vigils. The Friday evening vigils
continue, from 5-6pm, followed by the picket, from 6-7.
The
first picket took place on Friday, July 10, following the vigil. Both were very
well attended and featured spirited chants, bold placards, and a large mixed
crowd of solidarity activists and supporters. The handout distributed to the
public asks for their help in protesting the ROM's failure to comply with
international law and its ethical obligations by:
- Demanding the ROM recognize the Scrolls are
looted Palestinian artifacts.
- Demanding the ROM dissociate itself from the
Israeli Antiquities Authority which has systematically looted millions of
Palestinian artifacts.
We are
hoping to sustain the pickets until such time as the exhibit comes down.
In the
meantime, we are engaging with the public every Friday evening, from 5 till 7
o'clock, distributing information about the theft of the Dead Sea Scrolls and
opening opportunities to talk with people about Palestine and Israeli apartheid.
Brought
to you by
The International
Jewish Anti-Zionist Network, Toronto
(IJAN-TO)
For more information:
Also se: www.ijsn.net & www.nion.ca