More than three quarters of a century later, and in characteristic snail-speed, Australia has finally woken to the fact that Resolution 181 will never see the light of day if the Palestinians and the Israelis are left to settle what should been resolved decades ago – the creation of two states, one Jewish, one Palestinian. If one were to gauge the vibe, shall we say, of the statement issued by Foreign Minister’s office, two key events are red flagged in this historic official statement, two events which took place 77 years apart, illustrating how much time has elapsed since the British mandates and how little has been achieved to bring about real lasting peace in the Occupied Palestinian Territory ever since the Balfour Declaration left so much destruction and multi-generational trauma in its wake. The first, Resolution 181 which was rubber stamped some 77 years ago and the second, a hurriedly convened protest march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge and which took place just a fortnight ago. Many of us who participated in the march would have been hard pressed to miss the police presence, and the impressive number of people who showed up to signal widespread condemnation of the atrocities in Gaza. Nonetheless, we could not have predicted that our little show of solidarity would merit specific mention in the Foreign Minister’s statement. The power of democratic acts such as characterised in the Sydney march has often been undervalued and underestimated by many, especially by those of us leading relatively comfortable lives and whose idea of deprivation and struggle differ markedly from those dodging bombs and bullets and dying of starvation in the Gaza Strip. For those of us raised in the Judaeo-Christian-Abrahamic tradition, the Sydney march elegizes the Biblical entreaties of our youth, a kind of faithful assurance that positive change occurs through our recognition of our shared humanity, to act with solidarity, compassion and grace towards the neediest, the suffering and the oppressed. United we stand, divided we fall.
Why did it take this long?
In its 2024 judgment in the matter of South Africa vs Israel, the Cour Internationale de Justice (ICJ), set out its reasons why it deems that what Israel has unleashed on the Gaza strip is indeed genocide, the crime of crimes. Members of the Court agreed on one thing: that the systematic infliction of physical and mental harm on the Palestinian people over many decades can be nothing else but genocide. However, the Court’s failure to settle the question of the legal consequences arising from their proclamation that Israel has breached the Convention Against Genocide has proven once again that the Court might pack a lot of noise but that’s all she wrote. One might say that the Court was not asked to settle this specific question, but it follows as a matter of convention and reason, that if a crime is found to have been committed, there must be consequences. So much more can be said about this, and so it should… In November 2024, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister of Defence Yoav Gallant for crimes against humanity including persecution and the use of starvation as a method of warfare. However, ICC member states notably France, Italy, Hungary, Poland have stated that they will not enforce the warrant. This is in direct violation of these countries obligations under the Rome Statute which imposes a duty on the ICC’s member states to cooperate with prosecutions. Actions speak louder than words. The ICC and ICJ can make pronouncements and issue warrants until Kingdom comes, but these words are empty of substance and count all too little for the countless innocents starved, maimed and killed. For France, the home of Marianne, the proud extoller of such virtues like Liberté, Egalité, et Fraternité, how lamentable lament its selective backsliding on what is at heart a human rights issue first, foremost and last.
Anyway, whatever form Australian virtues take, it’s high time for this official recognition.