Balfour and Palestine

This year PSC is working with a range of partners including key Palestinian community organisations to mark the centenary of the Balfour Declaration. We are organising a conference on the 7 October, and a national march and rally in central London on the 4^th November, to raise public awareness of Britain’s central role in the dispossession of the Palestinian people, and for Britain to fulfil its role and responsibilities as a key member of the international community. Britain has a particular responsibility for ensuring that Palestinian human rights are protected and respected.

For the past 100 years Palestinian rights have been disregarded. As we approach the centenary of the Balfour Declaration – on the 2nd November – which built the path for their dispossession, we are demanding justice and equal rights for Palestinians now.

The conference will feature panel sessions on:

• A Century of British complicity
• The historic significance of Balfour
• Going forward: Challenging British responsibility – Organising for the 4^th November march and rally

Entrance: £5 / £3 Unwaged

Details and to register: www.palestinecampaign.org/events/conference-balfour-palestine-100-years/

Jointly Organised by National Union of Teachers and Palestine Solidarity Campaign

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Speaker’s Biographies

Tariq Ali is a British Pakistani writer, journalist, historian, film maker and political activist. He is a member of the editorial committee of New Left Review and Sin Permiso. Among the publications he contributes to are the Guardian, CounterPunch and the London Review of Books. He is the author of a number of books. He is well known for his contribution to the anti-imperialist movement over many years, and a popular speaker at demonstrations and meetings.

David Cronin is an Irish journalist and political activist. He is Brussels correspondent of Inter Press Services news agency. He is author of a number of books. He has written for various publications including the Guardian, Wall Street Journal Europe, Electronic Intifada, and Middle East Eye. His most recent book is Balfour’s Shadow: A Century of British Support for Zionism and Israel.

Yara Hawari is a British Palestinian scholar-activist, a PHD candidate in Palestinian Studies at the University of Exeter. Originally from Galilee, she has spent her life between Palestine and the UK. She is an Al-Shabaka Policy Analyst and Member. She has written for a number of publications, including the Independent, Morning Star, Open Democracy, The Electronic Intifada, and Al-Shabaka.

Ben Jamal is Director of Palestine Solidarity Campaign, and a previous member of its executive committee. His father’s family was driven out of Jerusalem and into exile in 1948 when Israel was created in the land they had called home for generations. Ben was the Chair and an activist in the Kingston and Richmond branch of PSC for many years.

Ghada Karmi is a Palestinian doctor of medicine. She was born in Jerusalem, and forced to leave her home in 1948. She held a number of research appointments at SOAS and the Universities of Durham and Leeds. She was an Associate Fellow of the Royal Institute of International Affairs, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. She is currently a Research Fellow and the University of Exeter. Ghada is the author of a number of books, including Married to Another Man: Israel’s Dilemma in Palestine and one of the best known Palestinian campaigners in Britain, as well as a Patron of PSC.

Ken Loach is an internationally renowned film maker with credits for directing, writing and producing. His provocative and socialist perspective has garnered 98 awards and 75 further nominations. His work has been honoured at festivals in Berlin, Cannes, Dublin, Havana, Rio de Janeiro, Seville, Stockholm, Sydney, Venice, Vancouver and many other places. His recent “I, Daniel Blake” won a BAFTA for “Outstanding British Film of the Year”. Ken is a Patron of PSC and a supporter of BDS, and every penny from the sale of “I, Daniel Blake” for Israeli distribution is given to grassroots Palestinian organisations.

Lowkey is a rapper and political activist of Iraqi and British descent. He has released a number of albums and singles including “Long Live Palestine”. He has performed his work on Palestinian demonstrations in Britain. After taking a number of years out for his studies, he has returned to recording and touring. He has visited refugee camps in the West Bank, and was detained by Israeli police. He was involved in bringing medical aid to Gaza and was detained again in 2010. Lowkey is a patron of PSC.

Andrew Murray is Chief of Staff for Unite. He was seconded to Labour Party Headquarters for the recent General Election. He was Chair of Stop the war Coalition from 2001 – 2011, and again from 2015-16. He is author of a number of books on national and international politics. A long standing supporter of the Palestinians, he has played an important role in many of the major mobilisations of recent years.

Bernard Regan is Visiting Research Fellow at St.Mary’s University. He was a founding member of PSC and is currently a member of the Executive Committee. He is a long standing trade union activist, currently NUT Trustee. He is National Secretary of the Cuba Solidarity Campaign. His book The Balfour Declaration : Empire, Mandate and Resistance in Palestine is due for publication this autumn.

Maz Saleem is an anti-war and anti-racist campaigner. She is the daughter of Haji Mohamed Saleem, who was murdered in Birmingham by a far-right terrorist. She is an officer of the Stop the War Coalition. She has written for a number of publications including the Independent, Middle East Eye, 5 Pillars, Counterfire and Stop the War website.

Chairing the Panel sessions will be:

Louise Regan, President NUT

Kiri Tunks, Vice Chair PSC & Vice President NUT

Hugh Lanning, Chair PSC