In September 2016, The Freedom Theatre was approached by Invest in Peace, a US initiative engaged in “creating economic and people-to-people partnerships among Palestinians and Israelis”, according to its website. Invest in Peace opposes the Palestinian BDS Movement, of which The Freedom Theatre is a strong supporter. Invest in Peace wrote to let us know that our organisation had been chosen to be listed on its website. We responded on September 21, declining the offer and explaining why. There was no further communication by Invest in Peace.
This was our response:
Dear members of the Invest in Peace Team
We are pleased to read that you like the work of The Freedom Theatre and that you are willing to use your platform to promote our work. We do invest in peace and we do believe in a shared future between all the peace-loving people of our region. We however believe that before peace comes freedom.
Unfortunately, under the current circumstances where the Palestinians are subjected to a combination of occupation, apartheid and colonialism, we believe that first and foremost the occupation, apartheid and colonialism must end. Coexistence and reconciliation can only happen between equals, not between occupier and occupied, or between oppressor and oppressed. What we believe is now needed is a strong, united movement that demands an end to the Israeli occupation, apartheid and colonialism and that the same set of legal references are applied for all the current and expelled citizens of the holy land. Only then can we embark on a journey towards reconciliation.
If calls for reconciliation and coexistence are made before justice and equality are established we fear it may be used in order to feed into a common misjudgement of the political situation as a conflict between two equal parties, or even between two independent nations, rather than what is: a military occupation of Palestinian land and sovereignty.
Furthermore we believe that one of the strongest movements unifying the Palestinian civil society (and at the same time proving the power of non-violence), creating true partnerships between Israeli and Palestinian anti-occupation activists, is the BDS-movement. The Freedom Theatre alongside the large majority of the Palestinian performing art sector stand firmly behind the cultural boycott as formulated by the PACBI (http://pacbi.org/).
As much as we respect the work of some of the organisations that you promote on your website, and as much as The Freedom Theatre is whole-heartedly investing in peace, we cannot stand behind the terminology that can be perceived as equating the occupied with the occupier, avoiding taking a firm stand for international law and the many UN resolutions calling for an end to the occupation, the right of return for the Palestinian refugees, East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state, etc. We believe that one can only truly invest in peace if one listens to the oppressed and we do not feel that the language you use represents the voice of the Palestinian civil society.
We would be happy to work together with you in order to reformulate your mission and vision so that they reflect the ambitions of the Palestinian civil society, and thus create a platform upon which Israeli activists, as well as US-based supporters of a just peace, can join us in a united struggle against occupation, apartheid and colonialism and towards a future where we can live together in true peace and equality.
Sincerely Yours,
The Freedom Theatre