"It Is Our Duty To Speak Out When Our Governments' Policies Are Wrong"
800 + Transatlantic Civil Servants' Statement on Gaza
•
Josh Paul
Former Director at U.S. Department of State. Alternate presence at mastodon.social and @joshpaul - Read here also why Mr Paul resigned from State Department.
•
In an unprecedented display of concern and unity, over 800 civil servants from both sides of the Atlantic have issued a joint statement condemning their governments' policies towards Israel. As they write, "Israel has shown no boundaries in its military operations in Gaza which has resulted in tens of thousands of preventable civilian deaths... the deliberate blocking of aid by Israel has led to a humanitarian catastrophe, putting thousands of civilians at risk of starvation and slow death," and that "there is a plausible risk that our governments’ policies are contributing to grave violations of international humanitarian law, war crimes and even ethnic cleansing or genocide."
Originally published on LinkedIin
These civil servants note that their "professional concerns were overruled by political and ideological considerations" and that "we are obliged to do everything in our power on behalf of our countries and ourselves to not be complicit in one of the worst human catastrophes of this century."
The statement was issued by current government officials from European Union institutions and bodies, the Netherlands, the United States, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
As Former U.S. Ambassador to Syria Robert Ford told the BBC, "It's unique in my experience watching foreign policy in the last 40 years... The problems with the Gaza war are so serious and the implications are so serious that they feel compelled to go public."
Here is HuffPost’s coverage of this extraordinary initiative
For my part I would note that civil servants around the world are united by their dedication to abide by the rule of law, and to advance the good of their institutions and the people who they serve.
When it comes to Israel and Palestine, the political decision-making of many Western governments and institutions stands in stark contrast to this dedication, and has created unprecedented tensions with the expertise and duty that apolitical civil servants bring to bear. One-sided support for Israel's atrocities in Gaza, and a blindness to Palestinian humanity, is both a moral failure, and, for the harm it does to Western interests around the globe, a policy failure.
This is a remarkable statement from hundreds of individuals who have devoted their lives to building a better world, and, at a time where our politicians seem to have forgotten them, it is a much-needed reminder of the core values that bind the transatlantic relationship, and a proof that they endure.
Now download the statement…