US, EU no neutral partners in Palestine

Editor in Chief of German monthly newsmagazine, Manuel Ochsenreiter says “Right to Homeland” is a universal human right however Palestinians are denied their right to homeland until today. He also urged the Palestinian Diaspora to keep the cause of Palestine alive.

The news manager made the remarks in an interview with the Qods News Agency (Qodsna) on the occasion of the day of occupation of Palestine. The full text of the interview follows.

Qodsna: What is your opinion about the Catastrophe Day and also displacement of Palestinian people in 1948?

Ochsenreiter: Forced migration is one of the biggest international crimes we can imagine. The “Right to Homeland” is according to legal scholars a universal human right, which is derived from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights including its Article 9.

The Palestinians are denied their right to homeland until today. So it is important for the Palestinian population to remember the “Catastrophe Day” and the displacement of the Palestinian people.

It is not just “history”, the displacement is actual today as well.

Qodsna: What is the present status of Right of Return of Palestinian from international and field point of view?

Ochsenreiter: The Right of Return was confirmed many times by the UN and many international legal scholars. It is an inalienable and basic human right.

But as in many cases it doesn't lack confession, but of the practical execution.

Qodsna: How do you see role of America/ EU in undermining the right of return of Palestinian?

Ochsenreiter: Washington and Brussels are not neutral mediators between the Palestinian and Israeli claims in the conflict – they are very openly supporters of Israel. To expect from US or the European Union any positive approach would be naive.

We shouldn't forget in this context: The USA as well as many countries of the EU conducted themselves in their history ethnic cleansing actions and mass deportations.

Qodsna: How human rights activists can revive the right of return issue?

Ochsenreiter: Human rights activists can draw the attention to the problem, but they can't solve it. It can be just solved by the governments of the involved states.

As long as these basic human rights we are talking about are simply pledges but no actions, the situation won't change. Human rights activists can remind their governments of that.

Q: What is the role of the Diaspora in preserving their national identity?

Ochsenreiter: They are important to keep the idea alive. When I speak to Palestinians in the West or in their camps in Lebanon, I see how strong the idea of a sovereign, free and independent Palestine is. The children can tell you how the house and the village of their grand-grand-grandparents looked like.

National identity is the most important “glue” that binds even a displaced nation together. In the West with its liberal post-modernity the politicians almost forgot about what “national identity” means to people.