Michael Ondaatje ‘saddened’ by West Bank settlements

By srilank / in News

Sri Lankan-born Canadian author Michael Ondaatje was among 16 internationally renowned artists expressed the “utmost sadness and dismay” over Israel’s recent announcement of yet another 1500 illegal settlement units in the West Bank.
The artists note that this move is particularly unfortunate at a moment when the Palestinians have formed a unity government. The artists go on to “applaud the non-violent efforts of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign and express our solidarity with its demand that Israeli should comply with international law.” They specifically call on Israel to end the occupation, dismantle the “separation wall”, recognize the rights of Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel to full equality, and respect the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties, said a news release today.
Michael Ondaatje, four-time winner of Canada’s top literary prize, the Governor General’s award (GG), novelist Linda Spalding, herself a GG winner and respected editor, and Prism fiction prize winner Eliza Robertson are the Canadians who participated in the fact-finding visit and statement. Other signatories include American writers Teju Cole (Open City, winner of the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award) and Sapphire (Precious), British author Brigid Keenan, Egyptian-British author Adhaf Soueif (Map of Love) , and Danish writer Janne Teller.
“We welcome the artists’ statement, and hope that other Canadian artists will be inspired by their courage and ethical clarity,” says Thomas Woodley, president of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME), a grassroots citizens’ group.
CONTENT CONTINUES BELOW ADVERTISING
In 2013, over 100 Canadian writers co-signed the Canadian Writers’ Open Letter to Israeli and Canadian leaders. That letter urged Israel to halt evictions of Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills (West Bank) and of Bedouins in Israel’s Negev desert. The signatories included Ondaatje, Margaret Atwood, Nino Ricci, Joseph Boyden, Yann Martell, Vincent Lam, Lisa Moore, John Ralston Saul, Lorna Crozier, Jane Urquhart and Michel Tremblay. The evictions were discontinued, at least temporarily, and the proposed legislation to forcibly relocate the Bedouin was withdrawn.
Micheal Ondatjee, four-time winner of Canada’s top literary prize.

Micheal Ondatjee, four-time winner of Canada’s top literary prize.

Sri Lankan-born Canadian author Michael Ondaatje was among 16 internationally renowned artists who expressed the “utmost sadness and dismay” over Israel’s recent announcement of 1500 controversial settlement units in the West Bank.

The artists noted that this move is particularly unfortunate at a moment when the Palestinians have formed a unity government, said a news release Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East today.

The artists go on to “applaud the non-violent efforts of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign and express our solidarity with its demand that Israeli should comply with international law.” They specifically call on Israel to end the occupation, dismantle the “separation wall”, recognize the rights of Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel to full equality, and respect the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties, the release added.

Michael Ondaatje, four-time winner of Canada’s top literary prize, the Governor General’s award (GG), novelist Linda Spalding, herself a GG winner and respected editor, and Prism fiction prize winner Eliza Robertson are the Canadians who participated in the fact-finding visit and statement. Other signatories include American writers Teju Cole (Open City, winner of the Hemingway Foundation/PEN Award) and Sapphire (Precious), British author Brigid Keenan, Egyptian-British author Adhaf Soueif (Map of Love) , and Danish writer Janne Teller.

“We welcome the artists’ statement, and hope that other Canadian artists will be inspired by their courage and ethical clarity,” says Thomas Woodley, president of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME).

In 2013, over 100 Canadian writers co-signed the Canadian Writers’ Open Letter to Israeli and Canadian leaders. That letter urged Israel to halt evictions of Palestinians in the South Hebron Hills (West Bank) and of Bedouins in Israel’s Negev desert. The signatories included Ondaatje, Margaret Atwood, Nino Ricci, Joseph Boyden, Yann Martell, Vincent Lam, Lisa Moore, John Ralston Saul, Lorna Crozier, Jane Urquhart and Michel Tremblay. The evictions were discontinued, at least temporarily, and the proposed legislation to forcibly relocate the Bedouin was withdrawn.