OneVoice in 2009: Saying what needs to be said.
2009 opened with a variety of new opportunities and unforeseen challenges which have dramatically altered the political landscape in the Middle East - elections and a war, new administrations and more violence. In some ways, the greatest challenge facing us this year is not what has changed, but what has stubbornly persisted: Palestinians still live under occupation, without freedom or independence; Israelis still live under threat from rocket attacks, without security or safety. The dream of two states for two peoples has not been realized.
Nothing will ever change if we don't have the courage to say what needs to be said. Beneath the surface of the phrase "two state solution" there is a great deal of consensus that is yet to be forged within and between both societies - a great deal of understanding that is still missing. Palestinians and Israelis have yet to acknowledge the legitimate concerns and perspectives of the other side. OneVoice has a critical role to play in civic education: in tackling the reality of the historic compromise that will be required of both Israelis and Palestinians in order to end the occupation of Palestine, to guarantee the security of Israel, and to resolve the conflict once and for all based on a formula of mutual recognition between two independent and viable states: Israel and Palestine.
- Starting the conversation: Public Opinion Initiative
- Saying what needs to be said: Town Hall Meetings
- Building a grassroots infrastructure: Youth Leadership in Israel and Palestine
Our programs for 2009 will be focused exclusively on the need to take courageous steps and break taboos on each side in order to make progress. It will certainly not be easy - but we simply have no time to lose. The window for a two state solution is closing, and this must be the year we make the critical difference.
661,816
VOICES
SUPPORT A TWO STATE SOLUTION
334,026 ISRAELIS 297,771 PALESTINIANS
30,019 INTERNATIONAL SUPPORTERS
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