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Thousands gathered tonight at the Palace of Culture (Kasr Althakafa) in the Sport City (Madinat AlHussien lilshabab), in Amman, Jordan, to celebrate the right of return of Palestinians to their land and property. With standing room only, the place of the gathering was literally bursting at the seams with supporters of the right of return, despite the lack of participation of ANY of the official Jordanian opposition parties or any groups claiming to espouse the cause of the right of return. Each one of the 1804 seats was taken. An unknown number of people stood in the wings. Palestinian and Jordanian flags flew in the air. Patriotic songs and chants erupted spontaneously. When some of the wounded of the Intifada getting treated in Jordan delved in, the crowd seemed as if it was set on fire in its cheers.  It was the fourteenth anniversary of the first Intifada. Still, the right of return celebration went smoothly to crown eight months of hard work with spectacular success.

As soon as the celebration began, the curtains on the stage were pulled back to unveil the 100 square meter hand-embroidered quilt containing 1134 patches each representing a Palestinian city or village both existing and demolished by Zionist occupation forces. What a magnificent sight it was hanging on the huge wall and radiating with steadfast determination! The moderator of the ceremony, Khaled Ramadan, said at the onset that the way we understand the hand-embroidered quilt is through the invisible line that connects Jerusalem to Amman and then to Baghdad. He added later that the right of return is an issue that should concern Egyptians, Syrians, Moroccans, and all Arabs because the right of return emanates from the Arab historical right in the LAND of Palestine.

Bahjat Abu Gharbiyah, the most senior Palestinian freedom fighter alive today, gave the first speech of the ceremony. He said that since the beginning, the conflict revolved around one question and one question only: who owns this land? 'We say Palestine belongs to us', he said to a cheering crowd. 'Thus, the right of return can only be understood as the right to liberate occupied Palestine', he added.

Throughout, the crowd would be chanting: 'No to the Embassy, No to the Ambassador, on Jordanian soil', in reference to the 'Israeli' Embassy in Jordan. In fact, demonstrations have been demanding an immediate cut-off of Jordanian diplomatic relations with 'Israel' since the beginning of the second Intifada, but these were violently oppressed.

Speaking for the Union of Professional Associations, and the 122 civil society organizations which co-sponsored the Right of Return Quilt, Tahir al Shakhshir said that the achievement of the right of return to Palestine cannot be separated from armed struggle to liberate Palestine. Then spoke Aida Dabbass on the behalf of the Organizing Committee of the Right of Return Quilt. She emphasized that the quilt stands for the Arab identity of Palestine. She added that the right of return is first and foremost an Arab national right in the land of Palestine, and that the quilt will also be shown in Baghdad, Beirut, and Damascus, among other places.

The audience then rose up collectively and read aloud the following script:

A Declaration of the Right of Return,

 

 

 

 

 

The cause of Palestinian refugees is an essential patriotic cause, and not just humanitarian issue. It is an issue which resulted mainly from the  Zionist OCCUPATION of Palestinian Arab LAND, and from the massacres and campaigns of forced eviction perpetrated by the Zionists against this Palestinian Arab people.

The right of return is both a collective and an individual right. It springs FIRST from the Arab historical right in the land of Palestine, and THEN, from the sanctity of property that doesn't dissolve with occupation or a changed sovereignty. It is also an individual right, which cannot be delegated, sold out, or given away under any pretext in any agreement or treaty. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The right of Palestinian Arab refugees to return to their houses and property is non-negotiable and DOESN'T self-abrogate with the passage of time.

The right of the Palestinian Arab refugees to return to their homeland, homes, and property is an essential and natural human right, which was EMPHASIZED by international laws, principles, conventions, and resolutions.  [Meaning the legal point of reference should be the Arab historical right in the land of Palestine which is EMPHASIZED by international resolutions, not vice versa].

Consequently, we declare our rejection of the outcome of any negotiations in which the right of return of refugees to their homeland, houses, and property from which they have been forced to leave since 1948 is compromised, and reject restitution as a substitute for the right of return.

Thousands of posters containing this declaration for the right of return were distributed in the gathering.

Following the speeches, the Ma'an and Hanouneh Folklore Groups sang and danced dabkeh in celebration of the right of return. Finally, the crowd sang together with the Ma'an and the Hannouneh groups the Arab national anthem, mawtini, mawtini, [My Homeland] and disbanded PEACEFULLY.

Nowhere in the speeches or the cheers was there any mention of a Palestinian midget 'statelet' or the 'peace process'. All the speakers emphasized the following:

1. Palestine is Arab land
2. The liberation of Palestine can only be accomplished through the armed struggle
3. The right of return is an Arab issue and is necessarily a function of the liberation of Palestine.

So, regarding those who say what the Zionist invader likes to hear Arabs say in order to get access to the American media: YOU ONLY REPRESENT YOURSELVES.

Tonight testifies to that..

Later
Ibrahim Alloush

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