Brit Tzedek v'Shalom

Jewish Alliance for Justice and Peace

Action Alert

Action Alert - Completed

Dear Members and Supporters,

U.S. Postponement of the Quartet's "Road Map"

We are gathering momentum. Your response to our last action alert was double that to the one before. Let's at least double our response once again!

The Bush Administration has put a road block in the way of the "road map," the very welcome initiative of the Madrid Quartet (EU, Russia, UN and US) initiative to develop a timetable for the achievement of an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict through the establishment of a Palestinian state within three years. The US has argued that advancing this initiative before the Israeli elections on January 28 would force the parties to respond to the initiative and might result in its rejection.

What is really meant is that Sharon might need to reject it in order to maintain the support of the right-wing in Israel, his base of support. There is no doubt that the Mitzna camp would embrace it with open arms.

In the guise of non-interference, this is actually US interference in the Israeli elections in support of the Sharon candidacy, recently seriously undermined by allegations of voting fraud during the Likud primaries.

The board of the Central Conference of American Rabbis of the Reform movement has just adopted a position to urge the US government to more forcefully work towards a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This move is to be heralded as another breach in the wall of defensiveness in the Jewish community against anything that might be perceived as lack of support for Israel because it is lack of support for the Sharon government and the right wing of the American Jewish community.

And on December 24th, the New York Times published an editorial strongly critical of the Bush Administration's delaying tactics on the road map, calling it a "dangerous gamble" (read the NY Times article) and Senator Joseph Lieberman, currently touring Israel and Palestine, issued a statement deploring the "desperate human conditions" he witnessed and said Congress wants help. "There's strong support for the aspirations of the Palestinian people for independent statehood," he said. "The question is whether there will be sufficient leadership here and in the world to bring this about sooner than later."

Now is the time to add your voice to those calling for more vigorous and immediate US involvement in moving the peace process forward. We must not allow the Bush Administration to influence the elections in Israel in favor of the position of the most extreme right wing of the Israeli spectrum of public opinion, so right wing now that Ariel Sharon has the false appearance of a moderate.

Write, fax and/or email the White House expressing your dissent from US disengagement from moving the Quartet road map forward with all due speed. Act now, and then send this message on to your networks of friends, relatives and colleagues. Let us know you have responded by cc'ing your message to advocacy@btvshalom.org

L'Shalom,

Diane Balser, Chair of Advocacy and Public Policy
Steve Masters, Co-Chair of Advocacy and Public Policy