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עיתון ב-WACO מדווח על הפגנת אלפים בכתום
More than 2,000 demonstrators show in Crawford
By Mike Anderson Tribune-Herald staff writer
Tuesday, April 12, 2005
CRAWFORD – A couple thousand people converged on this community near President Bush's Prairie Chapel Ranch Monday to demonstrate during Bush's meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
While the two distinct groups of demonstrators both spoke against policies of the Israeli government regarding Palestinians, their messages seemed to be in opposition.
The largest group of demonstrators, at least 2,000, congregated outside of town in Tonkawa Park to speak against Sharon's recent decision to remove 25 Israeli settlements from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. A mile away at the Crawford Peace House, about a dozen people protested what they described as Israel's continued occupation of Palestinian territory.
Despite the numbers of protesters, both Waco and Crawford police reported no major disturbances or arrests during Sharon's two-day visit to Central Texas. The organizers at Monday's Tonkawa Park protest had initially expected about 5,000 participants.
The meeting caused a heavy security presence, with police temporarily closing several roads, including Interstate 35, as Sharon's motorcade made its way to Bush's ranch.
Roads also were closed around Waco's downtown Hilton, where Sharon spent Sunday night. The prime minister's presence prompted Waco city officials to delay the start of work for city hall employees until 10 a.m. Monday.
At Tonkawa Park Monday morning, the crowds grew with the arrival of one bus after another full of members of Baptist churches from across the country. The Baptists were joined by representatives of various synagogues, the two groups uniting under the slogan "Israel Belongs to the Jews."
Jim Vineyard, pastor of the Windsor Hills Baptist Church in Oklahoma City and an organizer of the event, said the demonstrators were united in their belief, based on the Bible, that Jews have a right to all of Israel.
Vineyard said closing settlements amounts to giving in to terrorists, and will not do anything to further peace in the region.
"It's not going to stop Palestinians from killing," Vineyard said. "Study your Bible and you will see there is a history there to back this up. When elephants fly over Waco you will have peace between Arabs and Jews. It's not going to happen."
Throughout the afternoon the crowd heard speeches from pastors and rabbis from around the country. Between speeches, demonstrators sang from sheet music including songs such as "Israel Belongs to the Jews," "Don't Give an Inch" and "Dig Another Well."
Carrie Bell, who came to the rally with members of her Mesquite, Texas church, echoed many of the demonstrators when she criticized Bush for urging Sharon to close settlements.
"We are here because the president is giving away lands promised to the Jews," Bell said. "We believe in our president. We voted for him, but we think he is making the wrong decision."
Meanwhile at the Crawford Peace House, often host to anti-war gatherings during presidential visits, the demonstration focused more on the treatment of Palestinians by the Israeli government.
Luke Peterson, who teaches a course on Arab-Israeli relations at St. Edward's University in Austin, said he spent last summer in Israel and he disputes the portrayal of Palestinians as terrorists.
"I was treated badly at the Israeli checkpoints and I think that reflects that the Israeli government don't want people to see what is going on in the occupied territory," Peterson said. "The impression you get from the media is that Israel is under siege, when in fact Israel is the provoker."
He added, "The occupation causes violence, period. The Palestinians are not terrorists, they are people like you and me, with families, trying to make a living under intolerable conditions caused by the occupation."
Monday marked the second day of demonstrations in Crawford on behalf of Palestinians, said Hadi Jawad, a board member of the peace house. On Sunday, about 100 people gathered for a rally near Tonkawa Park, and then walked through Crawford carrying an 800-foot banner listing Israeli violations of international law in the Palestinian territories, he said.
"We are here because Sharon is in town and President Bush has reiterated his support for the peace process," Jawad said. "The history of U.S. policy is when the Israelis don't live up to their end of a peace agreement, the U.S. government turns the other way. I'm not a big Bush supporter, but on this we are asking the president to stand firm."
manderson@wacotrib.com
757-5741
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12-04-2005, 07:42
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