Activists stop Israeli-Palestinian conference in East Jerusalem

Ma’an – June 12, 2015

JERUSALEM – A group of activists on Friday stopped a conference in occupied East Jerusalem from going ahead that they accused of contributing to the “normalization” of the Israeli occupation.

The conference had been organized by the “Creativity for Peace” group and was set to take place in the Legacy Hotel.

However, the hotel reportedly cancelled the event after they were contacted by the activists.

The hotel management had apparently been unaware of the conference, believing instead that a tourism company had booked the hall.

Creativity for Peace is a non-profit organization that works with young Israeli and Palestinian women on “collaborative leadership and peacemaking,” according to the organization’s website.

Some activists allege that organizations aiming to facilitate dialogue and understanding between Jewish Israelis and Palestinians without addressing political realities “normalize” the Israeli occupation.

The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel argues that partnership and dialogue groups often ignore the stark inequalities between Jewish Israelis and Palestinians living under occupation.

They claim that this approach normalizes the Israeli occupation by promoting co-existence at the expense of acknowledging the right of Palestinians to resist oppressive policies of the Israeli government.