DPR Collects Donations For Palestine

Jakarta ( Berita ) :  The worst condition in  the Gaza Strip amidst the ongoing  ceasefire  declared by Israel after the issuance of the UN resolution,  has prompted Indonesia to initiate  a fund raising activity ‘donation’  for Palestine.

The House of Representatives(DPR)  along with its Iranian and Syrian counterparts will start collecting donations  from other members of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) with a view to mitigating the ordeals and  sufferings of the Palestinian people in the wake of the Israeli military aggression.

The three countries, according to Indonesian House Speaker Agung Laksono who was about to hold the third House session on Monday, were  active in fund raising in their respective regions in order to arrive at a common view on  the Israeli military attacks which had devastated infrastructure and facilities in the Gaza Strip and the need for taking steps of helping the Palestinians. 

Furthermore,  Agung explained that APA representing parliaments in  Troika countries such as Indonesia, Iran and Syria,  had organized a meeting in Damascus to call for a ceasefire and the opening of  crossings  for access of humanitarian aid.

In addition, Indonesia as a representative of APA also attended the emergency meeting of the OIC (Organization of Islamic Conference)  in Istambul, Turkey, which in principle demanded Israel to be brought to the international court of justice in The Hague, Netherlands,  for having committed crimes against  humanity.

“Now a ceasefire is prevailing in the Gaza Strip on  the request of the International community, the UN, including Indonesia. But all sides will not be able to exert their influence on  Israel, as the  zionist country will not pull its troops out of the Gaza Strip and remained blocking that Palestinian region,” Agung said.

 It was in this context, that  the house plenary session produced a stance on the Palestine  unveiled by the House Speaker sometime ago which was then declared as an official statement of the House about Israeli  barbaric aggression in the Gaza Strip.

Some points of the  stance include insisting the UN to hold an emergency general assembly meeting and the formation of a peacekeeping force in Gaza and  urging the international court of justice to bring the perpetrators to justice. 

 In addition, the House also insisted the UN to provide  humanitarian assistance to Palestinian refugees in  some regions in the Middle East and to fully support the struggle of the Palestinian people for independance as a sovereign state with a territorial integrity.

 In the meantime, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono called on the Indonesian people  over the weekend to provide more donations in whatever form as the besieged residents in the Gaza Strip are in need of basic necessaries such as food, medicines and electricity.

The president reminded the people,  that sending Jihad fighters to the war zone was really  not what the Palestinians needed.  “I have talked to  Middle East leaders, the Palestinian ambassador to Indonesia, the UN officials in  Indonesia,  and the conclusion is additional arms, bombs, rockets, tanks and  air power are not what the people in the Gaza Strip  need,” Yudhoyono said.

 “What they badly need  are food, medicines, electricity and medical supplies,  so let us channel our solidarity and Jihad by giving them what they need to survive. That is the way to save the lives of our brothers and sisters in Palestine,” he said.

 The president reiterated his disappointment with the UN’s slow  action in handling the conflict which he called an outrageous tragedy to humanity that the world can not allow to happen anymore.

With regard to the Netherless, the head of state praised the initiative made by the National Tithe Service (Baznas) to collect  donations for  Palestine. Baznas Chairman Didin Hafidhudin said they had raised Rp500 million on Saturday  for the people in the Gaza Strip. It has also set up bank accounts to take in deposits for humanitarian aid.

The  donations could be sent by electronic zakat (Muslim tithe) collection system of the national tithe service (Baznas). The new system, called e-zakat would enable people to donate their tithes at Baznas counters anywhere in Indonesia  electronically against receipts.

Didin Hafidhuddin said the agency he was heading  was engaged in four activities, namely informing the public about the importance of tithe collection and management, empowering the institution in line with the organization’s mission and vision, channeling and distributing tithes and  cooperation  with companies and other organizations in building national  self reliance.

Baznas itself had five international-scale prime programs such as the Indonesian Concern Program, Indonesian Prosperity Program, Indonesian Health program and Indonesian pious program. 

He said  these activities are efforts to call on the people to continue and improve their awareness on the importance of tithes and contributions as a solution to  problems facing the people and moslems in other countries.

Meanwhile, Dr Sofyan Siregar,  an Islamic intellectual and lecturer at the Islamic University of Europe in Rotterdam, the Netherlands, said the priority of fund raising or donation from  Indonesia and other countries  is on the right track.

 Many Palestinians are currently in dire need of assistance from outsiders in the form of medical supplies,  food and cash.

In the past three weeks,  the people of the Gaza Strip had been running short of  food, medicines, and medical equipment after the Isreali military launched air strikes and ground attacks.  Thousands of  wounded victims could not be treated well due to the lack of medical supplies at  hospitals and  clinics in  war stricken Gaza Strop, he said, adding it was in this context that  donators read the priority of assistance for the Palestinians in the  Gaza Strip.

According to him, the way by which the  Indonesian government,  people and parliament raised funds to help the Palestinian brothers and sisters in the  Gaza Strip is the right  priority.

“If the injured victims in the Strip have been treated,  the second priority would be providing cash for the rehabilitation of their devastated homes and buildings,” he said.  ( ant )