HomeMy WebLinkAbout7/16/2024 Item Public Comment, Gould
Andrew Gould <
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:Draft of Proposed Israel-Palestine Ceasefire Resolution
Attachments:Ceasefire Resolution Draft.pdf
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Hello San Luis Obispo City Council,
My apologies that this submission is rather late for tonight's city council meeting. However, I would
greatly appreciate it if the council could review this proposed resolution calling for a ceasefire in Israel-
Palestine, in showing solidarity with our Palestinian community here in SLO. A written copy will be
submitted this evening.
Thanks,
Andrew Gould
1
A PROPOSED RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF SAN LUIS OBISPO,
CALIFORNIA, CONDEMNING THE HUMANITARIAN DISASTER AND WAR
CRIMES UNFOLDING IN ISRAEL-PALESTINE, AND CALLING FOR AN
IMMEDIATE AND PERMANENT CEASEFIRE
WHEREAS , the people and government of San Luis Obispo are deeply concerned
regarding the escalation in violence in Israel and the Gaza Strip, Palestine targeting civilians;
and
WHEREAS , the Palestinian people have endured, at the hands of the State of Israel,
severe injustices including: ethnic cleansing, the seizure of their land for illegal Israeli
settlement, and extreme violence and repression, combined with a state policy of racial
domination necessary to establish the crime against humanity of apartheid under international
law, as defined by the 1973 Apartheid Convention and the 1998 Rome Statute of the
International Criminal Court, according to reports produced by Amnesty International,
Human Rights Watch, B’Tselem, among others; and
WHEREAS , on October 7, 2023, Hamas militants attacked Israeli communities and
kidnapped around 250 unarmed civilians, and killed around 1,200 others, in acts which
constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law and war crimes; and
WHEREAS, the Israeli government and military have engaged in an extreme and
disproportionate response which has resulted in the displacement of nearly the entirety of
Gaza’s population, consisting of over two million people, and an estimated 186,000 deaths of
unarmed Palestinians or more according to a study entitled “Counting the dead in Gaza:
difficult but essential” published in The Lancet on July 5, 2024; and
WHEREAS , the Israeli military’s campaign has included the deliberate targeting of
civilians en masse and the intentional destruction of essential civilian infrastructure, all of
which constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law and war crimes; and
WHEREAS , the Israeli state is facing credible charges of genocide for the intentional
killing of Palestinians with genocidal intent, brought forth by South Africa, at the
International Criminal Court; and
WHEREAS , the government of the United States continues to provide military
assistance to Israel, despite US law requiring that arms sales be conditioned on their use in
accordance with international humanitarian law; and
WHEREAS , the City of San Luis Obispo condemns anti-semitism,
anti-Palestinianism, anti-Arab racism, and Islamophobia, and pledges to protect its residents
from such discrimination.
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the City of San Luis Obispo
condemns, in the strongest terms, the abuses and war crimes done onto Israeli and Palestinian
civilians; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City of San Luis Obispo calls for the
US, Israel, and Hamas to reach an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Israel-Palestine; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the City of San Luis Obispo supports a peaceful
resolution to the occupation of Palestine and for a transition to full democracy,
self-determination, and a peaceful coexistence for both the Israeli and Palestinian peoples.