This blog is a part of my body of research that seeks to analyse civil society's and academia's understanding of national security models from an academic perspective with a focus on Canada, Israel and the UK.
Escape the spring showers and join us for a number of exciting events and training workshops coming up. Please read on for more details and add these dates to your diaries!
10th, 12th & 24th April 6.30pm: Peace begins with me - Attuning to peace through the breath
A new mini-series of workshops on how to access a more peaceful self through the power of conscious breathing, run by Viviana Esse, a community mediator, who is currently researching breath-work in the context of her training as a psychotherapist. For more information and registration click here.
Tues 20th May 10am: Understanding Conflict
A full-day interactive workshop as the first part of our conflict resilience training, discussing how we can understand and map conflict in faith communities. For more information and registration click here.
Tues 3rd June 10am: Processing Conflict
The second instalment of our training, exploring emotions surrounding conflict and providing tools to process these challenges. For more information and registration click here.
Tues 24th June 10am: Communicating in Conflict
The third part of our training, exploring how we can communicate effectively and honestly through challenging issues. For more information and registration click here.
Tues 1st July 10am: Moving through Conflict
Our final workshop of the series, looking at how we can see the opportunity in conflict and move through it resiliently. For more information and registration click here.
8th and 9th Sept 10am: Conflict Coaching for Faith Leaders
This course is linking our Conflict Coaching model with the Conflict Resilience Programme for Faith Communities, with a follow-up day on 20th Oct. This will be of interest to anyone in faith leadership, or a position of responsibility in any faith. For more information and registration click here.
More news...
27th Mar 6pm: St Ethelburga's choir concert
Join us for a spectaular performance of different songs from around the world. For more information click here.
Accountant/book keeper vacancy
We are looking to appoint an accountant/book keeper with charity experience for one day per week on a freelance basis. Apply to justine@stethelburgas.org.
You can find more details on all our upcoming events here.
We look forward to seeing you at the centre soon, The St Ethelburga's Team.
The story of Irish emigration to England spans decades and reasons vary from social to economic. As Buckingham Palace welcomes a delegation of over 300 people from the Irish community living in Britain, we take a look back to 1969 when a series of programmes from 'Horizon: The Other Man's Grass' looked at the plight of the Irish in Britain.
Part 2 of this four-part Horizon special 'No Room at the Palace' broadcast on 26 March 1969 looks at the housing problems faced by the Irish emigrating to Britain.
This excerpt from the programme visits the Irish Centre in London. which was opened in the 1950s by a group of priests and lay men. The centre acts primarily as a welfare centre, helping Irish people to find jobs and providing somewhere to live.
The Irish Centre has a number of hostels where short term accommodation can be provided. The normal charge for a "boy" to stay at the hostel is four pounds a week, which includes meals. The charge for a "girl" is less. The hostel is used as a stop gap until the emigrants get used to living in the city of London.
The Irish Centre also acts as a social setting for the Irish community living in London and organises events to bring them together. This excerpt includes a group of men including a priest talking about the future of the Irish Centre and the plans for expansion.
One of the commentators features in this clip is Father Eamon Casey, director of the Catholic Housing Aid Society, who talks about the loneliness of life in London. Members of the Irish Community at the Irish Centre, 1969.
Tomorrow, March 8, is International Women's Day. As a feminist member of Knesset, who began my activist career 18 years ago working for the Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel, an NIF grantee, I want to celebrate this day with you, my friends and partners outside Israel.
As you may know, last week, I was part of a team of Knesset members who submitted a bill that would enable women to become director-general of the rabbinic courts. I'm proud to say that the bill passed an initial reading, and just received the support of a key ministerial committee. In speaking about the bill in the Knesset, I explained that the days when women are forbidden to enter places simply because they are women are long gone. These days, women play an active and visible role shaping and interpreting the world we live in. Today, I'm proud to be one of 27 women in the Knesset, the largest representation of women in the Israeli government thus far, working to make equality and social justice more possible for everyone.
For the past 100 years, since women were granted the right to vote and run for electoral office in the United States and in other western nations, we've made enormous strides. We fought and earned the right to own property, the right to education, the right to the integrity and autonomy of our bodies, the right to represent and be represented, and much more.
Yet, many challenges remain. For example, the economy in Israel still does not sufficiently recognize and reward women's housework and child-rearing; the security apparatus in Israel is narrowly defined and often fails to recognize the needs of women living through political conflict; there are still daunting wage gaps between women and men in the workforce; a disproportionate number of women are victims of sexual assault and violence; and women continue to be under-represented in most institutions; worldwide, women hold only 1% of wealth.
On this International Women's Day, I invite you to join me in rethinking our economy, laws, and governing institutions, so that—together--we can create a world that is truly equitable and inclusive. A world that listens to women's voices would be a world in which there is zero tolerance for rape and sexual violence; a world in which sexuality is personal choice and not a commodity; a world that helps and supports young girls and boys and the families that raise them. On this International Women's Day, I invite you to join me in reimagining our world, so that it can become a just and equitable place for all of us and for those who will come after us.
I've had many opportunities to collaborate with the New Israel Fund, and to witness closely the profound impact it has in Israel. NIF's support for women's organizations is critical for our ability to create a truly just, equitable, and inclusive society. Thank you very much for all that you have done over the past 35 years, and all that you continue to do. I look forward to working -- together -- towards a just, peaceful, and democratic Israel.
With gratitude,
MK Merav Michaeli
MK Merav Michaeli is a member of Knesset from the Labor Party, and is currently Chair of the Caucus for Female Knesset Members, as well as a member of the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee. To get in touch with MK Merav Michaeli, email michaelim@knesset.gov.il.
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT DELEGATION TO PALESTINE PRESS STATEMENT
Leader of the delegation, Chris Davies MEP, said:
Members of the European Parliament's official delegation to Palestine have made this visit to strengthen our understanding of the circumstances of the Palestinian people and assess the state of the peace process between Israeli and Palestine.
As so often in the past we are disappointed, indeed outraged, to hear yet again of the injustices of Israel's illegal occupation of Palestine - of confiscations and of demolitions, of settlement building and of the exclusion of Palestinians from so much of their own land, of humiliations and of killing, with the Israeli perpetrators facing nothing by way of punishment.
The European Union criticises Israel for all these things but we regret that the EU's words are too rarely followed by action. On the contrary, relations between the EU and Israel remain very close and we fear that Israel will too often assume this amounts to tacit support for its behaviour. We call upon the European Union to apply more pressure on Israel to change its ways, and we do this because we are friends of both Palestinians and Israeli and we believe it is in the interests of all that the occupation is brought to a swift end.
At the end of this week the Israeli Government is due to release the fourth group of 29 Palestinian prisoners in accord with the agreement made with President Abbas. It would be judged an act of very bad faith if the Israeli government were not to honour its pledge. Palestinians would be entirely within their rights were they then to choose to approach the many United Nations bodies with a view to obtaining membership, recognition and action.
So far as the peace process is concerned let me say that we are absolutely convinced by the sincerity of the Palestinian administration wish to engage constructively and secure an outcome that can enable a viable Palestinian seat to exist in peace alongside Israel. But we have not spoken to a single Palestinian who believes this same commitment is shared by the Government of Israel. We have encountered deep cynicism and a widespread belief that Israel wants a peace process solely to provide itself with cover from criticism while it continued to build settlements! change the facts on the ground and make the creation of an independent Palestinian state impossible.
We deeply regret to learn that after 8 months of discussion no agreement has been reached about final status issues. The possible solutions have many times been explored and well known. Instead of going forwards the peace process seems to have gone backwards, with Israel placing new demands on the table and demanding Palestinian acceptance. This confirms the impression that Israel has no will to take the steps necessary to secure success.
If Israel seeks to deny the creation of an independent Palestinian state we ask all Israel's to reflect on what the future holds. As Europeans the word 'occupation' brings to mind thoughts of a terrible past. No people can be expected to tolerate a military occupation for ever. If Palestinians are denied independence and refused justice then they will adopt alternative strategies to secure their rights as human beings equal in every way to Israelis.
The European Union should support them in the achievement of these aspirations.
CHRIS DAVIES MEP - UK NORBERT NEUSER MEP - GERMANY NICOLE KIIL-NEUSER MEP - FRANCE
The Association of the Palestinian Community in the UK and the Palestine Film Foundation invite you to join us at Riverside Studios in Hammersmith, London on Sunday April 13th for a soaring double-bill...
FLYING PAPER Nitin Sawhney & Roger Hill / 2013 Documentary / 71min + ASPACE EXODUS Larissa Sansour / 2009 Fiction / 5min
FLYING PAPER documents a spectacular quest by Palestinian children in the Gaza Strip to break the World Record for the most kites ever flown. Co-produced with young Palestinians trained by the filmmakers through a youth media programme (Voices Beyond Walls), the film is a celebration of creative resilience. Scored by the co-director's namesake, renowned British composer Nitin Sawhney, Flying Paper mixes animated sequences with breathtaking footage of the record-breaking bid and warm portraits of the film's protagonists.
A captivating journey into Gazan kite culture - borne aloft by the playful humour and indomitable spirit of the kiteflyers themselves!
A SPACE EXODUS adapts a passage of Stanley Kubrick's Space Odyssey, following the director on a phantasmagorical journey through the stars – the first Palestinian into space. Sansour's moon-landing evokes Armstrong's ("a small step for a Palestinian, a giant leap for mankind"), but this witty short touches on experiences of displacement and statelessness as much as it does those of space travel or moon-landings…
Save the date. A rare chance to see Lebanese director Bourhan Alaouie's classic dramatisation of the events surrounding the 1956 massacre of Kafr Kassem. With new and improved English subtitles.
From 19 to 22 March, the Polish National Police, the European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) at Europol, and eBay, joined forces to successfully dismantle a criminal group responsible for a spate of sophisticated online auction frauds across Europe and beyond.
Hundreds of victims from at least 15 countries including Poland, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, Netherlands, Spain, UK, USA, Canada and India, were potentially affected by the scam, involving the fictitious sale of electronic items via online auctions hosted on eBay and other online Polish platforms. After making electronic payments for goods such as Apple Mac computers, customers were instead sent items such as bricks, fruit and vegetables. In the case of eBay customers, nothing at all was sent. Once electronic funds were received by the fraudsters, they were transferred to unregistered pre-paid cards and cash was withdrawn via ATMs. Customers shopping on eBay are protected by a Money Back Guarantee but the fraud exposure would otherwise have amounted to tens of thousands of euros since 2013.
Despite the criminals' sophisticated attempts to mask their online identities and activities, using an intelligence-led approach, Police from Lubin and Pulawy in Poland, alongside EC3 cyber experts and eBay representatives, carried out a series of strikes against the group. Two key suspects were arrested in Pulawy while attempting to withdraw fraudulently obtained cash from an ATM. Subsequent house searches led to the seizure of items including anonymous pre-paid cards, cars, laptops, mobile phones.
EC3 cyber experts assisted Polish law enforcement authorities by providing on-the-spot expertise and real time access to Europol's databases. eBay also supported the case from their Dublin operations centre by assisting police to trace criminal online activity via live monitoring systems.
"This successful case is a perfect example of very effective cooperation between eBay, the Polish National Police and the EC3 in a crime that affected victims from more than 15 countries on three continents. By working together, sharing information and coordinating this investigation in multiple jurisdictions we have proven that the criminals might be able to run but they can't hide. Together with eBay and other companies operating online, and the hard-working cybercrime experts in the EU Member States and abroad, we will continue to optimise our investigative methods and put more criminals behind bars," said Troels Oerting, Head of the European Cybercrime Centre (EC3) at Europol.
EC3 would like to praise the Polish police investigators and technical staff at eBay for their dedication and professionalism displayed during the execution of this operation.
The success of this operation will undoubtedly impact citizens across Europe and beyond as they see yet another organised criminal group removed from the rapidly expanding e-commerce sector. It also provides a warning to those engaged in online fraud - with such a significant increase in international multi-agency cooperation, anonymity for criminals on the Internet is fast becoming a thing of the past.
Europol Corporate Communications P.O. Box 908 50 2509 LW The Hague The Netherlands
Canada and Israel Reinforce Cooperation on Combatting Nuclear Terrorism
March 24, 2014 - Canada's Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird and Israel's Minister of Intelligence Yuval Steinitz today announced that Canada and Israel will partner on a project that will help combat the threat of nuclear terrorism and address threats to nuclear security worldwide. The announcement was made during their meeting on the margins of the Nuclear Security Summit in The Hague, Netherlands.
"The threat of nuclear terrorism remains one of the most significant and serious global security challenges in the world today," said Minister Baird. "Canada's partnership with Israel on this forensics initiative will help enable states in the Middle East and elsewhere to prosecute dangerous criminals engaged in illicit nuclear activities."
Minister Steinitz stated that "Israel has vast experience with dealing with terror activities and stands ready to share its experience in this regard. Israel is cooperating with its partners to develop advanced technical nuclear forensics capabilities to deter illicit use of nuclear materials."
The project will be implemented under the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism, a multilateral technical forum in which Canada and Israel are members that focuses on strengthening operational responses to the threat of nuclear and radiological terrorism. The project will be funded by Canada's Global Partnership Program.
A backgrounder follows.
- 30 -
For further information, media representatives may contact:
Media Relations Office Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada 613-995-1874 media@international.gc.ca Follow us on Twitter: @DFATDCanada
Backgrounder - Cooperating with Israel to Combat Nuclear Terrorism
Through its Global Partnership Program, Canada will contribute $150,000 toward the project, which will include funding for:
international technical capacity-building exercises designed to identify methods and techniques that best support the prosecution of criminal activities involving radiological- or nuclear-related material; and
the development of processes to support traditional forensic analysis (e.g. genetic and fingerprint analyses) conducted on radioactive evidence.
The project will be implemented under the Global Initiative to Combat Nuclear Terrorism (GICNT), a multilateral technical forum focused on strengthening operational responses to the threat of nuclear and radiological terrorism.
Established in 2006 by the United States and Russia, the GICNT now includes 85 countries whose objective is to strengthen operational-level cooperation to combat global terrorism. The International Atomic Energy Agency, the European Union, the International Criminal Police Organization and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime also participate as observers and play important roles in contributing technical resources and expertise.
Israel's Exploitation of Palestinian Water Resources
On International Water Day, we are recirculating a previously published brief by the PLO-Negotations Affairs Department entitled " Israel's Exploitation of Palestinian Water Resources".
"The World Health Organization recommends a minimum domestic waterconsumption of 100 liters percapita per day. The average individual Palestinian domestic consumption, at 70 liters per day, falls 30 liters below this minimum, while the average Israeli consumes three times the recommended minimum (280 liters)."
![[image - MK Merav Michaeli]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/proxy/AVvXsEi76lEx_HFTXOP6qz_svIbtAKzerooM4mw5bv72QyAtxHrdr01wxaWfVZHeSjM-2DmE2mXkrG5S3kGl5TIs55khNrIDPjVkR5W37bj5eIC1AXOFc-x14cKkOHlf3jGjMAFGPsu2aWEDKLn5KIAZLX8Tecu_gyKsGgA8c5W7DdcA4FnvoMKZE3jnH8PkhsI=s0-d-e1-ft)
