INDONESIANS COLLECT DONATIONS TO PROVIDE AID TO GAZA RESIDENTS by Fardah

    Jakarta, July 14, 2014 (Antara) - Indonesia, a staunch supporter of Palestinians in their struggle for independence, has been prompt in demonstrating its moral and financial support for Gaza residents, who are currently facing incessant air strikes launched by Israel.

         Numerous street rallies against Israeli military attacks were organized in several Indonesian cities and condemnations were voiced by the Indonesian government and public.

        As for concrete actions, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and presidential candidates, Prabowo Subianto and Joko Widodo (Jokowi), pledged to offer financial assistance to Gaza residents, while various NGOs and university students have begun to collect funds from the public.

        After a plenary cabinet meeting presided over by the president on July 11, 2014, Coordinating Minister for Political, Security and Legal Affairs Djoko Suyanto informed the press that the Indonesian government will provide one million US dollars to Palestine.       
    "The best way of helping is to provide money because it is easier to channel. The money will be transferred to the Hamas or Fatah government. The Indonesian government is preparing humanitarian aid worth one million US dollars," Suyanto stated.

        The minister noted that the Indonesian government will facilitate if the people take the initiative to extend assistance.

        "The condition and situation are now difficult. The Indonesian foreign minister will communicate directly with the Palestinian government. We hope the people will provide assistance in the form of cash," the coordinating minister added.

        Indonesian President Yudhoyono has condemned the Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip, Palestine. The head of state emphasized that he continued to take efforts to end the violence through diplomatic channels at the United Nations (UN), the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), and the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).

        Yudhoyono remarked that he will communicate with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, who is the current chairman of NAM, to discuss the Palestinian problem.

        "I will communicate with the Iranian president in his capacity as the chairman of NAM to discuss what can be done to end the violence," he affirmed.

         "Indonesia condemns Israel's military offensive in Gaza. It is an act that has caused a lot of casualties in Palestine, and it has created a new obstacle in the efforts to create a condition conducive for the continuation of peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine," Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa stressed.

        In a mass rally organized in Hotel Indonesia (HI) circle after the Friday prayers on July 11, presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto announced a donation amounting to one billion rupiah for the Palestinians.

       "Action needs to be taken to help our Palestinians brothers and sisters by collecting donation, even though just a few, and today, I donate one billion rupiah," Prabowo stated.

          During the rally participated by thousands of Islamic organizations' members from the Prosperous and Fairness Party (PKS), Islamic Defense Troops (LPI), and Islamic Defense Front (FPI), among several others, the retired military general declared that he also planned to send volunteers to Gaza.

           Prabowo Subianto stressed that Israel's military offensive is against humanity, and Indonesia has urged Israel to stop its bombardment of the Gaza Strip. If he wins the presidential election, Prabowo claimed that he will visit Palestine to demonstrate Indonesia's support for the complete freedom of Palestine.

          His rival, Jokowi, was recently quoted by Republika online as saying that he will donate the remaining money from his Rp295-billion presidential campaign fund to Palestine.  
    In several Indonesian cities such as Pontianak (West Kalimantan), Mataram (West Nusa Tenggara), Jayapura (Papua), Medan (North Sumatra), Gorontalo (Sulawesi),  Bangka Belitung (Sumatra), Riau Province, and Yogyakarta, the public raised money to be donated to the Gaza residents.

         The fund-raising activity was part of an effort to provide aid for the human tragedy in Palestine, Chief of the Pontianak chapter of the Indonesian Young Businessmen Association (Hipmi) G. Indra Kusnadi noted on July 12.

         The students of the state-run Gorontalo University and North Sumatra University also raised funds to help the Palestinian people suffering due to the Israeli attacks.

           The Gorontalo students condemned the Israeli attacks, especially since most of the victims were women and children, Chairman of the university's student executive board, Supandi Rahman, remarked here on Saturday. 
     "Through this action, we hope the people in the Gorontalo province will donate for the well-being of the Palestinian people," he added.

          The Gorontalo students will continue to raise funds as long as the Israeli soldiers continued their offensive on Palestine, Rahman affirmed.

          In the meantime, Medan's students stated that the collected funds will be donated through the Indonesian Red Crescent (BSMI) to the Palestinian people who have been suffering due to the Israeli brutality.

         "The health ministry in Gaza reported that, as of Saturday, 105 Palestinians were killed, and half of them were women and children. More than 700 others were injured. We are very concerned about the situation, and therefore, we are collecting funds to help the Palestinian victims," Latifa, one of the Medan students, stated.

         Meanwhile, a local ulema in Kendari, Southeast Sulawesi, urged some 1.5 billion Muslims throughout the world to pray for the safety of the Palestinian people and the protection of the Al-Aqsa Mosque.      
    "Rasulullah (the Prophet Muhammad SAW) had said that there are three types of prayers that will be heard and answered by Allah. First, prayers offered by those who are traveling; second, prayers offered by those who are being oppressed; and third, prayers offered by those who are fasting. So, our prayers during this Ramadan fasting month are answered. Let us pray for the safety of Palestine and the protection of the Al-Aqsa Mosque," Zezen Zainal Mursalin from Muadz Bin Jabal Islamic Boarding School noted on July 12.

         Muslims all over the world are brothers and sisters, and they cannot be separated by the country's borders, social ranks, or races. As fellow Muslims, Indonesian Muslims should not engage in worldly pleasures, sleep soundly, or stay idle while their brothers in Palestine are being oppressed and tyrannized by Israel, he pointed out.

         "The Palestinian people and the nation need their brothers and sisters. We can help them by going there as volunteers. We can give donations or at least we can pray for them," Mursalin added.

            A similar call was previously voiced by Chairman of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) Slamet Effendy Yusuf in Jakarta.

            "Soon, there should be efforts to collect food and medicines that are desperately required for the people in Gaza," Yusuf stated.

          A noted human rights NGO, Kontras (the Commission for Missing People and Victims of Violence), even called on the Indonesian government to establish a fact-finding team to report on the damages and casualties caused by the Israeli military in Gaza, Palestine.

         "We urge the Indonesian government to take appropriate steps to respond to this issue by setting up a fact-finding mission within the next seven days," Kontras Coordinator Haris Azhar notified in a press statement.

         Kontras condemned the brutal air strikes conducted by Israel that had resulted in the deaths of many Palestinians, mostly innocent people that included children and women.

         "The fact-finding team can comprise several members, including government officials, academicians, and civil society organizations," he remarked. 
    The fact-finding team's report can be used as a basis for international organizations, such as the UN and the Arab League, for taking further steps, he pointed out.

         Kontras also urged the government to optimize multilateral approaches through the OIC in promoting peace in the Middle East.

         Haris Azhar believed that the Indonesian government is capable of concretely contributing to the establishment of peace in Gaza, particularly, and Palestine, in general.

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