Bil'in - Legal proceedings in Montreal, Quebec - Canada (4/06/2009)

Bil'in - Legal proceedings in Montreal, Quebec - Canada (4/06/2009):

"http://www.bilin-village.org

ISRAELI APARTHEID ON TRIAL:
BILIN VS GREEN MOUNT INTERNATIONAL / GREEN PARK INTERNATIONAL
Palestinian villagers to take on a Goliath of an opponent this June in Quebec.

FEATURING:
Mohammed Khatib, Popular Committee Against the Wall, Bilin, Occupied Palestine.
Emily Schaeffer, Israeli lawyer representing the village of Bilin.

Mohammed Khatib of Bilins Popular Committee Against the Wall and the committees lawyer Emily Schaeffer who is bringing forward the case alongside Canadian lead lawyer Mark Arnold will be touring Canada this June. The speaking tour, hitting 11 Canadian cities, will take place in the run-up to a landmark lawsuit that seeks to hold two Canadian corporations accountable for breaches of international law and Canadian domestic law.

The lawsuit, filled at the Quebec Superior Court, pins the Palestinian village of Bilin up against Green Mount International and Green Park International Inc. The two companies, registered in Quebec, are accused of illegally constructing residential buildings and other settlement infrastructure on Bilin territory. The issue of Israeli settlements built in the West Bank and their 480,000 illegal dwellers is at the heart of the debate around the creation of a Palestinian state.

Preliminary court proceedings are scheduled to be held in Montreal June 22, 2009. According to the lawsuit, the lands of Bilin are subject to the rules and obligations of international law because the West Bank is currently under Israeli military occupation. Bilins case against the construction of settlements on its land is based on the provisions of the Geneva Convention and the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, which prohibit an occupying power from transferring its civilian population into territory that it has occupied as a result of war.

The case against Green Park International and Green Mount International seeks an immediate Order from the Canadian Supreme Court calling on the companies to end their illegal activities.

Bilin, a Palestinian village in the West Bank, is an internationally celebrated symbol of Palestinian popular resistance to the Israeli occupation. Since 2005, villagers have led weekly protests against the ongoing construction of the Israeli apartheid wall and illegal settlements on its land. Both Israeli and international solidarity activists also participate in the protests.

A press conference is scheduled Thursday June 4 2009 at 10:30 a.m. on the steps of the Quebec Superior Court. The court is located at 1 Notre Dame East.

Friday, June 19 at 7 p.m.: Mohammed and Emily will be speaking in Montreal at the De Sève Cinema of Concordia University, located at 1400 Blvd. de Maisonneuve West.

Monday June 22 at noon: A rally in solidarity with the village of Bilin will take place in front of the Quebec Superior Court on the first day of the legal proceedings.

The Bilin Tour is organized by Coalition for Justice and Peace in Palestine, Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR), Tadamon!, and Young Jews for Social Justice (YJSJ)."



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