The upgrade of Palestine from an “entity” to a “non-member state” at the United Nations received a lukewarm reaction from netizens – who asked what a ‘symbolic’ gesture like recognising Palestine at the United Nations would do to Palestinians, particularly those living under Israeli occupation and refugees.
From Gaza, Lina Al-Sharif screams:
@livefromgaza: Ramallah is not my capital, Jerusalem is. And ALL of Palestine is my homeland. NO to #Palestine194
Adam Al Aqqad asks:
@Abou_Charlie: Who does #Palestine194 serve? ‘48 Palestinians? [West Bank] Palestinians? Gazan Palestinians? Palestinian refugees?
And he adds:
@Abou_Charlie: Remember, at it’s core, the Palestinian struggle is one of refugees. Our struggle ends with the rights of refugees. #Palestine194
Palestinian Doc Jazz tweets:
@docjazzmusic: Symbolic? We are already drowning in symbolism. Give us back our land, our rights, our freedom, not a ‘symbolic’ gesture u call a ‘state’.
And he adds:
@docjazzmusic: While they support ‘Israel’ politically, economically & militarily, they support Palestine symbolically. And we’re supposed to cheer.
Ahmed Shihab-Eldin notes:
@ASE: So, the UN now recognizes Palestine as a state while recognizing also that Israel Occupies the West Bank & Gaza. Hmm.
At the UN General Assembly meeting last night, 138 countries technically voted in favour of naming Palestine the world’s 194th state by accepting its status as a non-member state at the world body.
The UN GA President Vuk Jeremić tweets:
@UN_PGA: The #Palestine bid is approved by @UN #UNbid Yes – 138 No – 9 Abstain – 41 pic.twitter.com/6wD4EbgT
He shares a copy which lists the countries which voted yes and no and those who abstained from voting [see image below in original article- link can be found at the bottom of the page}
The countries that voted against the motion were Israel, Canada, Nauru, Palau, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Panama, the Czech Republic and the United States – giving netizens the chance to learn about some of the countries they have never heard of before.
Israeli Maya Norton quips:
@mayanorton: This is the most press I’ve ever read on Nauru, Palau, the Marshall Islands & Micronesia. It’s almost like it was a PR decision.
Criticism flew in all directions and no one was spared. Some were not convinced about the UN itself – and the role it plays. Muiz shares his thoughts on how he feels about the UN:
@muiz: UN is a shining beacon of why words are so hollow & actions substantive. So much verbal support for #Palestine – so little tangible action
The US too got its fair share of criticism. Samar Dahmash Jarrah tweets:
@ArabVoicesSpeak: As often, the USA will stand on the wrong side of history #UNBID
And Iraqi Mina Al-Oraibi finds Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi giving a speech at the same time as the vote as unacceptable. She tweets:
@AlOraibi: Cannot believe Egyptian President chose to air his interview at same time of vote on Palestine! Talk about unacceptable
And she continues:
@AlOraibi: From decades, Arab Presidents and politicians abuse the Palestinian cause – sad to see Morsy is no less inconsiderate.In Bethlehem, George Hale shares this photograph [above], which shows Palestinian leader Mahmood Abbas’ UN speech screened on a separation wall with Israel:
@georgehale: Photo – Scene in Bethlehem where Abbas’ UN speech was screened on Israel’s wall pic.twitter.com/sUTT6KjQ
From Ramallah, Rania Zabaneh tweets scenes of celebration:
@RZabaneh: And the #UNBid party goes on in Ramallah: Everyone is cheering to the tunes of “i3linha ya sh3bi” [Translation: Announce it, My People]. Picture: pic.twitter.com/CN5XYZgo
Overall, however, there was a positive vibe online. Just before the vote, Dima Khatib notes:
@Dima_Khatib: Regardless of effectiveness of #UNBid: beautiful support for Palestine by majority of nations in the world, against the will of Israel/US
Meanwhile, in Israel, Joseph Dana tweets:
@ibnezra: In a country of roughly 7 million people, around 500 Israelis are protesting, in Tel Aviv, in favour of Palestine Statehood at the UN now.
and he later jokes:
@ibnezra: Breaking: Vatican angry that Palestine will soon encroach on its unique and ultimately feckless status at the United Nations
For more on the conversation, check out the hashtags #Palestine194 and #UNBid.
Further Reading:
Reuters: Q+A-What’s all the fuss about a Palestinian U.N. upgrade?
Source: Global Voices
Link:globalvoicesonline.org/2012/11/30/palestine-gets-symbolic-upgrade-at-united-nations/