India joins global march to Jerusalem

March 13, 2012: India has joined other South Asian nations in the ‘Global March to Jerusalem’ to express solidarity with Palestinians. The 'Global March to Jerusalem' (GMJ) was flagged off from New Delhi on March 9 by Ram Vilas Paswan, Member of Parliament (MP). Paswan promised to raise the issue in parliament and take up the matter with the government.

The 54-member delegation was also felicitated by other members of parliament and Palestine Embassy officials in New Delhi. The ceremony commenced with an all-religious prayer and ended with tributes paid to Mahatma Gandhi at Rajghat. "We march in the tradition of the Satyagrahis and with our commitment to non-violent mass action, in our struggle to liberate Palestine," the GMJ-India National Committee said in a statement.

On March 10, the Indian convoy crossed over to Pakistan where it was joined by delegates from Indonesia and Malaysia. The group would reach Jerusalem on March 30, after crossing Egypt, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan. March 30 is marked as the Palestine Land Day. It commemorates the 1976 Israeli attack on peaceful Palestinian demonstrators that claimed six lives and injured 96.

The Palestinians were protesting the confiscation of their land, especially in Galilee. The organisers said the March will highlight the cause of Jerusalem which is considered the key to peace and war in the region and the world.

It will unite the efforts of Palestinians, Arabs, Muslims, Christians and Jews to put an end to Israel’s continuing occupation of Jerusalem and the rest of Palestinian land, they added. Global March to Jerusalem is also being attended by peace activists and supporters from 70 other countries, including Europe, Africa, South America and Australia. The campaign is endorsed by noted figures such as Nobel Peace Prize winners Archbishop Desmond Tutu and Mairead Maguire.