AL-GHORBA

History has just been made and I am overwhelmed that we have reached a historic point for Australian Labor Party to Adopt the motion for recognition of Palestine Unanimously.

The Australian Labor Party National Conference has just unanimously agreed to Call on the next Labor Government to Recognise Palestine. Moved by Current shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong and seconded by Tony Burke,shadow Minister and Federal member for Watson to the applause of conference e delegates. This is a historic moment for the Australian Labor Party and the Australian people.

I am Proud to be at the ALPs National Conference in Adelaide, beautiful South Australia with so many Labor delegates from across the nation working hard and competing on policy ideas that would take our nation into a Just and better future serving the nation and our people. Proud to be at the conference supporting the next Bill Shorten Labor Government that will lead a Government with a focus for a Fair Go For all Australians. Whether it is in the regions or rural areas or in cities, about families and children and about work and employment, about health and education and fair work with fair pay. Proud to be a member of the Union and to see so many Unions supporting fairness for all. Proud to be a member of a Party that has the vision for much better public transport, recognition of local government and Multicultural Australia,an Australian Republic and proud of our Labor Leader’s announcement yesterday for an Independent foreign policy decisions. I hope that will bring us a fairer, Just and peaceful world with greater focus on justice for all people dispossessed. Of particular importance to me yesterday morning was the long awaited drive for Constitutional Recognition of our Aboriginal & Torres Straits Islander Australians and today the conference’ unanimous call for recognition of Palestine.

I feel a great sense of pride that through a democratic process beginning with discussions with Labor’s rank and file leading to branch motions to the State Labor conferences and now to the National conferences we are on the verge of a Labor Government in Power formally Recognising Palestine. Turning decades of stubborn and unfair opposition.

To know that daily Palestinians are losing their homes and land and hope as well as their lives to an expanding Israeli settlements and for us to sit idle and do nothing was painful . With emboldened military occupation of the West Bank, the crippling blockade of Gaza, and the refugees trapped in camps over the borders in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan and elsewhere, left the Palestinians people in desperate and utterly intolerable situations. Their state is even more intolerable today under extreme right wing Netanyahu Government unwilling to support a Palestinian date or even to relinquish settlements but to expand settlements and introduce apartheid laws that made life under occupation even more unlivable.

The only way out was for international pressure by way of recognition of the State of Palestine, the Keneset and hard line political parties in Israel had long sought to deny the Palestinian people.

As an Australian I believed we have a responsibility to help see a just solution for the Palestinian people despite the extreme right-wing Governments who have and continue to crush any hope for a brokered peace process. A peace that is well overdue for us in Labor to commit to and embrace as a new policy that would be a beacon of hope.

The Recognition of Palestine is and always was the right thing to do. In partnership with 138 other countries, Australia would not allow the disappearance of a Palestinian State and for the Palestinian right to self-determination.

Labor’s decision to Vote today for recognition is in keeping with the 2017 Morgan Poll revealing that 73% of Australians support ed recognition of Palestine.

I am proud to have been part of this Labor movement. The Labor party in unity with the union movement to do justice to the indigenous Australians through constitutional recognition and in the same conference and on the next day Call for Recognition of the rights of the Palestinian people to self determination and recognise Palestine.

On Palestine Tony Burke has been negotiating in good spirits with Richard Miles. In a Spirit of real trust. Both Richard and Tony given the task of negotiations have delivered with the support of the General Secretary of NSW Iron Lady Ms Kaila Murnain. I am grateful to her and to my friend the next PM of Australia Mr Bill Shorten without him Palestine recognition would not happen. will be done by cabinet. I thank BobCarr, Gareth Evans Kevin Rudd, Bob Hawk Chris Hays and many others for their support. This would not have progressed to this point without them.

I wanted to and was ready and itching to speak as was Chris Hayes another federal member and a great supporter but the case was left to Tony Burke and Penny Wong to speak. No one else.

I was interested in the results and the motion to recognise carried seamlessly between the Left and Right wings of the party. Here I thank Anthony Albanese and once again our giant proponent and key that opened many of the locks and removed the road blocks along the way, Bob, Bob Carr, Professor the Hon Bon Carr.

I thank the tank and file members of the ALP who moved motion after motion after motion recognising Palestine. Gratitude to them for standing up for justice and through them the rank and file sent a strong message to the ALP and its industrial arm and here I am grateful for the support from Secretary of the NSW Unions NSW Me Mark Morey and the many Union secretaries from the Right and the Left. I thank people like former Federal MP Wendy Turner and organisations such as The Arabic Friends of Labor and Labor Friends of Palestine.

On behalf of The people of Palestine I salute my comrades in The ALP for what it is, a party of social conscience, a party of Social justice, a party in which I am proud to be a member for the past 36 years. Labor is the party for fairness and justice for all. Labor is the party for all disposed people all over the world and a party for a Fair Go For All Australians.

Translator: Hassan Hegazy (Egypt)

The unknown that is buried behind my heart
I much fear it condensing illusion
Over the ledges of its cover
I fear it concealing in its soft fine clouds
the moons of my dream
For fear that the hand of my mind to stretch,
shaking me ..
Waking me up..
With a cynical blame
from the wandering of my agonies
*
How can I grant you my heart now
and it was kidnapped by the angels of love
To a space in the open air
*
How can the vibrations of desires to calm down
when they ripple lightly in the spaces of fantasy?
How and its echo splitting the veil of the will
and stop towards them helpless ..
strayed, out of soul !
*
Ah …!
How miserable is the woman
When she is taken, with constrained desire,
to the dungeon of her impossible dreams..
As if longing is dropping the nymphs of dreams
in the depths of their pits
Interbreeding terrible births
Leaving them as love embryos
On their waiting breasts
*
I may have exhausted you;
With the noise of my thoughts,
With the loudness of my heart
I feel guilty
When I stone you with the needles of my senses
And no sin from me to commit
Only you may just incur and suffer
from the crime of my judgment
*
I feel a strange comfort
When I punish you with my revenge
With blemish blame
*
I need you..
With your breeze, I will be my own
And with your dust I will lose my own
So, do not pour the juices of your soul
In the cups of my weakness
Do not pierce the husk of my hopes
I fear you facing its naughty encounter
So do not wake yearning inside me
you have drowned it in fast sleep!
*
Will you overwhelm me every time With the moments of your sorrow and torture,
You may kill fear and suspicion inside me
*
How can I order myself to leave you?
Your heart has occupied me
Your spirit is revealed in the mirrors of my soul
And you are my shadow
Always adjacent to me letter..
My fear..
My kindness..
I am the polished with you / the mortgaged for you
How long I have become a pledge to your charm!
I get frightened when I feel the longing
Clothing me with the dress of sin
I get terrified, running away
Terrified, getting away
So as not to suffer in my loneliness
the needles of pain
Do not let me a quiver
In the windward of isolation pavement
Though those breezes have become the solace for me, comforting me, and have made me sleep!

- Book: A glowing luscious smile
- (poetry) Amal Radwan (Palestinian poet)- First Edition – 2005

فِي مَهَبِّ رَصِيفِ عُـزْلَـةٍ!/ آمال عوّاد رضوان

الْمَجْهُولُ الْيَكْمُنُ .. خَلْفَ قَلْبِي

كَمْ أَرْهَبُهُ .. يَتَكَثَّفُ وَهْمًا

عَلَى .. حَوَافِّ غِلَافِهِ

أَخشَاهُ يَحْجُبُ بِرَائبِ غَيْمِهِ أَقْمَارَ حُلُمِي

أَنْ تَتَطَاوَلَ يَدُ عَقْلِي

تَهُزُّنِي .. تُوقِظُنِي

بِلُؤْمٍ سَاخِرٍ

مِنْ سَكْرَاتِي الْهَائِمَةِ

كَيْفَ أَمنَحُكَ قَلْبِيَ الْآنَ

وَقَدِ اخْتَطفَتْهُ مَلَائِكةُ الْحُبِّ

إِلَى فُسْحَةٍ فِي الْعَرَاءِ؟

كَيْفَ لَهَا أَنْ تَهْدَأَ ذَبْذَبَاتُ الرَّغَبَاتِ

حِينَ تَتَمَاوَجُ فِي فَضَاءَاتِ الْخَيَالِ ؟

كَيْفَ وَصَدَاها يَشُقُّ حِجَابَ الْإِرَادَةِ

وَتَرْكُنَ حِيَالَهَا عَاجِزًا .. شَارِدَ الرُّوحِ !

آهٍ .. مَا أَشْقَاهَا الْمَرْأَةُ

حِينَ تُسَاقُ مُقَيَّدَةَ الرَّغْبَةِ

إِلَى زِنْزَانَةِ أَحْلَامِهَا الْمُسْتَحِيلَةِ

كَأَنَّ الشَّوْقَ يَرْمِي حُورِيَّاتِ الْأَحْلَامِ

فِي سَحِيقِ هَاوِيَاتِهَا

يُهَجِّنُ وِلَادَاتٍ رَهِيبَةٍ

يَتْرُكُهَا أَجِنَّةَ حُبٍّ عَلَى ثَدْيِ انْتِظَارِهَا

قَدْ أَكُونُ أَرْهَقْتُكَ ؛

بِضَجِيجِ فِكْرِي .. بِضَوْضَاءِ قَلْبِي

أَشْعُرُ بِالذَّنْبِ

حِينَمَا أَرْجُمُكَ بِإِبَرِ أَحَاسِيسِي

وَمَا مِن ذَنْبٍ أَقْتَرِفُهُ

سِوَى أَنْ تَتَكَبَّدَ جَرِيمَةَ حُكْمِي

أُحِسُّ برَاحَةٍ غَرِيبَةٍ

حِينَمَا أُوقِعُ بِكَ قِصَاصِي

بِلُؤْمٍ أَبْلَهٍ

أَحْتَاجُ إِلَيْكَ ..

بِنَسِيمِكَ أَكُونُ مَلَكْتُنِي

وَبِغُبَارِكَ أَكُونُ خَسِرْتُنِي

فَلَا تَسْكُبْ عُصَاراتِ رُوحِكَ

فِي كُؤُوسِ ضَعْفِي

وَلَا تَقُضَّ قِشْرَةَ آمَالِي

أَرْهَبُ عَلَيْكَ مُنَازَلَتَهَا الشَّقِيَّةَ

وَلَا تُوقِظْ بِي حَنينًا .. أَغْرَقْتُهُ فِي سُبَاتِ !

لَيْتَكَ تَغْمُرُنِي كُلَّ آنٍ

بِلَحَظَاتِ حُزْنِكَ وَعَذَابِكَ

فَقَدْ تَقتُلُ بِيَ الْخَوفَ وَالشَّكَّ

كَيْفَ آمُرُنِي أَنْ أُغَادِرَكَ ؟

قَلْبُكَ احْتَلَّنِي

رُوحُكَ تَتَجَلَّى فِي مَرَايَا رُوحِي

وَأَنْتَ ظِلِّي الْمُلَاصِقُ

بِحَرْفِي .. بِخَوْفِي .. بِعَطْفِي

أَنَا الْمَصْقُولَةُ بِكَ / الْمَرْهُونَةُ لَكَ

كَمْ بِتُّ رَهِينَةَ رَوْعَتِك !

أَرْتَاعُ حِينَمَا أُحِسُّ بِالشَّوْقِ

يُدَثِّرُنِي بِثَوْبِ الْإِثْمِ

أَرْهَبُ وَأَهْرُبُ

كَيْ لَا أُكَابِدَ فِي وَحْدَتِي

مَغَارِزَ الْأَلَمِ

لَا تَتْرُكْنِي رَعْشَةً .. فِي مَهَبِّ رَصِيفِ عُزْلَةٍ

رَغْمَ أَنَّ تِلْكَ النَّسَائمَ أَصْبَحَتْ

تَطِيبُ لِي وَتُغْفِينِي !

من الديوان (بسمة لوزيّة تتوهّج- عام 2005)

A full house at the Annual Christmas Meeting/BBQ of the Arabic Friends of Labor, held jointly with Bexley and Brighton Branches of the Australian Labor party with key note speaker former President of The NSW Legislative Council, The Hon Amanda Fazio, who is also Co-Chair of the Labor Union Multicultural Action Committee. The event was attended by a wonderful gathering of party members and community representatives. It was so well attended that the next meeting will need a bigger hall.

On behalf of Bexley and Brighton Branches Secretary and Councillor Tarek Ibrahim welcomed all and in particular many distinguished members of the community including the Mayor of Bayside, His Worship, Councillor Bill Saravinovski, Deputy Mayor Clr Joe Awada as well as the Hon Shaoquett Moselmane, Opposition Whip in the legislative Council NSW and Convenor of the Arabic Friends of Labor, Mr Mark Buttigieg ETU representative and future member of the NSW Upper House, as well as Louay Moustapha, Secretary of the Barton Federal Electoral Council ALP and of Course, our long-time friend the Hon Amanda Fazio.

After welcoming all and wishing every one Merry Christmas and a happy new year, the Mayor handed the Microphone over to the Hon Shaoquett Moselmane who spoke about Scott Morrisons irresponsible and irrational policy of shifting the Australian Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem against not only international law, the international community but also the majority of the Australian community, 73% of whom in a 2017 Morgan Poll indicated their support for recognition of a Palestinian state. Mr Moselmane condemned Scott Morrison’s desperate stance but noted that his time and that of the Morrison Government is terminal and will cease to exist at the next federal elections. Shaoquett Compared Labor Policy for peace and for a Palestinian State against the destructive Conservative policy that goes against peace in the Middle East. He also noted that as a delegate to Labor’s National Conference in Adelaide this weekend He is looking forward to Labor recognising Palestine.

Shaoquett also noted that the Berejiklian government has faltered if not on the verge of collapse, is increasingly desperate trying to hang on to power now that the people of NSW have expressed anger with their policy agenda of Tolls and more Road Tolls, aggressive sale of public assets and wasteful spending of $2.5 Billion on demolition of two perfectly good stadiums instead of spending on Health and Education where money is most needed.

Shaoquett took great pride in welcoming to the stage the Hon Amanda Fazio who did not hold back from criticising the Morrison Government for its policy failures, its arrogance on Palestine and its unashamed kowtowing to the Zionist lobby on the issue of the Australian embassy shift. She spoke about the need for further scrutiny of the Government and supported calls for a federal ICAC. Amanda then congratulated the New Opposition Leader as Shaoquett had done and looked forward for unity amongst the multicultural communities to stand together and at the next election turf the conservative Morrison and Berejiklian governments out and bring in a Shorten Labor Government and a Daley Labor government in NSW.

UAE October 14, 2018: In line with its strategic vision to enhance its presence in the Middle East, Infosysta today announced its second participation in the GITEX Technology Week, which its 38th round will be held from 14-18 October at Dubai World Trade Center. Infosysta is a pioneer company in software development, smart management solutions and applications; it is as well the strategic partner of Atlassian International in the region. The company's participation aim is to bring its latest solutions and applications to the region in order to contribute effectively to the digital transformation drive in government and private sectors. Atlassian solutions have supported more than 80,000 customers worldwide over the few past years, according to Gartner magic quadrant report issued by the Gartner International Research Foundation.

Through its special participation in the exhibition, Infosysta seeks to communicate effectively with its customers in the GCC and Egypt and highlight the constructive contribution of Atlassian's global solutions to the culmination of client companies and foundations’ strategies with unique success stories that have consolidated the concept of digital transformation with a bunch of competitive advantages includes speed, flexibility, quality and efficiency.

"We are proud of this participation, especially in the presence of our strategic partner, Atlassian," commented Feras Al Hajjar, Infosysta President. "This outstanding presence reflects our belief in the importance of staying in constant touch to monitor the requirements and needs of existing and new customers to achieve digital transformation In line with the changing global trends. Moreover, it is expected to unveil the future highlights of the expansion and achieve growth rates of up to $ 20 million by 2020."

"Our unique portfolio of services and technical expertise over the past years has been instrumental in strengthening our role in promoting the development of Arab governments and institutions and increasing our business in the next year 2019, especially in the GCC and Middle Eastern markets in general. We firmly believe that Jira is the winning betting platform for all organizations looking for smart, flexible, quality and efficient management systems."

Established in 2012, Infosysta has shown impressive growth rates in recent years up to 300%; it currently operates in five countries - the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and England - with headquarters in Dubai. Infosysta customers include government agencies such as Dubai Smart Government, Dubai Police, Emirates Post Group, STC, MBC Group and Orange, as well as banks, banking institutions, universities and others.

The Hon. SHAOQUETT MOSELMANE (22:43): I make a short contribution on this terrible drought that our State is currently experiencing. It is a crisis that is likely to be the worst for many decades. Farmers consider this drought to be the worst they have faced for years, which is impacting on them emotionally and financially. The drought has hit other States but New South Wales has been hit hardest. Approximately 99 per cent of the State is officially in drought. With grazing pastures turned to dust and feed scarce, the drought is having an impact on livestock and farmers alike. Desperate farmers are being forced to slaughter livestock by the thousands and it will take years for their numbers to recover. Farmers are struggling financially and are in psychological distress. Australia's culture of mateship and solidarity has always been an essential part of our national identity. People go out of their way to assist their brothers and sisters in need. They step up to the challenge when any part of our society is in need of help. This is what we have seen across multicultural Australia. We feel a great sense of pride when we see communities step up and join in to raise funds to help farmers who are devastated by this drought. Those communities have stood side by side to help drought-affected farmers.

In the middle of September Muslim Aid Australia, in partnership with other Muslim charities in New South Wales and Queensland, delivered 33 tonnes of hay bales to farmers hit hard by the ongoing drought. Three trucks rolled into Goondiwindi on the New South Wales and Queensland border, where the aid was delivered to dozens of farmers who are struggling to survive. Many more truckloads of hay bales are planned for distribution to farmers during October. On Sunday 23 September 2018 Human Appeal Australia commenced a charity ride organised by Sydney Muslim cyclists. More than $90,000 was raised for our drought-stricken farmers. The funds raised provided food hampers, water and hay bales for livestock as well as case support for some financial relief. Many mosques and Islamic centres across Australia have used the holy festivities to raise funds for affected farmers and their families. In early August a car convoy from the Russian, Indian and Nepalese communities left Sydney, delivering much-needed food and water to drought-stricken farmers in regional New South Wales, including canned food, coffee, toiletries and more than 8,500 litres of drinking water.

On 14 August the Pakistan Association of Australia celebrated Pakistan Independence Day, marking the nation's seventy-first anniversary with a fundraiser for drought relief. The United Indian Associations [UIA] Incorporated organised a walk from Sydney to Canberra to raise funds for drought relief in New South Wales. It called its initiative Our Farmers, Our Pride. On Saturday 22 September, UIA members set off from Parramatta and will arrive in Canberra on Monday 1 October. They hope to raise $150,000 for drought-stricken families. The Australian Chinese Community Association joined in the fundraising by holding a community drought relief charity concert, bringing together artists with big hearts, raising donations from many of their warm-hearted members. Mateship and multiculturalism have gone hand in hand, bringing the best out of our people regardless of their cultural origin, religion or ethnicity.

Australians have come together to provide the best they can for their colleagues in need. The drought has brought our multicultural communities closer, strengthening our bound. From adversity comes goodness and from diversity comes unity. I am delighted to note that my good friend the first Mayor of Bayside, His Worship Councillor Bill Saravinovski—otherwise known as "the people's mayor"—has thrown down a challenge to other councils. Bayside Council will donate $5,000 with an additional $1,000 for every donation of $5,000 that other councils make. I am informed that a number of councils have responded to the mayor's challenge. To date, they have raised $394,000, and there is more to come. On behalf of our hardworking farmers, I thank all our community groups, individuals, councils and institutions that have made a contribution towards drought relief by whatever means.