OneVoice Asks Can People Power Save the Two-State Solution

LONDON, March 1, 2011 - Foreign Affairs Shadow Minister Stephen Twigg
(stephentwiggmp.co.uk/home) joined OneVoice
(www.onevoicemovement.org) on Monday for an event at the House of
Commons to explore whether people power has been the missing element in
delivering a two-state solution
(www.onevoicemovement.org/about-onevoice).

    (Photo: photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110228/DC56161)
    (Logo:  photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110117/DC31246LOGO-b)

Parliamentarians and concerned citizens alike packed the Wilson Room, at
Portcullis House, to firsthand witness the determined optimism Tal Harris,
executive director of OneVoice Israel
(www.onevoicemovement.org/programs/onevoice-israel.php), and Rami
Rabayah, senior OneVoice Palestine
(www.onevoicemovement.org/programs/onevoice-palestine.php) youth
activist, possess for achieving a two-state solution. Encouraged by the
people power forever transforming the political landscape of the Middle East,
they called on young Israelis and Palestinians to rise up and demand their
leaders end the conflict. The New Labor pressure group, Progress
(www.progressonline.org.uk), co-sponsored the event.

"This past month in the Middle East has taught us that we ignore the
wishes of the people at our peril," said Twigg, who chairs Progress. "The
people of the region, alongside the rest of the world, are fed up with this
conflict, and I am proud to stand with OneVoice in highlighting the voices of
the silent majority, who demand their leaders represent them by ending the
conflict."

The event came at a time of sweeping revolts across the Arab world, led
by a youthful generation demanding the right to define their future. The
unrivaled power of the people to effect major change translated across
borders like wildfire.

Audience members did raise concerns about the instability and uncertainty
the recent events produced in the Middle East, and wondered if this was
indeed the best time to push forward with the Israeli-Palestinian peace
process. The speakers all stressed the importance of channeling this momentum
to inject a new sense of urgency to achieve the two-state solution and
realize the dream of a stable, secure, and prosperous Middle East.

"While I speak to you here, OneVoice Israel activists alongside other
civil society groups are preparing protests in Jerusalem," said Harris.
"They're demanding Prime Minister Netanyahu stops stealing their future and
delivers on his promises. We want to empower all Israelis into realizing they
have the power to write their future-one with two states living side by side
in peace."

Rabayah announced OneVoice Palestine's plans to launch a campaign on
Tuesday intended to focus the energy on the street into a deafening cry for
unity toward building a Palestinian state.

"Civil society across the Middle East has shown that it has the power to
move mountains and end injustice," said Rabayah. "In Palestine right now, we
are asking people to recognize the power they hold as citizens, to imagine
their state, and then to build it."

OneVoice will organize and participate in several events this week in
Washington, D.C., London, Jerusalem, and across the West Bank to signal that
now is the time for the international community to support Israelis and
Palestinians in demanding accountability, vision and courage from their
leaders.

"This is a once-in-a-generation moment and we need to make sure that it
is seized," said John Lyndon, executive director of OneVoice Europe. "If what
is sweeping the region right now can topple dictators, then it can also end
occupations, establish states, and spread a culture of peace and security."

OneVoice (www.onevoicemovement.org) is an international
grassroots movement that aims to amplify the voice of Israeli and Palestinian
moderates, empowering them to demand a two-state solution. The movement
educates and trains Israeli and Palestinian youth in leadership skills,
non-violent activism, and democratic principles. To support and contribute to
OneVoice, join us at www.onevoicemovement.org.

Joel Braunold, External Relations Director, PeaceWorks Foundation, OneVoice, +44-208-948-5218, joel at onevoicemovement.org.uk