WASHINGTON, D.C. — The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum today launched World Is Witness, a new initiative that opens a window into the lives of people affected by genocide and its long-term consequences.

A project of the Museum’s Genocide Prevention Mapping Initiative that documents and maps threats of genocide and related crimes against humanity, World Is Witness brings together testimonies, photographs, videos, and other first-hand data in Google Earth, situating eyewitness accounts in their geographic location. World Is Witness can be found in Google Earth’s Global Awareness folder under the heading, U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, or at the Museum’s Web site, http://www.ushmm.org.
http://www.ushmm.org/museum/press/archives/detail.php?category=07-general&content=2008-04-04

If you link to the whole article you will see that no mention of the UNHCR is made.

The UNHCR issued their press release on April 8th, if you link to it you will see that no mention of the USHMM is made, yet it is their project which is predominantly displayed on the front of the UNHCR google earth project.

The UNHRC’s press release also says that they are starting off by displaying their Iraqi and some Latin American camps, yet they are NOT mentioned on the front of the globe and can only be seen by zooming in close-and-you have no idea of where to look because you would have to look for them like a needle in a haystack. Whereas you can easily see the Darfur USHMM icons even without the advertisement for it. The UNHCR has allowed the USHMM google earth World is Witness overlay to be incorporated into THEIR google earth project.

UNHRC and UNRWA are separate entities, yet both fall under the UN Charter:

COOPERATION WITH OTHER U.N. AGENCIES AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS

Why do Palestinian refugees not come under the mandate of UNHCR?

Palestine refugees were specifically and intentionally excluded from the international refugee law regime established by the 1951 Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and the 1967 Protocol thereto, as long as the Palestine refugees receive assistance from UNRWA. UNHCR was established by UN General Assembly Resolution 319 (IV) of 3 December 1949 and is guided by the 1951 Convention. The Statute of UNHCR was adopted by the General Assembly in 1950 as an annex to Resolution 428 (V) of 14 December 1950. UNHCR, however, has always supported Palestine refugees insofar as its constitution permits.
http://www.un.org/unrwa/overview/qa.html

The last sentence is the pertinent one: “UNHCR, however, has always supported Palestine refugees insofar as its constitution permits.”
Well, their constitution has permitted a PRIVATE organization, the USHMM to put their project on THEIR google earth project, so, since their constitution has allowed that, then their constitution will certainly allow for the UNRWA camps to be displayed.

If you zoom in on Darfur, you will see flames, those are destroyed villages. It is great that the USHMM wants to help in Darfur, however, where is their conscience concerning the refugees which were created upon the founding of Israel? They are the one strongest “humanitarian” voice for the Holocaust, yet it is the Holocaust which is used as the central sympathy to create a state that created refugees!

The Palestine Remembered google overlay has villages, destroyed villages. These destroyed villages made refugees of the inhabitants. If the USHMM is able to get a public relations free ride via the UNHRC google earth project then by God, the destroyed villages of Palestine need to be on that project too!

One nice thing about this project, if you zoom in on Israel, you will see a little box, “Every Human Has Rights”. If you click on it, you will see Abdelfatteh Abusrour, it CLEARLY states he lives in a Palestinian refugee camp, yet there are no Palestinian refugee camps on this project! He works in teaching methods of non-violent resistance.
Non violent resistance to WHAT? On that little box about him there is a link to this http://www.theelders.org/ where you can sign the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

From the Universal Declaration of Human Rights: Everyone has the right to leave any country, including his own, and to return to his country.

May the UNRWA camps be included in this project and may it be SOON.

And may the camps themselves soon be no more, because the universal HUMAN RIGHT of return is rightfully implemented so that every Palestinian may return to THEIR homes, the “flames” that burn in their hearts.

You did a great job!!

Sincerely,

Lois T. Dickason