The salt water challenge: SA joins Palestinian prisoners in solidarity strike

Apartheid activist Laloo Chiba and Gauteng MEC for Roads and Transport, Ismail Vadi, have joined thousands of activists across the globe to support the 1500 Palestinian political prisoners who have been denied basic rights in Israeli prisons.

Chiba and Vadi have had nothing but salt water since 6pm last night, in aid of a 24-hour hunger strike to raise awareness around the suffering that Palestinian prisoners are going through.

The prisoners have been drinking nothing but salt water for 17 days.

The 24-hour solidarity hunger strike will be broken with a meal today at 6pm at Constitution Hill.

Sadna Balton, early childhood interventionist, recently attended the third international prisoner conference in Palestine and will be addressing the issue of child detainees in Israeli prisons.

The Ahmed Kathrada Foundation, alongside other groups such as Boycott Divestments and Sanctions (BDS) South Africa, Embassy of the State of Palestine, SA Jews for a Free Palestine, Palestine Solidarity Alliance, Palestine Solidarity Committee, the Muslim Judicial Council, Al Quds Foundation, Ex Political Prisoners, Association of South Africa and the National Coalition 4 Palestine (NC4P) – which includes more than 40 organisations, trade unions and political parties – have all joined forces to support the hunger strike, which has now been termed the #SaltWaterChallenge on social media platforms.

But more than a challenge, it is an opportunity to showcase the united front of citizens across the globe in support of the Palestinian political prisoners who have been reporting the ongoing mistreatment by Israeli officials.

Kwara Kekana of BDS South Africa said that there will be demonstrations at provincial legislatures across the country on May 15, to call on public representatives to support Palestinian prisoners.

“The demands being put forward by the Palestinian prisoners to the Israeli authorities are very basic and include calls for better medical treatment, humane transportation of prisoners, regular family visits without cancellation, access to education and an end to solitary confinement and administrative detention.

"It is shocking that the Israeli authorities are taking a heavy-handed approach in dealing with the matter,” Kekana said.

Where it all began

Political leader Marwan Barghouth (57) was convicted of and imprisoned for murder by an Israeli court in 2002. Accused of terrorism by the Israeli Defence force, he was sentenced to five life sentences.

Barghouth has since led the struggle of all political prisoners, and his son, Aarab Marwan Barghouti, took to social media after he posted a video of himself drinking salt water in support of his father and all the political prisoners.

In the video, he says that his father and the political prisoners started the “Hunger Strike for Freedom and Dignity”, in demand for “basic rights and humanitarian living conditions in the prisons”.

Neeshan Balton, executive director of the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation said that two 24-hour hunger strikes, on May 3 and May 15, are symbolic acts of solidarity with the more than 1000 Palestinian prisoners who stopped eating more than two weeks ago.

In 2013, struggle veteran Ahmed Kathrada and Barghouthi’s wife, Fadwa, launched an international campaign for the freedom of all Palestinian political prisoners from Nelson Mandela’s cell on Robben Island.