Press Release: Stop Killing Gaza! Japanese NGO Appeals for Peace in Cape Town

• Peace Boat will dock at the Cape Town Cruise Terminal on Saturday May 11, 2024 (Estimated time in port 08:00 - 22:00).
   
• Peace Boat's vessel "Pacific World" is a 77,000 ton passenger ship, carrying 1500 people onboard its current 117th Global Voyage for Peace and Sustainability, which departed from Japan in April.
   
• In response to the increasingly horrific situation in Gaza and the bombardment of civilians in Rafah. Peace Boat will hoist a 30m x 5m "Stop Killing Gaza" banner on its ship as it is docked in Cape Town.
   
• 300 passengers also held a banner action onboard on May 10 as the ship sailed along the South African coast.
   
• Among the passengers onboard are three Hibakusha, survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
   
• Peace Boat commends South Africa for its leadership in bringing the catastrophe in Gaza to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), and in nuclear disarmament efforts through the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons.

This banner action takes place to appeal for an immediate and lasting ceasefire and an end to the killing in Gaza, in response to the increasingly horrific situation there including the assault on civilians in Rafah. At the same time, we express deep appreciation for South Africa’s leadership at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to end genocide in Palestine, as well as the apartheid conditions and illegal occupation by Israel. Peace Boat demands that Israel comply with the provisional measures ordered by the ICJ on January 26, 2024.

According to the United Nations, some 80,000 people have left Rafah since Monday amid continuing Israeli bombardment. The indiscriminate bombing of hospitals, schools and residential buildings, and the restriction on water, food, fuel and aid is in clear violation of international humanitarian law.  We strongly appeal to the world for an immediate and lasting ceasefire, and the immediate supply of services and humanitarian aid to Gaza. 

Peace Boat passengers organized an action onboard the ship before the arrival in Cape Town with speeches and placards appealing “Stop Killing”, “Ceasefire Now,” “Hands Off Rafah, “No Justice, No Peace” and “Save Gaza”. The banner has been raised on Peace Boat voyages since October 2023, including in Greece, Turkey, Egypt and Japan.  During the onboard action passengers also noted the significance of the day being the 30th anniversary of Nelson Mandela taking the oath as President of South Africa.

The three Hibakusha, survivors of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, currently traveling onboard as part of the Peace Boat Hibakusha Project: Global Voyage for a Nuclear Free World will also be giving testimony at a public event at Bertha House,  67, 69 Main Rd, Mowbray, Cape Town between 2-4 pm on May 11. The survivors are also available for indiividual interviews. The event is co-hosted with local organisation Equiano Institute.

Event details: https://peaceboat.org/english/news/hibakusha-project-south-africa
 

Peace Boat is a Japan-based NGO that travels the world on educational voyages to promote peace and sustainability. Since the 1990s, Peace Boat has visited Palestine and Israel, including Gaza, to carry out educational exchange programs, as well as to invite young people from both countries on board to engage in dialogue for peaceful coexistence.