Gaza _ Palestine News Network
Two New Zealand activists gathered thousands of dollars for mental health in Gaza after an Israeli court ordered them to pay compensation for writing an open letter urging singer "Lord " to cancel a ceremony she was planning to revive in Tel Aviv.
New Zealand Jewish activist Justin Sachs and New Zealand of Palestinian origin Nadia Abu Shanab on Friday rejected a lawsuit that fined them 12400 NZ dollars (7800 US dollars) for "inflicting psychological harm on three Israeli teenagers who bought the concert tickets."
Instead, the two went to a group funding site which, by Sunday, collected more than 15,000 dollars.
Sachs and Abu Shanab wrote on the website of Jeff A. Little: "We would like to redirect support to the Palestinians who need mental health support," he said, referring to the fact that the money would go to the mental Health Foundation in Gaza.
"The emotional turmoil is a reality for Palestinians in Gaza, where more than half of the children are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of Israeli military attacks," said the two activists.
Abu Shanab told the Radio Network (an Zee radio) that she and Xax were not prepared for the amount of international attention they had received.
"We´ve got a sense of responsibility," she said.
"Israel has chosen to make us a lesson to all," she said.
The case in January is the first to cite an Israeli anti-boycott law, issued in 2011, which allows for the filing of civil proceedings against entities calling for the boycott of Israel.
"Singing in Tel Aviv will be in support of the policies of the Israeli government even if there is no comment on the political situation," the two activists wrote in the letter to Lourdes last December.
The singer answered on Twitter, saying that the fears were "observed! ".
A few days later, the 21-year-old New Zealand cancelled her concert, which was due to conclude her world concert tour.
Among the artists who participated in the cultural boycott of Israel through the boycott movement, the withdrawal of investments and the imposition of sanctions, which defends the rights of the Palestinians, the music of Brian Inoue, Roger Waters of the Pink Floyd musical ensemble, the writer Arundhati Roy, and the writer Eduardo Galano, And film director Ken Lotch.
