Chilean President Gabriel Boric participated in the Christmas tree lighting event at the Palestinian Club in the Chilean capital, Santiago, in solidarity with the Palestinian people.
The tree was lit with 45,000 lights as a symbol of the martyrs of the Palestinian people who were killed during the war of extermination waged by the Israeli occupation, under the slogan “Light of Hope”, in the presence of the Minister of Defense, the Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Chile Vera Pabon, and a number of parliamentarians, diplomats, and members of the Palestinian community.
In his speech during the event, the Chilean President affirmed his commitment to the rights of the Palestinian people, and said: “We will not be silent spectators in the face of all this injustice and pain,” adding that “what Benjamin Netanyahu is doing is a war crime and a crime against humanity.” He stressed that Chile’s position on the Palestinian issue is a fixed state policy, and that he will choose nothing but victory for humanity.
A symbolic message during the tree lighting event read: “Hope is not dead, 45,000 lights on the Christmas tree in honor of our brothers and sisters who were martyred in that place of genocide, in Gaza, but above all, this tree represents an exception for everyone. Today these lights accompany us, they shine to radiate light in our hearts and fill them with hope to see a free, independent, sovereign Palestine, with Jerusalem as its capital.”
For his part, the President of the Palestinian Community in Chile, Maurice Khamis, said that what has been happening for 76 years in Palestine and more than a year since the genocide in Gaza, reflects the magnitude of the historical, humanitarian and political tragedy that the Palestinian people are going through.
He expressed his thanks to President Boric for the concrete measures he has taken, such as Chile’s support for the case brought by South Africa before the International Court of Justice, and referring the evidence to the International Criminal Court.
He called for giving top priority to the bill that prohibits the import of products from the colonies in the occupied territories, noting that this tree is not just a Christmas tradition, but a message that the Palestinian cause is still alive.
