20 women activists selected to join Women's Boat to Gaza mission

Twenty women activists from several countries including Malaysia have been selected to take part in a Women's Boat to Gaza (WBG) humanitarian mission this September.

Humanitarian Care Malaysia Bhd (MyCARE) Board of Trustee (BoT) chairman, Assoc. Prof Hafidzi Mohd Noor, said Dr Fauziah Mohd Hasan, who was also MyCARE BoT member was selected to participate in the mission under the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) initiative.

"Among other activists who are selected are the 1976 Nobel Prize winner, Mairead Maguire of Ireland, member of Parliament for the Green Party in New Zealand Marama Davidson, American director and scriptwriter Naomi Wallace, academic expert from Norway Gerd Von Der Lippe and Turkey's coach and athlete Cigdem Topçuoglo," he told a press conference here Tuesday.

He said the WBG voyage mission, on a boat called 'Amal-Hope' would set sail from Barcelona, Spain on Sept 14 and was expected to reach Gaza on Oct 1.

Hafidzi said Dr Fauziah's participation in the mission was also representing the Southeast Asian region in particular, and Islamic countries in general to stop the violence and injustice of Israel over Gaza.

Dr Fauziah said her participation in the mission was to carry hopes of all people regardless of religion and race in an effort to free Palestine from Israeli oppression.

She said preparations for the voyage was currently going smoothly and hoped that the mission would be successfully accomplished.

"The boat's name itself brings hope to this mission so that it can be successfully accomplished and to put an end to the Israeli regime's siege against the Muslim community in Palestine," said Dr Fauziah who had participated in several humanitarian missions such as in Kosovo and Afghanistan.