The Munich Declaration

The following Declaration is our foundational document and states in 10 points the vision of ODS. It foresees a society whose constitution is based on inalienable human rights and whose government is legitimised democratically. Adherence to this Declaration is a sufficient condition for participation in the ODS movement.

 

1.  One Democratic State (ODS) shall be established in the entire territory of historic Palestine between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River as one country that belongs to all its citizens including all those who currently live there and all those who were expelled over the past century and their descendants. [Instead of this paragraph, in autumn 2022 we adopted this one: "One Democratic State (ODS) shall be established in the entire country of historic Palestine between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River as one country that belongs to all its citizens. Citizenship shall be automatic for all who were born in Palestine and all Palestinians who were expelled over the past century and their descendants. A law shall facilitate citizenship in the new democratic, non-identitarian state for long-term residents of Palestine who wish to obtain it. At no point shall religion or ethnicity be criteria for acquiring citizenship." This in no way alters the Munich Declaration itself.]

 

2.  The country shall be an independent sovereign State in which all citizens enjoy equal rights and all can live in freedom and security.

 

3.  ODS in Palestine will end ethnic cleansing, occupation and all forms of racial discrimination from which the Palestinian people suffered under Zionism/Israel.

 

4.  The reunified Palestine shall be a democracy in which all of its adult citizens shall enjoy equal rights to vote, stand for office and contribute to the country’s governance. No State law, institution, practices or activities may discriminate among its citizens on the basis of ethnicity, religion, language, nationality or gender.

 

5.  The State shall not establish or accord special privilege to any religion and shall provide for the free practice of all religions.

 

6.  One of the primary objectives of the new state is to enable the Palestinian refugees to realize their right of return to all the places from where they were expelled, rebuild their personal life, and participate in creating the new state. Private property of Palestinian refugees shall be restored and restitution and compensation arranged.

 

7.  Public land of the State shall belong to the nation as a whole and all of its citizens shall have equal access to its use. The natural and economic resources of the country shall benefit all of its citizens equally.

 

8.  The State shall provide the conditions for free cultural expression by all of its citizens. It shall ensure that all languages, arts and culture can flourish and develop freely. All citizens shall have equal rights to use their own dress, languages and customs, and to express their cultural heritage free of insults or discrimination.

 

9.  Citizens shall have equal access to employment at all levels and in all sectors of the society. Employment shall not be determined or restricted by language, race, religion, gender, or nationality. Education and vocational training shall not be segregated or specialized in any way that impedes equal access of all citizens to employment and other opportunities to fulfill their talents and dreams.

 

10.  The State shall uphold international law and seek the peaceful resolution of conflicts through negotiation and collective security in accordance with the United Nations Charter. The people of a unified Palestine shall reject racism and promote anti-racism and social, cultural and political rights as set out in relevant United Nations Covenants. The State shall seek and contribute to the establishment of a Middle East that will be free of all weapons of mass-destruction.

 

This Declaration was adopted unanimously at the activists' ODS conference in Munich on 2 July 2012. It is a concise version of, and is fully consistent with, all previous Declarations and Initiatives for the one-democratic-state option. See also http://onedemocraticstate.com/