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| Israel-Palestine |
| Actor Richard Gere encourages Palestinians to take part in election |
| 2005-01-05 |
| Send the vibe over, Richard. Send the vibe... Jerusalem - A pro-peace group is hoping that a potent mix of Hollywood glamour and religion will motivate Palestinians to vote in next week's presidential elections - and their star attraction is actor Richard Gere. Gere, together with an Islamic cleric and a Greek Orthodox Church official, recorded a public service announcement calling on the Palestinians to vote in Sunday's election to replace Yasser Arafat. They couldn't find some sellout rabbi? "Hi, I'm Richard Gere and I'm speaking for the entire world. We're with you during this election time. It's really important: get out and vote," Gere says, according to a transcript of the announcement. Gere ends the 80-second announcement, produced by the pro-peace group One Voice, with an appeal in Arabic: "Take part in the elections." ...and be nice to gerbils and other living things and all that... stuff. The ad is to be aired on Palestinian TV and Arabic satellite channels in the next few days, said Fathi Darwish, a Palestinian director of One Voice.The group tries to harness the power of ordinary citizens to push for the creation of a Palestinian state to live peacefully next to Israel. The people power is backed by Hollywood stars like Danny DeVito and Rhea Perlman. Its Internet website claims support from actors Brad Pitt, Jennifer Aniston and Edward Norton. And I'll bet they feel damn good about it. Almost as good as they feel because USC won last night. "We chose Gere because he believes that freedom and liberty are for everyone," Darwish said. "He is a known supporter of the Palestinian people." Gere has made a number of visits to Israel and the Palestinian areas in the past few years. A spokesperson for Gere had no immediate comment. Oh, shit! Will this be on the news? Turnout for the presidential elections, the first held since 1996, is expected to be high. Last week, European Union observers said voter registration exceeded all expectations. Joining Gere in the announcement are Sheik Taissir Tamimi, the head of the Islamic court in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Atallah Hanah, spokesperson for the Greek Orthodox Church in Jerusalem. In the broadcast transcript, Tamimi says: "To the Palestinian people it is a vital process, national necessity and religious obligation." Hanah says in the ad: "We want democracy in our country, a place with freedom, and freedom of speech." Hanah and Tamimi recorded the broadcast together, while Gere made the recording in the US. Hey, all you camp dwellers in the West Bank! Richard Gere here from the beach in Malibu! Like, make sure you get out there and vote, you know... While Gere was chosen for his star appeal, it's not clear how much celebrity status he has among the Palestinians."I've never heard of him before," Hanah said of his co-star. Not important, Hanah. The important thing is that Richard feels good about himself. |
| Posted by:tu3031 |
| #3 yes, and when they see "pretty woman" they will know just how truly evil richard gere is. |
| Posted by: Jarhead 2005-01-05 11:38:05 AM |
| #2 ya snooz, ya looz, tu. actually I knew about it because I got an email via my subscription to the Richard Gere fanclub. ;o) |
| Posted by: PlanetDan 2005-01-05 11:36:48 AM |
| #1 Damn you, Planet Dan! |
| Posted by: tu3031 2005-01-05 10:56:07 AM |