The mainstream press rarely publishes anything reflecting the views of Palestinians.
That things are changing has emerged post Israel's onslaught into Gaza a few months ago. Whatever Israel hoped the war might achieve it has certainly galvanised public opinion world-wide - modest, but in ever-growing numbers - to condemn the death and destruction wrought on the Gazans. Increasingly the world is acknowledging that Israel's actions in relation to the occupation and the subjugation of the Palestinians cannot be allowed to continue. That said, whilst there still is talk of a two-State solution realities on the ground would suggest that that is now well-nigh impossible.
The NY Times is to be commended for publishing this powerful piece by Ahmed Tibi - who is a Palestinian citizen of Israel and a member of the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament:
"Today, Lieberman stokes anti-Palestinian sentiment with his threat of “transfer” — a euphemism for renewed ethnic cleansing. Henry Kissinger, too, has called for a territorial swap, and Lieberman cites Kissinger to give his noxious idea a more sophisticated sheen. Lieberman and Kissinger envision exchanging a portion of Israel for a portion of the occupied West Bank seized illegally by Jewish settlers.
But Israel has no legal right to any of the occupied Palestinian territories. And Lieberman has no right to offer the land my home is on in exchange for incorporating Jewish settlers into newly defined Israeli state borders. We are citizens of the state of Israel and do not want to exchange our second-class citizenship in our homeland — subject as we are to numerous laws that discriminate against us — for life in a Palestinian Bantustan.
We take our citizenship seriously and struggle daily to improve our lot and overcome discriminatory laws and practices.
We face discrimination in all fields of life. Arab citizens are 20 percent of the population, but only 6 percent of the employees in the public sector. Not one Arab employee is working in the central bank of Israel. Imagine if there was not one African-American citizen employed in the central bank of the United States.
Israel is simultaneously running three systems of government. The first is full democracy toward its Jewish citizens — ethnocracy. The second is racial discrimination toward the Palestinian minority — creeping Jim Crowism. And the third is occupation of the Palestinian territories with one set of laws for Palestinians and another for Jewish settlers — apartheid."
That things are changing has emerged post Israel's onslaught into Gaza a few months ago. Whatever Israel hoped the war might achieve it has certainly galvanised public opinion world-wide - modest, but in ever-growing numbers - to condemn the death and destruction wrought on the Gazans. Increasingly the world is acknowledging that Israel's actions in relation to the occupation and the subjugation of the Palestinians cannot be allowed to continue. That said, whilst there still is talk of a two-State solution realities on the ground would suggest that that is now well-nigh impossible.
The NY Times is to be commended for publishing this powerful piece by Ahmed Tibi - who is a Palestinian citizen of Israel and a member of the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament:
"Today, Lieberman stokes anti-Palestinian sentiment with his threat of “transfer” — a euphemism for renewed ethnic cleansing. Henry Kissinger, too, has called for a territorial swap, and Lieberman cites Kissinger to give his noxious idea a more sophisticated sheen. Lieberman and Kissinger envision exchanging a portion of Israel for a portion of the occupied West Bank seized illegally by Jewish settlers.
But Israel has no legal right to any of the occupied Palestinian territories. And Lieberman has no right to offer the land my home is on in exchange for incorporating Jewish settlers into newly defined Israeli state borders. We are citizens of the state of Israel and do not want to exchange our second-class citizenship in our homeland — subject as we are to numerous laws that discriminate against us — for life in a Palestinian Bantustan.
We take our citizenship seriously and struggle daily to improve our lot and overcome discriminatory laws and practices.
We face discrimination in all fields of life. Arab citizens are 20 percent of the population, but only 6 percent of the employees in the public sector. Not one Arab employee is working in the central bank of Israel. Imagine if there was not one African-American citizen employed in the central bank of the United States.
Israel is simultaneously running three systems of government. The first is full democracy toward its Jewish citizens — ethnocracy. The second is racial discrimination toward the Palestinian minority — creeping Jim Crowism. And the third is occupation of the Palestinian territories with one set of laws for Palestinians and another for Jewish settlers — apartheid."
Comments