The latest atrocities that have been perpetrated against the Palestinians in Gaza by the Israelis have once again left me with that oh-so-familiar sense of outrage and sheer disbelief… “How can such a thing be allowed to happen?” “How can they get away with this?”
But it is. And they do.
For our government, and that of the US, and of so many other countries around the world (including those, shamefully, that one would have thought to be the natural allies and defenders of the Palestinians, the “Arab States”), seem unwilling to do little other than… eventually… make a few palliatory noises.
And what can we, the ordinary people of conscience who see so clearly the truth of what’s really occurring, actually do about it?
For, in these wonderful “democracies” of ours, no amount of letter-writing (to MPs, to the Media, to Embassies, or to elsewhere), no amount of petition-signing, no amount of demonstrations and protests, appear to achieve anything at all.
Rather, they’re simply met (if at all!) with the same tired old responses that bear all the hallmarks of the pernicious Israeli spin-machine that feeds excuses to its mouthpieces in the “free world” which then get trotted out ad nauseum.
So much for the “legitimate” means of registering one’s opinion and dissent in a “democratic” society. Of “having one’s voice heard”.
And whilst all this letter-writing, petition-signing, and demonstrating is going on; whilst there’s all the speechifying from the likes of the STWC, and all the meaningless rhetoric from the politicians, people are dying. Being killed. Murdered. Butchered.
Yet we’re all supposed to behave like good little citizens, peacefully allowing “our” government to pursue foreign policies that virtually sanction, if not actually encourage, such butchery.
So what of the UN? That international body that was set up to supposedly
* save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold sorrow to mankind, and
* reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and
* establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and
* promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom
Time and again in the past that body has proven to be completely ineffectual… a eunuch so often castrated, in the case of Israeli-related issues, by the knife of the US veto. And of the resolutions that somehow, miraculously, do manage to evade the chop… well… Israel tends to just ignore them. And narry a word is raised in protest.
It rather begs the question of whether the so-called “leaders” of the so-called “free world” have any conscience whatsoever.
So I ask again, what can we, the ordinary people of conscience who see so clearly the truth of what’s really occurring, actually do?
Short of courageous acts such as that undertaken by a handful of protesters in Brighton recently (courageous for they must have known at the outset that the full weight of the law would be applied against them… instead of against the true criminals in Israel of course) what other options are open to the ordinary caring citizen? Options that stand at least some chance of having an impact?
Ah yes… boycotts! The consumer boycotting of Israeli goods perhaps?
That’s certainly something we can all do, and should do, as a matter of course.
But, although not wishing to be a wet blanket, I have to ask just how effective it is? Surely for it to be truly effective it requires incredibly large numbers of the world’s population to implement it? Doesn’t it?
And there we come up against two major hurdles.
The comfort-driven and Western lifestyle-cushioned lethargy that afflicts vast swathes of the population of the “civilised” world. And the misguided sympathies for the Israelis that are fed by the biased reporting of so much of the Western mainstream media.
Damn!
I’m still left with my sense of outrage. My anger. My frustration. My feelings of utter powerlessness in terms of being able to do anything effective whatsoever.
Thankfully the butchering in Gaza has, for the moment at least, ceased… well, to a large extent. The suffering of course continues, as it will for generations to come probably.
My immediate reaction is to think “this can never be allowed to happen again”. But I’m not that naive. Unless something majorly drastic occurs in the supposedly “civilised” world, Israel will carry on in its own sweet way, unhindered, with the might of the US backing it as per usual.
But, and this is the whole point, I’m not yet despairing enough to give up completely with a shrug of the shoulders and a muttered “What’s the use?”
Nor does the fact that the butchering has temporarily abated mean the issue should be put on the back burner, shelved until such time as Israel once more struts arrogantly and bloodily over its neighbours, as it inevitably will. Unless ordinary people of conscience finally discover a way to force their governments to listen and to act.
The letter-writing shoudn’t end. Nor should the petition-signing. Nor the protests and demonstrations. And for those who incline to a more direct form of action, well, neither should they rest on their laurels.
For Gaza needs rebuilding… and fast! (Too much to hope of course that Israel will be compelled to make complete reparation… though that would be true justice.) The survivors (I’d like to say “Palestinians living there”… but that makes it sound far too comfortable) need urgent relief from their suffering.
And, necessarily, the Israelis should be held to account… for War Crimes and for Crimes Against Humanity at the very least.
Held to account, moreover, in a truly effective way such that a clear message will be sent to all their successors… “Don’t even think about pulling a stunt like that again”.
And I still feel outrage, and frustration, and utter powerlessness! Hopefully so too do so many other ordinary people of conscience for maybe, just maybe, the burning desire to realistically tackle this state of disempowerment will provide the driving force for genuine change.
Though I’m not going to hold my breath.
