Madam – I wish to reply to the letter by Aisha Moolla in the Advertiser of August 8, in which she took whites in Newcastle to task for not participating in the Gaza March.
As for me, personally, it is not in my culture to take part in marches and those kinds of things, unless it concerns me and the population group I belong to. Of course, it is sad that innocent people are caught up in the strife between ideological groups, especially where innocent children are concerned.
I do not condone what is happening in that area of this world of ours, but one has to look at the broader picture, when you want to make a decision about marching, and who to march for.
In your letter you make no mention of the wrongs carried out by those on the Palestinian side, like their firing thousands of missiles into Israel, so much so that Israel had to develop a defence system to intercept the missiles aimed at cities where there are also innocent women and children.
No mention is made of the networks of tunnels from Palestinian territory into Israel, for the specific purpose of sneaking into Israel to carry out attacks and abduct people to, eventually, murder them. Surely, they are not abducted to go and throw a party for them and bring them home?
The, the Palestinians admit, after tunnels were destroyed, that there were many more, and they will keep on going into Israel and carry out their cowardly attacks, also on civilians.
Now, if the Palestinians send over destructive and dangerous missiles, are Israelis supposed to sit back, fold their arms and just accept what is coming?
When one hears of the Palestinians setting up their military hardware in the vicinity of schools and hospitals, and fire missiles from there, and Israel retaliates, like even South Africa or any country will do under similar circumstances, are the Palestinians not partly to blame for the horrific deaths? So, whom do I march for?
In South Africa, there is very little “solidarity” for anything.
When the happenings around what happened in 1976 are commemorated, Black people take part in the commemoration. There the whites are also accused because they are absent. This is an ANC thing, and most whites do not vote ANC, and do not agree with what is happening in this country under their “rule”. This is political.
But let us look at “solidarity”.
I ask. When the white Afrikaner community commemorates what happened during the Anglo Boer War, when the British killed about 28000 women and children by putting them in concentration camps under appalling conditions, burnt their farms and bayoneted and shot their livestock, when children were not allowed to speak their mother tongue at school after the surrender, and if they did, were beaten by English teachers, as my mother was, do we see any people of colour there? NO.
Do we see any people of colour at ANY white commemorations at all? NO.
Recently, there was a protest and march staged by the white community to protest against the killing of farmers in farm attacks, during which, since “take over” there were more than 3000 attacks, in which about 2000 people were killed, women being raped, burnt with irons, some being trampled on until dead.
People having hosepipes shoved down their throats, and boiling water forced into, and boiling their guts. Having fertilizer and cement forced down their throats, were you or any person of colour there? Were there any Government official there to protest against this murdering of those who put food on your tables? NO.
Do you know that statistics show that the most dangerous occupation in South Africa is to be a farmer with a “better” chance of being killed than a policeman on duty?
This is right here in South Africa, and is a proven reality, and no one shows “solidarity”.
Is this not perhaps the reason that whites do not march for Palestine, or even for Israel for that matter. What is happening in that part of the world is far away. Not that it does not matter. It is horrible and should not be and must stop, and so is what is happening here under our noses.
Let “solidarity” not be expected from one side only.
Lourens
