25, September 2003
India should distance
itself from apartheid Israel
I was dismayed to learn that the powerful US Jewish
lobby and Israel are seeking closer ties to India. The Jewish lobby has been
instrumental in formulating the unwavering financial and political support of Israel. 3 billion
dollars is paid to Israel each year for defense needs. The sad reality is that much of this US largess has been
used to wage a war of terror and deny the Palestinians a homeland and
self-determination. Approximately,
$1.6 trillion has been given to Israel over
the past 30 years. The Israelis have diverted some of the funds to erect
illegal settlements and Sharon's apartheid wall, in direct contravention of UN
sanctions. Thus far, Israel has refused to implement 28 UN resolutions
of the Security Council and scores of General Assembly
resolutions calling for Israel to withdraw from Arab lands.
The
annual report issued by The Association of Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI),
Israel's leading civil rights group,
harshly criticized Israeli soldiers of cruel and sadistic behavior against the Palestinians.
The Israeli military has failed to investigate the deaths of hundreds of
innocent Palestinians including young children. The state sponsored terrorism
unleashed on the defenseless Palestinians
has always been conducted with a wink and nod from Washington who have made no attempt to hide their obvious bias.
The ACRI accuses the Israeli military that civil rights violations "arise
not from any operational necessity, but from hard-heartedness of soldiers, who
receive from above the message of utter disregard for the dignity, freedom and
lives of innocent Palestinians." Palestinians who marry Israelis will soon
be denied the right to live in Israel! Yael Stein of the
human rights group, B'tselem condemned this action as racist law, reminiscent of South Africa's repugnant
apartheid system.
It is extremely disturbing that India invited Prime
Minister Ariel Sharon. The International Court at the Hague has charged Sharon
with war crimes, when as defense minister in 1982, he was responsible for the slaughter of 20,000
people south of Lebanon. Sharon
did nothing to prevent the massacre of
hundreds of Palestinians in refugee camps in Sabra and Shatila.
The Indian government must distance itself from Israel.
It must not reward Israel for abrogating the right of the Palestinians to self-determination. They have
been forced off their land at gun point and
suffered utter deprivation and hardships. Let us not forget our past history
when we suffered indignities from our former colonial masters, the British. Let
us join hands and maintain solidarity with our Palestinian brothers and
sisters and reject all attempts from the US Jewish lobby to normalize relations with Israel.
