Having studied the origins and course of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict during my studies I know the strength of the arguments of both sides. Realising that we are seeing the whole conflict through an enormously distorting magnifying glass with huge blind spots, I have long tried to refrain from judgement or choosing sides, and continue to do so. But I am beginning to fear that one side is starting to lose the moral battle. I find my impartiality to be harder and harder to maintain.
This morning, I heard the on BBC World Radio the Israeli Consul General in New York defending his case. Today, 20 days into the most recent outbreak of violence, the number of Palestinian deaths passed one thousand. When the interviewer confronted him with the huge difference in casualties between the two sides, he replied that “more than a thousand Israeli kids [were] wounded over the past eight years,” and that 75% of Israeli children are suffering from post-traumatic symptoms. Eight years being compared to 20 days here, deaths with injuries, and the fact ignored that currently in the Gaza strip a whole population, including who knows how many children, are being locked into a war zone and being traumatised.
The interviewer also got a bit annoyed by this comparison, and proceeded to probe into the huge number of women and children (the UN estimates 40%) amongst the Palestinian casualties. Eventually the Israeli representative replied that Hamas is using civilians as a human shield, shooting from schools and hospitals. “If somebody shoots from a school and we shoot back, and the school is full of explosives, and we have no idea that there are kids in this school…” Yes, it is unthinkable indeed, kids in a school… These are the kind of arguments the Israelis are resorting to at this point.
The importance of bringing an end to this never ending conflict for improving relations between Muslems and 'the West' was also brought home to me by my Indonesian friends. My ex-colleague in Aceh is using now his Facebook status to report on the death count of Palestinians. Another (for the record, I am talking about young, educated, moderate, peace loving, and pious Indonesians) sends me fuming text messages about ‘the jews’ killing Moslems again, and asking for my opinion. For scores of people, this conflict signifies that there is a conflict between Moslems and the West, which is something I consider as utter nonsense. Through my Indonesian friends I am beginning to get a sense of the enormous symbolic value and impacts of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on public opinion elsewhere in the world.
This morning, I heard the on BBC World Radio the Israeli Consul General in New York defending his case. Today, 20 days into the most recent outbreak of violence, the number of Palestinian deaths passed one thousand. When the interviewer confronted him with the huge difference in casualties between the two sides, he replied that “more than a thousand Israeli kids [were] wounded over the past eight years,” and that 75% of Israeli children are suffering from post-traumatic symptoms. Eight years being compared to 20 days here, deaths with injuries, and the fact ignored that currently in the Gaza strip a whole population, including who knows how many children, are being locked into a war zone and being traumatised.
The interviewer also got a bit annoyed by this comparison, and proceeded to probe into the huge number of women and children (the UN estimates 40%) amongst the Palestinian casualties. Eventually the Israeli representative replied that Hamas is using civilians as a human shield, shooting from schools and hospitals. “If somebody shoots from a school and we shoot back, and the school is full of explosives, and we have no idea that there are kids in this school…” Yes, it is unthinkable indeed, kids in a school… These are the kind of arguments the Israelis are resorting to at this point.
The importance of bringing an end to this never ending conflict for improving relations between Muslems and 'the West' was also brought home to me by my Indonesian friends. My ex-colleague in Aceh is using now his Facebook status to report on the death count of Palestinians. Another (for the record, I am talking about young, educated, moderate, peace loving, and pious Indonesians) sends me fuming text messages about ‘the jews’ killing Moslems again, and asking for my opinion. For scores of people, this conflict signifies that there is a conflict between Moslems and the West, which is something I consider as utter nonsense. Through my Indonesian friends I am beginning to get a sense of the enormous symbolic value and impacts of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on public opinion elsewhere in the world.
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2 comments:
Febr. 17, 2009
Dear Meinke,
Only more than a month after you wrote it, I have discovered this new blog of yours.
How carefully you chose your words and arguments.
Personally, I feel no need to be as impartially minded as you are. But I recognize your view on how this conflict is being considered in the world, as well as your great worry about it, very much.
Jan Willem
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