Features
“This is the last step in the destruction of Gaza”
South Africa files case with International Court of Justice accusing Israel of genocide
by Vijaya Chandrasoma
This essay is not meant to be a commentary of the current strife continuing in increasing intensity of violence in Rafah in Southern Gaza and the soon-to-be-extinct nation of Palestine. It is a ridiculously oversimplified account of the anti-Semitism that has plagued the world for centuries. And the imminent establishment of the Jewish State of Israel.
As Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu said last week, “The war will continue until we have achieved complete victory. If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone. If we need to, we will fight with our fingernails. But we have much more than fingernails”.
Complete victory is not limited just to the release of hostages or the elimination of Hamas. Complete victory, in Netanyahu’s mind, and the minds of the radical-right Israeli coalition Zionist government, is the displacement, by genocide or any other means, of the entire race of Palestinians, Muslim and Christian, and the establishment of the single, sovereign Jewish State of Israel.
Anti-Semitism has existed in Europe and Russia for centuries, and has flourished in the USA since the Europeans “discovered” the Americas. Pogroms, a Russian word meaning “to wreak havoc, to demolish violently”, have been inflicted on Jewish populations living as legal citizens in European countries, especially Russia, for centuries. They increased in their intensity since the anti-Jewish riots that erupted in Odessa in 1821, and the southern and western provinces of the Russian Empire later that century.
Pogroms were usually perpetrated by anti-Semitic mobs with government and law enforcement encouragement. The attackers raped and murdered their Jewish neighbors, and looted their property with impunity, with the full knowledge that their crimes would go unpunished.
To use a word commonly used by Hitler and Mussolini, now brought back into fashion by Donald J. Trump, Jews were “vermin”, routinely and regularly exterminated, much as the infestation of cockroaches and rats that are routinely obliterated by modern civilized society. Genocide is a process, not an event, rather like pest control. When you dehumanize certain ethnic groups, likening them to rodents carrying disease capable of destroying humanity, killing them is not only necessary, it becomes an imperative. Of course, Trump has been more inclusive in his reference to additional and different varieties of vermin, like Muslims, Hispanics, Blacks, people from “shithole countries” – who knows what goes on in that lunatic piece of cruelty masquerading as a mind?
What is the cause for this age-old discrimination of one specific ethnicity, the Jews, persecution that has escaped the many other races that lived in Europe? The public persona of the Jews in the middle-ages in Europe was that they were sickly and prone to disease (Judenkrankheit, the Jewish malaise), and seen as an ethnic sub-class (untermenschen, or subhuman). However, Jews had achieved prominence in medical, legal and financial professions in Europe since the 12th century. Today, in the USA, they are “accused” of controlling the banking, legal and medical professions, even Hollywood. And they face hostility, as if the perceived inherent inferiority of white community has been, in some perverted way, caused by the Jews.
Pogroms reached their logical and brutal climax with the Holocaust in Germany in the 1930s, when Hitler and the Nazis committed genocide of six million Jews from 1935 to 1945. At the end of the war, when the Allies and the Americans were confronted with the horrors of German concentration camps, they were struck with a collective guilty conscience, and forced to accept and condemn the reality of Hitler’s barbarous methods of extermination.
What to do? European and American anti-Semitism did not suddenly disappear with the Holocaust. In fact, there were significant anti-Semitic, pro-Hitler movements in America in the 1920s and 1930s. Prominent Americans like Henry Ford and Charles Lindbergh were friends with Adolf Hitler and led these anti-Semitic and isolationist movements in America. Anti-Semitism lingers in Europe and the USA to the present day, a deepening resentment against the prominence and success of Jews in public, professional and economic life.
The 2017 anti-Semitic riots in Charlottesville, Virginia, with its slogan “The Jews will not replace us” epitomizing the white-supremacist, neo-Nazi movement, had the support of a significant section of the white population, including the president of the nation. This white supremacist movement, which now encompasses in its hatred not only Jews, but Blacks and non-white immigrants, is the phenomenon that keeps an evil monster like Trump currently in line for a second term of the presidency.
Hatred of immigrants, fleeing personal threats to their lives and liberty from their home countries, “yearning to breathe free” – the very definition of asylum seekers – has increased in intensity after the Trump years. Perhaps after the election of the nation’s first Black president. These are the wretches, the huddled masses, brutally and frequently abused by Trump in his political rants as assassins, rapists, drug traffickers, denizens of mental asylums, the latest a comparison to the fictional movie cannibal Hannibal Lecter. And of course, dark-skinned people from “shithole countries” who poison the blood of the citizens of a country of immigrants with the most mixed blood – poisonous and pure – from every country in the world.
The inhumane barbarity of Hitler’s “Final Solution”, when six million Jews and five million human beings of “impure blood” were tortured and exterminated in gas ovens in concentration camps, was exposed to the world after WW II. And the world’s fingers were pointed not only at the Nazis, but at all those Europeans who had committed anti-Semitic violence in the past and Germans who did nothing while Hitler committed genocide, the smoke and stink of human flesh billowing from concentration camps right before their eyes.
Unlike numerous previous genocides, improved communications ensured that the Holocaust was too well known in the world as a crime against humanity to be swept under the carpet, or justified in the name of “civilization”.
So the Western Allies, the Rulers of the post WW II world, came to a decision, to the advantage of both themselves and the Jews. The Balfour Declaration, issued by the British government in 1917, justified Western Allies’ support for the establishment of “a national home for the Jewish people” in Palestine.
In 1947, as much as 97% of the land in Palestine was owned by Palestinian Arabs and Christians, just three percent by Jews. Palestinians, Muslims and Christians, constituted the vast majority of the population of Palestine. After World War II, Jews in Europe were encouraged to emigrate to the “Holy Land”, with the added incentive that the land had been promised to the Jews by the Christian God, Yahweh Himself.
An article written by Dr. V.J.M. de Silva, “The Israeli Palestine Conflict – Some Random Thoughts” (The Island, August 12, 2014) tends to support colonial conquest of Palestine by European Jews, citing the verse found in Genesis 17.8: “And I will give unto thee (Abraham) and thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession and I will be their God”, which gave divine legitimacy to the Jewish occupation and ownership of Palestine. The Promised Land.
The late Hameed Abdul Karim, Sri Lankan journalist and activist in the defense of the Palestinian cause, responded, “the media has projected the Palestinian catastrophe as a Muslim issue and not a humanitarian one, as it certainly is: that the conflict in Palestine is between Jews and Muslims. They have subtly left out of the picture the Palestinian Christians, who made up 20% of the population (in 1947)”. Mr. Karim goes on to say that the first village destroyed during the 1948 Israeli war against Palestine (named The Nakba, literally “the catastrophe”) was a Christian Village named Deir Yassin, when over 240 Palestinian Christians were lined up against walls and shot in cold blood by a Zionist terrorist organization, Irgun, headed by future Israeli Prime Minister and co-recipient with Egyptian President Sadat, in 1979, of the Noble Prize (for Peace, no less), Menachem Begin.
Since the Nakba, Jews, with the unqualified financial and military support of the Americans, have accelerated the establishment of a single-state Jewish state of Israel. There have been proposals over the years by various international mediators to establish a two-state solution, which have all failed because no agreement as to the proposed terms of settlement could be reached by the protagonists.
The atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7, 2023, which seems to have all the elements of a false-flag operation, with the complicity of Netanyahu and his radical right-wing cabinet, have given the perfect excuse for the Zionists to complete the job – the original goal of the extermination of the Palestinians and the establishment of the Promised Land.
President Biden may have at last realized that the ultimate motive of the right-wing Israelis was always the establishment of the sovereign Jewish state of Israel, that the Jews, especially under the leadership of Netanyahu, never had any intention for a two-state solution. Biden has threatened Netanyahu that unless the Israeli Defense Forces cease their genocidal operations in Rafah in Southern Gaza, work towards a negotiated ceasefire and a two-state solution, Americans will be forced to suspend military and financial aid to Israel. To which, as noted above, Netanyahu has thumbed his nose, saying that they will stand alone, that they already have the necessary weapons, including an estimated stockpile range of between 90 and 400 nuclear warheads – provided by the USA over the past 76 years – to complete the job.
Of course, the nations of the Arab world are prohibited by the United States from developing a nuclear arsenal as a defense against a possible nuclear attack by Israel, on pain of being bombed to the Stone Age. The hallmark hypocritical double standard of the “Free World”.
Biden’s demands for a ceasefire and political negotiations for a two-state solution has aroused vociferous protests from the powerful American Jewish lobby, members of which have always identified themselves as Jews first, Americans second.
The International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, opened hearings on Thursday, May 16 on a case filed by South Africa “that the situation in Gaza has reached a new and horrific stage, that Israel’s actions in Gaza are part of the end game. This is the last step in the destruction of Gaza”.
The election of Trump in November, which according to current national polls, seems, incredibly, an even money chance, will help Israel expedite the complete destruction of Palestine. Trump will also encourage Russia to invade other independent European nations after Ukraine, seeing that Trump is a good buddy and admirer of both Netanyahu and Putin. And with the current bromance flourishing between Putin and Chinese Premier Xi Jinping, who are currently celebrating 75 years of diplomatic relations in Peking with majestic pomp and military circumstance, Trump will be drooling for the day when he may be accepted, even as a lowly, lapdog partner, of this unholy alliance of his pantheon of strongmen.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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