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Unjust Politics And Peace
It is the above principle which forms a base to all my views on domestic and foreign politics. The notion of “terrorism” is a concept that is severely misused in today’s world, and highly contradicts the principle of equal value by completely evading the full definition of the word. Although the definition varies, I am adamant we can all agree on a general definition along the lines of – “the unjust use of violence against civilians in order to achieve some goal”. The tragic events of 9/11 resulted in just over 2900 civilian deaths; an appalling act going against any religious or moral view. I condemn any form of unjust violence, and I thoroughly believe in punishing criminals by an appropriate, lawful, legal manner. This would involve a fair investigation, the build up of strong evidence, arrest, trials, and eventually conviction. The US had evidence to believe that members in Afghanistan were responsible for the attacks of 9/11, and in my view this should then have led to a thorough investigation, eventually detaining those responsible, and only those responsible. However, the US with the aid of Britain, responded by attacking and invading an entire nation, which has to date, led to the death of tens of thousands of civilians. When there is a murder case in the UK or U.S., the police and other crime scene organisations respond by targeting the person responsible, through the gathering of strong evidence, ensuring no innocent person is sentenced. Why should our lawful, just, and fair policies suddenly change when we exit our borders? Surely, no innocent civilians should have been subjected to harm in the process of capturing those responsible? When we invaded Afghanistan, an entire country, it was inevitable that the loss of innocent civilians, including women and children was going to take place. Going back to the definition of “terrorism”, I stated that the use of the word contradicts the principle of equal value, and I say this because the acts carried out by the U.S. and UK governments against Afghanistan fits the definition – however, due to their world status, this term will never be applied by the masses. No one person can justify the killing of an innocent human being, and in my eyes, not even governments or world leaders. The issue regarding the Israel-Palestine conflict is an on going debate, screaming unjust politics and inequality. Palestine was once a peaceful nation consisting of Muslim and Christian Arabs, and Jews; however the Nazi led Germany of the Second World War led to the mass immigration of European Jews, and pressure of the Zionist movement, to create the state of Israel within Palestine, which was eventually formed in 1948. Today, the Palestinian territories include the Gaza strip and the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, which homes illegal Israeli settlements. The majority of Palestinians and Israelis accept the idea of a two state solution; however it is the minority from both parties along with a lack of foreign help, which has resulted in the destruction of peace processes and the loss of thousands of innocent civilians dating back 60 years. The recent “Gaza War” of 2008 saw the massacre of over 1400 Palestinians, with the majority being innocent civilians. During this three week attack, the Israeli Defense Force targeted civilian homes, used Palestinians (including children) as human shields, attacked ambulances, and health facilities (34 health facilities, including 8 hospitals – world heath organization); these are all war crimes and should be taken very seriously, through thorough investigation. The only viable and clear option to a successful peace negotiation is the withdrawal of Israeli occupation and control of Palestinian borders, to allow a free Palestinian state. Going back to the principle of every human being having equal value – don’t the Palestinians deserve a free independent state and to live a peaceful life within their proud nation? We, in Britain should do more in encouraging this peace process, as it was the British government through the Balfour Declaration of 1917, who supported the Zionist movement in forming the state of Israel. In order to combat terrorism, we need to identify the route cause of such acts and this route cause is injustice; political injustice. Unjust wars and occupation is a major issue, with innocent lives at stake and the money to fund such operations originates from our taxes – ordinary people who do not want to see bloodshed, but believe in peace without the use of violence. It does not matter whether you’re Christian, Muslim, Jew, white, black, a taxi driver, or a world leader; an innocent life, is an innocent life, and a terrorist, is a terrorist. There are men, women, and children, in the world restricted in war zones, fearing their life could end within any moment. How can we sit back and allow such a horrific image float above our heads while we sleep safely in our homes. We are the next generation; the generation who these people suffering in the world are relying on, to free them from harm, and injustice, and to prove to them we care. To do this we need to form our own views, do our own research, which is not based purely on the many biased media networks we incur in our daily lives. We need to be politically active, to speak for each and every suffering individual on this planet. We need to say NO to terror, war, occupation and bombing, but say YES to peace, equality, nuclear disarmament, and fair, equal politics. The future of the world is in our hands – individually we may not be noticed, but collectively we can make a difference. Sometimes, I believe children are smarter than politicians, in the sense that in a child’s eye, every other child is equal. Rachel Corrie was an American human rights activist, who in 2003 at the age of 23 was unlawfully crushed to death by an Israeli Defense Force bulldozer, while peacefully protesting against the demolition of a Doctors home in the Gaza strip. To this date, no charges have been made. I would like to end with an inspiring speech made by Rachel at the age of just 10 years - “I’m here for other children. I’m here because I care. I’m here because children everywhere are suffering and because forty thousand people die each day from hunger. I’m here because those people are mostly children. We have got to understand that the poor are all around us and we are ignoring them. We have got to understand that these deaths are preventable. We have got to understand that people in Third World countries think and care and smile and cry just like us. We have got to understand that they dream our dreams and we dream theirs. We have got to understand that they are us. We are them. My dream is to stop hunger by the year 2000. My dream is to give the poor a chance. My dream is to save the forty thousand people who die each day. My dream can and will come true if we all look in to the future and see the light that shines there. If we ignore hunger, that light will go out. If we help and work together, it will grow and burn free with the potential of tomorrow”. Rachel Corrie (April 10, 1979 – March 16, 2003) Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com About the Author: Hamzah Nurgat is a student with a passion to see peace in the Middle East. You can follow his regular journals regarding the Israel-Palestine conflict, by visiting his website at: palestineatheart.wordpress.com. Twitter users can follow the author @hamzah_1992. You can also contact the author via email at: hamzah_1992@live.co.uk. |
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