SA tip-toes on Israel terror
FOR the media to reduce Israel’s bloody atrocities against Palestinians as mere “violence between Israel/Palestine” is to detract from the truth of the ugly reality of the Zionist Frankenstein.
As South Africans who were repeatedly warned by Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu to not be fence-sitters and “neutral” in the Struggle against apartheid, it is a pity some of our media houses have forgotten his bravery and sage advice.
Tutu’s courage to speak truth to white supremacist power is sorely lacking today in public discourse on Israel’s self-declared Jewish supremacy.
This is particularly glaring in the media “tip-toeing” in the compilation and broadcast of news, suggesting “neutrality” – exactly what the Arch had rebelled against.
To make sense of what’s happening in Israel given US envoy Blinken’s visit, and to deconstruct a multitude of falsehoods the Netanyahu regime’s propaganda units feed the world, SA academic Professor Usuf Chikte summarises it succinctly:
“US Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken’s Middle East trip, can only be described as a fool’s errand as the Israeli regime bombs Iran; expands and fortifies illegal settlements; commits war crimes with impunity through its cruel practices of collective punishments, house demolitions, population transfers and ethnic cleansing; as it arms settler militias, who are illegally occupying Palestinian land, masquerading as ‘civilians’ to exterminate and expel Palestinians from their lands.
“The two-state solution was born dead. Nobody wants this corpse. It was a fraud then and has become a farce now.”
This single paragraph not only encapsulates the daily horrors Palestinians are confronted with, it spells out cold, hard facts corroborated by international as well as Israeli-based human rights organisations.
Fact-based evidence of gross violations by Israel of civilised values ought to allow media practitioners the ability to call out Israeli crimes, instead of shying away from what is perceived to be fear of being slandered as “anti-Semites”. Lack of biting critique allows racist right-wing perpetrators of murder, mayhem and massacres to normalise inhumane policies.
Yet it appears some of South Africa’s media platforms that boast of reporting “without fear or favour”, have difficulty in doing so.
Media transformation post-apartheid required drastic changes in addition to monopoly of ownership and diversity in newsrooms. One such need was to break out of the shackles of censorship imposed and enforced back then by the white regime.
Constitutional rights related to media freedom and free speech empower journalists to fearlessly articulate views and opinions. It is thus encouraging that criticising South Africa’s head of state, the ANC, state institutions, business and multinational conglomerates is a regular practice.
Yet as far as Israel and war crimes committed by it is concerned, there seems to be “tip-toeing”.
Selected language choices form an important component of Israeli propaganda that it behoves the media to be mindful of. The Zionist lexicon wants the media to construct reports on their biased terms.
As the Zionist juggernaut repeatedly unleashes wrath and rage against millions of Palestinians across the illegally Occupied Territories, historic ’48 areas and Gaza, it is necessary to jolt the media to speak truth to power.
Indeed it is equally crucial to remind President Cyril Ramaphosa and the South African government of the need to prosecute South African citizens serving in Israel’s army, police and security agencies.
Laws on the statute that prohibit such transgression are clear. Unless provisions of the Foreign Military Assistance Act (FMAA) are invoked and charges follow, it is reasonable to argue that the ANC-led government may find it extremely difficult to dismiss allegations of being complicit in the free-flow of SA mercenaries engaged in the slaughter of Palestinians.
We at Media Review Network – South Africa along with fellow Palestine solidarity movements and activists – have laid formal complaints to SA’s National Prosecuting Authority and the SAPS, in respect of these grave violations.
The most recent, the #ZionistTerrorismCorridorProbe via our legal team headed by human rights lawyer Ziyaad Patel, awaits decisive action.
In the wake of the #JeninMassacre and Israel’s ongoing impunity as it continues policies of terrorism, we remind President Ramaphosa of the obligation to honour SA’s solidarity with real action. Will the South African media and the ANC government live up to their commitment to Archbishop Tutu’s legacy of confronting apartheid Israel’s injustices?