Why do I say only now –
That the nuclear power Israel endangers an
Already fragile world?
Because that must be said
Which may already be too late to say tomorrow
These are few verses from a poem by Guenter Grass, a German Nobel laureate. These fact were good enough to cause a widespread anger in both Germany and Israel.
Israel has declared him a ‘persona-non-grata’ and barred him from entering the country. He has been accused of being anti-Semitic, his Nazi era past (when he served Waffen SS during the WWII) was immediately blamed for his bad mouth against the state of Israel.
In other words, whoever dares to criticize Israel, regardless how genuine is the criticism – whether its Israeli nuclear program, occupation of Arab territories, siege of Gaza, is liable to be labelled as anti-Semitic. It’s a bid to silence the criticism and make a scene for would-be-critiques.
Are these not facts that Israel has been running an ambitious nuclear program, Israel has refused to return to pre-1967 war borders, has been behaving as an apartheid state for its Arab citizens and Palestinians in West Bank, despite all sort of pressure from human rights activists and organizations Israel has refused to lift the Gaza siege?
We all accept that Israel has got some very influential and powerful friends, that’s why it is able to do whatever it wants in the name of security, however, it doesn’t mean that people are not even allowed to call a spade a spade. Tirelessly claiming as beacon of democracy in the region, Israel shall not behave like a dictatorship and apartheid regime.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyan described Grass’ work as ‘ignored and shameful declarations that any fair person in the world must condemn’. I don’t know in which world Bibi is living, that’ why he appears to be quite surprised by the criticism. Perhaps he believes in See No Evil, Hear No Evil but doesn’t believe in Do No Evil.
MASOOD KHAN
Jubail, Saudi Arabia