The Ilan Pappe Talk February 20, 2009
Posted by Jannah in Uncategorized.add a comment
I just came back from a talk by Ilan Pappe, one of the world’s leading historian on the Palestine-Israel conflict, who by the way, happens to be Jewish. Generally, he touched on issues that us, Palestinians activists should be aware of in our struggle for justice. Basically, this was what he said (of which I can remember):
- It is important for us to realize that this issue, in essence, is a very simple issue, that is made to believe (by the Isrealis) to be complicated. In reality, it is what it is; A group of people who share a common ideology, who believe that they have a ‘right’ to disregard other people’s right in order to get what they ‘deserve’.
- In order to convince others, we must be aware of the struggle of the memories and policies of this cause – i.e. we must learn and know how to exploit the misconceptions and manipulations of history the Israelis have cast over the world.
- Supporting this cause does not necessarily mean that we condone every single thing the victim does. Nevertheless, it should not ‘blur’ us away from the truth. It is what it is.
- We should divorce Judaism from Zionism. Not all Jews are zionists, and not all Zionists are Jews.
There were loads more that were discussed, even the questions ( and at times, statements) made by the audience was very interesting. But these 3 points were the ones that stuck in my mind and I thought were most interesting.
One of the audience asked Ilan Pappe how he got to where he is today given that he was raised in Israel where he himself admitted that the children were being taught to think that what Israel is doing is right. He answered by saying that he initially wanted to learn Arabic because he wanted to join the army Intelligence and help to decipher the enemy but ended up loving Arabic instead and started to learn about the true history of Palestine and Israel thus coming to the conclusion that he has now. Talk about Hidayah and Divine intervention! It is at times like these, when you hear stories like these, that you realize how powerful and wise God is. SubhanAllah.
When I think about the whole Palestine Issue, I can’t help but think, am I supporting this because I’m a Muslim? Or because it is just plain dead wrong? I sometimes wonder if we would still be convicted about this issue if say it was Uganda, instead of Palestine that is being victimised. My point is, probably we should take a moment and think about the reasons we are supporting Palestine. Because if we think that we would not support this cause as strongly as we do now, if it were Uganda, then I think we should call ourselves selfish and racsist before we call others that.
Politics. And all the shenanigans that comes with it. February 10, 2009
Posted by Jannah in Malaysia, Opinion, Politics, Public.add a comment
I know its been a while (Ok, a long time) since my last entry, but in my defence, I have been swarmed with exams! (alasan untuk diri sendiri je sebenarnya nih =p)
Anyways, I’ve been trying to keep up to date with what’s going on back home. Although, I must say that reading all these news just makes me sad. Not to mention angry, dissapointed and all other negative connotations that you could possibly think of. Frankly speaking, I am just becoming more and more disgusted with Malaysian politics. Yes, I agree, politics are essential. Even Rasulullah (pbuh) was a political mastermind. However, one thing that I am able to deduce from all my observation of the happenings in Malaysian politics is that Politics brings out the worse in people.
I’m not just talking about politicians per se (although the statement is mostly attributed to them) but everyone in general. What else, if not politics, can provoke adults, intellectuals, professionals to beat each other up on the basis of ‘principles’? What else, if not politics, provides the medium for bribery and treachery to become oh-so-common? What else, if not politics, that can make a person throw all their ‘principles’ out the window? Surely this is not portraying good logical thinking, let alone the teachings of Islam.
Over the past week, I’ve seen countless videos, read numerous articles about protests (and not peaceful ones at that), fightings, bickerings. Over what?
I think, most times, people get into politics with the best of intentions which I’m sure most of us have. We want to change the world, make it a better place. Set right to the world. But sometimes I wonder if it is still possible to be involved in politics and come out of it saying, with confidence, that you did what you set out to do originally without sacrificing your principles (the good ones of course) even just a little bit. I am not sure that one can survive the political game anymore without being “coerced” into doing something that they swore they would not do before. Politics have just gotten so dirty lately that I’m not even sure its serving its purpose.
Honestly, I am not taking any sides because obviously both sides have their shortcomings. Nevertheless, it just bewilders me to think that we specifically chose these people to protect our rights and be our voices, yet at the end of the day, all they seem to care about are their own interests.
P/s: I’ve added new pictures! Check them out on the Photo Gallery page 
