For those who're in Syria and in Damascus there is going to be a silent strike :
Let’s break the silence in support of our children in Gaza. Dare to say no to the ongoing injustices taking place in the shadow of regional politics, orchestrated Palestinian-Israeli peace talks and the glamorous visit of the western presidents. Peace starts by stopping the killing of innocent children everywhere. Join us to a peaceful gathering to submit a petition to the United Nation. Time: Friday January 25, 2008 at 12.30 p.m
Place: United Nation Building Mezzah, Western Villas, Ghazawi Street. Damascus, Syria
I am not in favor of strikes and demonstrations in countries like Syria for few reasons:
1- Can the public influence its government when the government is in isolation with the whole world? even though Syria is a "proud Arab country" and all, but didn’t Egypt, Jordan and KSA, despite of their submissive and assimilations to/with the American administration, have used their very ties with the West and Israel to help the Gazans? How can Syria be an Arab and so generous to Palestinians as it claims if it doesn’t have an affect whatsoever?
not to read my comment as in favor with similar submissive relations of Syria with the Americans or the Europeans, what I am saying, is that a complete isolation as that of Syria is as bad as a complete submissiveness as that of Egypt, KSA and Jordan. So no heroes here.
2-so if the government cannot affect the world, how can the public affect the government? Assuming the government actually cares what its public thinks.
3-so why go to the strike then? I think in paralyzed communities like the Syrian one, civil disobedience and strikes are beneficial to the makers of these activities rather than to the receivers. It would encourage them to be part of the Syrian and regional public affairs, and I have learned that the creation of an active society start with simple multiple tries to gradually become greater.
4-But what really can we do to the Gazans? I believe what we can do is raise carefully studied awareness AND donate. And so far I know this link to donate money to Gaza:
TAKAFUL: The Palestinian Refugee Support Network
3 comments:
This "women and children" drives me nuts as well. They do it all the time with reporting Iraqi and Afghan casualties as well. On the one hand, this way of putting things erases the death of men, as you've noted, but I think it also infantilizes women in this strange way too.
PS- if i were you, i wouldn't give any extra publicity to people like this disgusting freak who is denying the atrocities taking place in Gaza. Let them and their handful of readers keep themselves busy themselves with their spewing hate fest.
But haven’t you see our minister dr. muhsen bilal yesterday on Aljazeera?
We did a lot….!
We disapproved and refused…
Loudly… refused!
So don’t say we didn’t do any thing!!!
Anyway, what KSA and Egypt did is nothing, they actually did nothing too
Palestinians are those who broke into rafah’s wall, and Egypt couldn’t stop, so they made it look like they have something to do with it in the media with is not. True.
The strike is really important as you said Razan, people must be more involved even if governments are rolling over and playing dead … see you there.
Niki, I agree with you wholeheartedly that brining up women as victims AND omitting the death of men in reports does infantilize women.
About the fellow, I just used him to support my argument in a context, even though these twisted arguments may sometimes reflect our defected arguments as well. On other note, reading him made me realize that I dont read Israeli blogs, and I should.
Dania, yeah I was actually referring to the one day in which Israel allowed certain amount of fuel entering the strip, that was due to the efforts made by the Arab countries mentioned above. But now that the Palestinians had entered Egypt, who needs these efforts? But generally speaking, I think even though the ties with the west and Israel are sometimes beneficial to catastrophes like these, they are harmful along the way. but that doesn’t mean isolation is heroic as Syria repeatedly claims and some Syrians go proud about, we're just as dumb as Egypt.
Actually I need to think more about this; is isolation better or ties with the west better, and are these the only alternatives? I am not sure.
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