Category Archives: Viva!

Israeli undercover soldiers seen arresting Palestinian protesters

And how many are urging more violent protest?

4254.jpg?w=300&q=55&auto=format&usm=12&f

Footage shows officers posing as protesters before pulling out pistols and seizing stone throwers in West Bank

Dramatic footage has emerged of plain clothes Israeli troops – known as “mustarabeen” – infiltrating a Palestinian demonstration in Ramallah and arresting stone throwers.

The soldiers, dressed as Palestinian protesters, were caught on camera by AFP journalists during a demonstration near the “DCO” checkpoint to the north of Ramallah, which is a frequent location for stone-throwing protests.

Continue reading…

Libya:Up to One Million Enslaved Migrants, Victims of ‘Europe’s Complicity’

The Geneva-based UN International Organisation for Migration (IOM) estimates that the number of migrants trapped in Libya could amount to up to one million, and it is now rushing to rescue the first 15,000 victims through a massive repatriation emergency plan. A major airlift is underway as IOM starts flying 15,000 more migrants from Libya before year end.

“European governments have not just been fully aware of these abuses… they are complicit in them” — John Dalhuisen, Amnesty International

“Hundreds of thousands of refugees and migrants trapped in Libya are at the mercy of Libyan authorities, militias, armed groups and smugglers often working seamlessly together for financial gain. Tens of thousands are kept indefinitely in overcrowded detention centres where they are subjected to systematic abuse,” said John Dalhuisen, AI’s Europe Director, on Dec 12. [IPS] Rome -“European governments are knowingly complicit in the torture and abuse of tens of thousands of refugees and migrants detained by Libyan immigration authorities in appalling conditions in Libya,” Amnesty International charged in the wake of global outrage over the sale of migrants in Libya.

The Woman Who Smuggled Over 2,500 Jewish Kids Out Of the Warsaw Ghetto In Suitcases or Medical Bags

Irena_Sendlerowa_1942.jpg

During WWII, Irena Sendlerowa, a Catholic Polish social worker, saved 2,500 Jewish children from death. That’s more than Oscar Schindler managed with 1,200. Though recognized by Yad Vashem in 1965 as being one of the Righteous Among the Nations (a non-Jew who saved Jews during the Holocaust), the rest of the world knew virtually nothing about her.

At least, until 1999 when students at a rural Kansas high school were looking for material for their school play. Thanks to them, Sendlerowa was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize but lost it to Al Gore.

Sendlerowa was born on 15 February 1910 in the town of Otwock. Her father was a doctor whose motto was, “jump into the water to save someone drowning, whether or not you can swim.” He did just that, which was why he was the only doctor in Otwock who’d treat Jews.

 

In 1935, Poland mandated ghetto benches in schools, requiring Jews to sit in assigned seats away from non-Jews. Many protested this by refusing to sit down in class. Sendlerowa took up Polish Literature at the Warsaw University and joined these protests, for which she was suspended for three years. Despite this, she earned her degree, joined the Polish Socialist Party, and found a job with the Warsaw Social Welfare Department.

When Germany invaded Poland in 1939, Sendlerowa was among those responsible for the state-run canteens. These provided the city’s poor, elderly, and orphaned with food, clothing, and financial aid. In the early weeks of the German occupation, Jews who went to these canteens got something extra: false documents to help them pass off as Catholic.

Irena Sendlerowa in 1942Irena Sendlerowa in 1942.

This ended in 1941 when helping a Jew became a crime punishable by death, a sentence that was extended to the entire family. Of all the countries under German occupation, Poland was the only one in which such a stiff penalty was imposed. For Sendlerowa, it made no difference because of what she saw the previous year.

Dr. Janusz Korczak was a Jewish pediatrician, children’s author, and educator who was so widely respected, even the Nazis wanted to spare him. He also ran the Nasz Dom, an orphanage in Warsaw for Jewish children. His reputation protected them for a while, but that ended in early August 1942 when they were ordered to the Treblinka extermination camp.

A General Notice issued on 5 September 1942 in German and Polish threatening death to any who helped JewsA General Notice issued on 5 September 1942 in German and Polish threatening death to any who helped Jews.

A number of the German soldiers recognized their childhood hero when they came to collect the 192 or 196 children under his care. Since some prominent Jews with international reputations were spared death, Korczak could have saved himself. But he refused, insisting that he accompany his charges to Treblinka.

Sendlerowa saw them all that day – the children dressed in their best, some with small, handmade dolls in their hands. She also saw Korczak’s face and understood she’d never see any of them ever again. That’s when she decided to take up his legacy by joining Zegota; a Polish resistance movement also called the Council to Aid Jews. Sendlerowa was assigned to its children’s section and sent to the Warsaw Ghetto.

Dr. Korczak with the children and staff of Nasz Dom in 1920Dr. Korczak with the children and staff of Nasz Dom in 1920

The ghetto had been set up in late 1940 – a few, walled-off blocks spanning 1.3 square miles into which were packed over 400,000 Jews. Of these, some 254,000 were sent to Treblinka. As for the rest, they were denied food and medical care so they could die slowly. Still, the Germans were terrified of disease, especially typhus. To minimize its outbreak, they allowed social workers in to monitor the situation.

Sendlerowa’s job was to oversee hygiene, but she couldn’t resist wearing a Star of David armband to annoy the guards and to show her solidarity with the Jews. She also brought a dog along with her, one specially trained to bark on command.

Once inside, she and other colleagues did what they could to convince parents to hand their babies and toddlers over to them. Then they snuck them out in suitcases, medical bags, ambulances, and carts. These would often be sedated, but Sendlerowa took no chances.

When children woke up and started crying, the dog would start barking loudly so the guards wouldn’t hear the cries. To explain the older children, guards were told they were dead and were being taken out for disposal.

Taken on 24 May 1941, this photo shows the Zelaznej Bramy (Iron Gate) Square, the ghetto wall, and the Lubomirski palaceTaken on 24 May 1941, this photo shows the Zelaznej Bramy (Iron Gate) Square, the ghetto wall, and the Lubomirski Palace. – By Bundesarchiv – CC BY-SA 3.0 de

She did this every day, recording the names and details of each child, hoping to one day reunite them with their parents. These names were put into a jar and buried beneath an apple tree right beside the German barracks. Each child was given a false identity and sent to Catholic homes, convents, and churches. Older children were taught Christian prayers and how to behave in a Catholic mass.

It couldn’t last, of course. On 20 October 1943, someone reported her to the Gestapo. Sendlerowa was arrested and interrogated but refused to name her co-workers or give details on the Zegota. So they tortured her. When that failed, the broke her legs and feet.

Still, she wouldn’t reveal a thing, so they ordered her executed, but the Zegota bribed her guards, and she escaped and she went into hiding for a while. Recovering quickly, she returned to Warsaw under a false identity and worked as a nurse in a public hospital where she managed to hide five more Jews.

Ruins of Warsaw Ghetto, leveled by German forces, according to Adolf Hitler's order, after suppressing of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in 1943. North-west view, left - the Krasiński`s Garden and Swiętojerska street, photo taken in 1945.Ruins of Warsaw Ghetto, leveled by German forces, according to Adolf Hitler’s order, after suppressing of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising in 1943. North-west view, left – the Krasiński`s Garden and Swiętojerska street, photo taken in 1945.

After the war, Poland became communist, so Sendlerowa was arrested in 1948 for her involvement with the Home Army (which resisted communist rule). This arrest caused her to give birth to her son, Andrzej, prematurely. They eventually released her on condition that she would join the communist party, but they never stopped being suspicious of her.

When Israel recognized what she had done in 1965, Poland refused to let her leave to receive the award. They only let her do so in 1983. Her son Andrzej died on 23 September 1999, the very day that students at Uniontown High School in Kansas found a small news clipping about her.

A photo by Mariusz Kubik on 15 February 2005, showing Irena reuinted with some of the children she saved. Sadly, most could not be reuinted with their biological parents as most had died.Photo taken on 15 February 2005, showing Irena reunited with some of the children she saved. Sadly, most could not be reunited with their biological parents as most had died. – By Mariusz Kubik – CC BY 3.0

There wasn’t much info, but the students were fascinated. They chased down other leads and made a play based on her story called “Life in a Jar.” Then in February 2000, they found out she was still alive, so they got in touch and sent her a translated copy of their manuscript.

On 10 November 2003, the Polish government finally gave her the Order of the White Eagle, that country’s highest civilian award. In 2007, Pope John Paul II, the Polish and Israeli governments, and the Uniontown High School nominated her for the Nobel Peace Prize, but it was given to Al Gore for his work on Climate Change, instead.

A Responsibility to Prevent Genocide

Palestine was invaded 70 years ago and ethnic cleansing has been taking place for 70 years – whose responsibility is that?

Thousands of new Rohingya refugee arrivals cross the border near Anzuman Para village, Palong Khali, Bangladesh. Credit: UNHCR/Roger Arnold

By Tharanga Yakupitiyage
UNITED NATIONS, Dec 12 2017 (IPS)

Almost 70 years since the Genocide Convention was adopted, the international community still faces a continued and growing risk of genocide.

On the International Day of Commemoration and Dignity of the Victims of the Crime of Genocide, the UN launched an appeal for member states to ratify the 1948 convention by the end of 2018.

“Genocide does not happen by accident; it is deliberate, with warning signs and precursors,” said Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

“Often it is the culmination of years of exclusion, denial of human rights and other wrongs. Since genocide can take place in times of war and in times of peace, we must be ever-vigilant,” he continued.

The Secretary-General’s Special Advisor on the Prevention of Genocide Adama Dieng echoed similar sentiments, stating: “It is our inaction, our ineffectiveness in addressing the warning signs, that allows it to become a reality. A reality where people are dehumanized and persecuted for who they are, or who they represent. A reality of great suffering, cruelty, and of inhumane acts that have at the basis unacceptable motivations.”

The Convention defines genocide as “acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial, or religious group.” This includes not only killing members of the group, but also causing serious bodily or mental harm and imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group.

Despite the comprehensive definition of genocide in the Convention, genocide has recurred multiple times, Guterres said.

“We are still reacting rather than preventing, and acting only when it is often too late. We must do more to respond early and keep violence from escalating,” he said.

One such case may be Myanmar.

After a year of investigation, the organization Fortify Rights and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum said that there is “mounting” evidence that points to a genocide against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar with Burmese Army soldiers, police, and civilians as the major perpetrators.

“The Rohingya have suffered attacks and systematic violations for decades, and the international community must not fail them now when their very existence in Myanmar is threatened,” said Cameron Hudson from the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum.

“Without urgent action, there’s a high risk of more mass atrocities,” he continued.

More than half of Myanmar’s one million Rohingya have fled the country since violence reignited in August.

“They tried to kill us all,” 25-year-old Mohammed Rafiq from Maungdaw Township told researchers when recalling how soldiers gathered villagers and opened fire on them on 30 August.

“There was nothing left. People were shot in the chest, stomach, legs, face, head, everywhere.”

Eyewitness testimony revealed that Rohingya civilians were burned alive, women and girls raped, and men and boys arrested en masse.

“These crimes thrive on impunity and inaction…condemnations aren’t enough,” said Chief Executive Officer of Fortify Rights Matthew Smith.

The government’s strict restrictions on Rohingya’s daily lives also point to signs of genocide.

In 2013, authorities placed a two-child limit on Rohingya couples in two predominantly Muslim townships in Rakhine State.

Others have come forward to claim that the crisis in Myanmar may constitute genocide such as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein and the British parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee.

“Considering Rohingyas’ self-identify as a distinct ethnic group with their own language and culture – and [that they] are also deemed by the perpetrators themselves as belonging to a different ethnic, national, racial or religious group – given all of this, can anyone rule out that elements of genocide may be present?” al-Hussein asked.

Though the UN Human Rights Council recently condemned the systematic and gross violations of human rights in Myanmar, the Security Council has failed to act on the crisis.

As the UN appeals for the remaining 45 member states to ratify the Genocide Convention, what about nations like Myanmar who are already party to the document?

The Convention requires all states to take action to prevent and punish genocide. Not only Myanmar, but the entire international community has failed to protect Rohingya civilians from mass atrocities.

This failure suggests that the international community may need to consider additional mechanisms to address and prevent genocide.

To date, a total of 149 member states have ratified the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Genocide.

The post A Responsibility to Prevent Genocide appeared first on Inter Press Service.