China’s Creditor Imperialism

Dec 20, 2017 BRAHMA CHELLANEY

Dec 20, 2017

BRAHMA CHELLANEY

BERLIN – This month, Sri Lanka, unable to pay the onerous debt to China it has accumulated, formally handed over its strategically located Hambantota port to the Asian giant. It was a major acquisition for China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – which President Xi Jinping calls the “project of the century” – and proof of just how effective China’s debt-trap diplomacy can be.

Unlike International Monetary Fund and World Bank lending, Chinese loans are collateralized by strategically important natural assets with high long-term value (even if they lack short-term commercial viability). Hambantota, for example, straddles Indian Ocean trade routes linking Europe, Africa, and the Middle East to Asia. In exchange for financing and building the infrastructure that poorer countries need, China demands favorable access to their natural assets, from mineral resources to ports.

Moreover, as Sri Lanka’s experience starkly illustrates, Chinese financing can shackle its “partner” countries. Rather than offering grants or concessionary loans, China provides huge project-related loans at market-based rates, without transparency, much less environmental- or social-impact assessments. As US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson put it recently, with the BRI, China is aiming to define “its own rules and norms.”

To strengthen its position further, China has encouraged its companies to bid for outright purchase of strategic ports, where possible. The Mediterranean port of Piraeus, which a Chinese firm acquired for $436 million from cash-strapped Greece last year, will serve as the BRI’s “dragon head” in Europe.

By wielding its financial clout in this manner, China seeks to kill two birds with one stone. First, it wants to address overcapacity at home by boosting exports. And, second, it hopes to advance its strategic interests, including expanding its diplomatic influence, securing natural resources, promoting the international use of its currency, and gaining a relative advantage over other powers.

China’s predatory approach – and its gloating over securing Hambantota – is ironic, to say the least. In its relationships with smaller countries like Sri Lanka, China is replicating the practices used against it in the European-colonial period, which began with the 1839-1860 Opium Wars and ended with the 1949 communist takeover – a period that China bitterly refers to as its “century of humiliation.”

China portrayed the 1997 restoration of its sovereignty over Hong Kong, following more than a century of British administration, as righting a historic injustice. Yet, as Hambantota shows, China is now establishing its own Hong Kong-style neocolonial arrangements. Apparently Xi’s promise of the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation” is inextricable from the erosion of smaller states’ sovereignty.

Just as European imperial powers employed gunboat diplomacy to open new markets and colonial outposts, China uses sovereign debt to bend other states to its will, without having to fire a single shot. Like the opium the British exported to China, the easy loans China offers are addictive. And, because China chooses its projects according to their long-term strategic value, they may yield short-term returns that are insufficient for countries to repay their debts. This gives China added leverage, which it can use, say, to force borrowers to swap debt for equity, thereby expanding China’s global footprint by trapping a growing number of countries in debt servitude.

Even the terms of the 99-year Hambantota port lease echo those used to force China to lease its own ports to Western colonial powers. Britain leased the New Territories from China for 99 years in 1898, causing Hong Kong’s landmass to expand by 90%. Yet the 99-year term was fixed merely to help China’s ethnic-Manchu Qing Dynasty save face; the reality was that all acquisitions were believed to be permanent.

Now, China is applying the imperial 99-year lease concept in distant lands. China’s lease agreement over Hambantota, concluded this summer, included a promise that China would shave $1.1 billion off Sri Lanka’s debt. In 2015, a Chinese firm took out a 99-year lease on Australia’s deep-water port of Darwin – home to more than 1,000 US Marines – for $388 million.

Similarly, after lending billions of dollars to heavily indebted Djibouti, China established its first overseas military base this year in that tiny but strategic state, just a few miles from a US naval base – the only permanent American military facility in Africa. Trapped in a debt crisis, Djibouti had no choice but to lease land to China for $20 million per year. China has also used its leverage over Turkmenistan to secure natural gas by pipeline largely on Chinese terms.

Several other countries, from Argentina to Namibia to Laos, have been ensnared in a Chinese debt trap, forcing them to confront agonizing choices in order to stave off default. Kenya’s crushing debt to China now threatens to turn its busy port of Mombasa – the gateway to East Africa – into another Hambantota.

These experiences should serve as a warning that the BRI is essentially an imperial project that aims to bring to fruition the mythical Middle Kingdom. States caught in debt bondage to China risk losing both their most valuable natural assets and their very sovereignty. The new imperial giant’s velvet glove cloaks an iron fist – one with the strength to squeeze the vitality out of smaller countries.

BRAHMA CHELLANEY

Writing for PS since 2009

 

Dec 6, 2017 JOSEPH S. NYE

BRAHMA CHELLANEY

Writing for PS since 2009 

Who will protect us?

By Dr. Ranil Senanayake-December 25, 2017, 12:00 pm 

We are held hostage to a group of greedy politicians and corrupt businessmen willing to sacrifice our health and our heritage to the purveyors of energy addiction.

It is universally accepted that Coal is one of the most toxic sources of power and contributes volumes of climate changing Carbon Dioxide gas.

On all International Platforms the dangers of using Coal for energy generation has been made patently clear. The negative impact of of Coal on human health, to biodiversity and to Ecosystem Services has been demonstrated time and again. Yet, the sad argument "The developed countries used Coal and got developed, so we have an equal right to use Coal for our development", is oft repeated by some ill-educated and greedy people, ignoring the reality as to what its use is doing, to our health to our well being and to the planet. Today, the argument on coal is being craftily modified to state that there is a mythical substance called ‘clean coal’ and using this myth they try to foist coal burning plants, rejected by the populace of their own countries, on some poor, gullible, ‘developing’ nation.

It was not so long ago that a great number of Sri Lankans who are experts in their fields provided information to the Ministry of Environment on the massive negative impact of using Coal. This presentation was based on scientific research and it amassed a massive body of evidence, it was then decided to cancel the proposed Coal fired power plant. But now, suddenly some politicians within the system have seen it profitable to jump at the bait offered by Japan, "Clean Coal " fired power plants ! There is no such substance as ‘Clean Coal’. To make such a move, while the President himself is the minister, bespeaks of dark doings behind his back, for we know that the President will never go against his own words at international fora. The plotters who conspired with the Japanese should be outed, the public has a right to know. The public needs to know ‘What is Clean Coal ?’

However, we should bear in mind that in a lop sided vision of ‘development’ the public will be coerced to consume more and more as ‘development’. Compound this with unplanned constructions with their profligate use of power and we move into a future with greater demand for power and thereby a call for more power generation. This is the tragedy of a government policy whose concepts of ‘development’ are still rooted in the consumerist/growth models 1970s, and whose awareness of power generation stops at coal. Coal is an environmentally destructive substance, it degrades human health. But none of that is important to the purveyors of coal who want us ‘hooked’ on their product to give as power.

"In a port city in France, goes a story; there lived some of the most unscrupulous criminals. There were the drug traffickers who dealt in the cruel drug heroin. Heroin is addictive, it creates a sense of well-being; but one requires increasingly large doses to maintain this sense of well-being. The victim who begins to take it becomes ever more dependent on the drug and freedom from it becomes increasingly difficult. The traffickers, it is alleged, give free doses to children in the 11, 12 age group knowing well that the gullible, naïve, children will soon become addicted. When they become addicted they have to pay and the price they have to pay increases with the addiction. They are trapped in a vicious dependency cycle and there is no way out. They end up being the chattel of the criminals." Is development to be spelled out as dependency on fossil fuels? If this is the energy source that powers development and if our hopes and sense of well-being is tied to the oil, coal and gas purveyors, how safe are we as an independent nation?

Politicians of every colour has pushed us along this path, until today we are ready to accept any poison, any compromise of our future as long as our increasingly profligate fossil energy dependent lifestyle is not affected. It is the level of consumption by a household that is the measure of development today, a far cry from the vision of our founding father D. S. Senanayake who said that development should be measured by the larder of the poorest of our homes. But under the guidance of the ‘new’ leaders, the worship of GDP and international monetary metrics, is more important than the well-being of the citizenry.

So, burning coal is considered good because it give us more energy and thus adds to the GDP. The myth of ‘clean coal’ is now being developed, the public, are told that; ‘There will be no problems, do not be concerned’, the same mantra we heard when Norochcholai was being promoted and the same set of crooked EIA writers will probably be commissioned again. The reality of Norochcholai was very different to the EIA that was given. The cost that the populace is paying through the increase of non-communicable diseases in the operation of this power plant is painfully evident.

The danger was clear to our first president J.R.Jayawardene, when as a young politician, he wrote: "The environment which the State provides today, for building up the character of its citizens, tends not to the establishment of the ideal but to its destruction. The majority of States, including Sri Lanka, stand for "the purely industrial and utilitarian view of life, the cult of power and machinery and national comfort".

Today, this cult of power and machinery, with those subscribing to it, is pushing us to accept the purely industrial and utilitarian view of life as development. The current crop of the BBP (Businessman-Bureaucrat-Politician) nexus, sees consumerist growth as the only valid goal.

Is the present deal to push the Japanese coal fired power plants on a nation whose leaders have rejected coal power a sign of some crooked BBP elements once again attempting to subvert the President by going against his international undertakings ?

Sri Lanka was a foremost nation speaking on Japans defense after the war. Using the ignorance of our politicians, to foist a substance that undermines our international stance is not a reciprocal gesture.

To have a cabinet that issues a cabinet paper promoting a mythical substance called ‘Clean Coal’, is shameful.

FGM IN SRI LANKA: IT’S NEVER ‘JUST A NICK’

Image: FGM is practiced by a number of Muslim communities in Sri Lanka [Louise Gubb/Getty Images]

By Zainab Ibrahim   & Ermiza Tegal.-26/12/2017

For decades, female genital mutilation (FGM) has been practiced in Sri Lanka. However, to those outside the practicing communities, this information elicits shock and disbelief. Secrecy about FGM in Sri Lanka is both imposed and internalised. Women who have experienced FGM strongly fear retaliation for speaking out. There is a lack of freedom to discuss, question and explore alternative views within practicing communities.

In December 2017 a news story broke the public silence on FGM, opening a contentious debate. Spokespersons for some sections of the Muslim communities in Sri Lanka confirmed the practice of cutting but have taken pains to make a distinction between FGM and “female circumcision”. They argue that what happens in Sri Lanka is “just a nick” of a girl’s clitoris that does not constitute mutilation. This distinction is not recognised by the World Health Organisation ; the types of FGM it classifies include forms described as “just a nick”.

Based on personal testimonies of women, our work shows that FGM is practiced within the Moor, Malay and Dawoodi Bohra ethnic communities in Sri Lanka. 

The practice appears to vary regionally, and there are clerics who denounce FGM, those who promote it, and also those that say it is mandatory. This means there are also sections of the communities abandoning the practice, with some reporting that FGM is diminishing with each generation and could possibly die out. Some women are opting to not get it done to their daughters or pretend to have it done to save face within their families and communities.

What is Female Genital Mutilation or FGM?

The form and conditions under which the genital cutting happens are varied. Moor and Malay women speak of a practice done at 40 days after birth by an “Osthi mami”, a medically untrained woman who carries out the “ritual”. Shaving blades are used and there is no mention of sterilisation. What exactly is nicked and how deep the nick is is left to the untrained “Osthi mami” to decide. Blood is drawn and sometimes ash is sprinkled on the wound.

Dawoodi Bohra women describe experiencing cutting at age seven, usually by medical professionals. Some have recounted traumatic memories of the procedure, of being pinned down on tables, feeling pain between their legs and feeling pain when passing urine for days after.

Some mothers have expressed regret with hindsight at having done this to their children. For others, it has strained their relationships with parents. A 27 year-old Sri Lankan woman who got herself medically examined as an adult, found part of her clitoris and labia had been cut when she was a child. Another woman testified to experiencing pain during sexual intercourse as an adult, due to nerves being exposed when she was cut as a child.

There is no established medical benefit, even of hygiene, that justifies the cutting of the clitoris or  labia of young girls.

Proponents of FGM claim the WHO has not studied local practices, arguing that the local form of the practice somehow does not cause harm and, on the contrary, is beneficial – an argument for which no medical evidence has been presented.

It is hard to deny that the “local practice” involves interfering with the genitalia of a child who is unable to give informed consent. The clitoris matures to have a high concentration of nerve endings in a small piece of flesh. Given this, even if the clitoris is only minimally or accidentally injured, scar tissue develops and it can affect the ability of the woman to experience pleasure normally.

That FGM is done to control a woman’s sexuality is well documented and echoes the narratives of Sri Lankan women we have spoken to between the ages of 25 and 60. These women have bravely testified to the lasting harm and trauma caused by their childhood experiences of being cut, despite great fear about the social and personal consequences of doing so. 

Supporters of FGM have been loud and vehement. They are community gatekeepers who hold power and authority and are often male. Their insistence on the cultural practice is an attempt to trump the voices of women saying they have been hurt and don’t want it done to any other child. There are also women who say the cutting has not affected them.

The latest argument of some proponents of FGM has been to say that the practice as described in the recently publicised excerpts of testimonies is not in line with the cultural practice they promote, and should in fact be “done properly”. Their attempt to medicalise or regulate the practice would not undo the physical and psychological harm done to girls and women. 

FGM proponents’ debates on the methods and extent of cutting also distracts from the central fact that the practice of FGM is a violation of the rights of a child as protected by national and international law. The Muslim clerics in Sri Lanka who denounce the practice of cutting also highlight the issue of protection of children, along with their calls to respect the perfection of God’s creation.

Women have started to speak up on the issue and have approached state authorities to lobby them to take action. FGM is a public health issue, but it is also a child abuse issue. Sri Lanka’s Penal code criminalises any form of “grievous hurt” and genital cutting clearly falls within that definition.
However, the women affected are calling for FGM to be recognised as a specific criminal offence. This will address the reluctance of law enforcement officials to take action on what they see as a private matter for families or a “cultural practice” of a specific community.

The pushback to women’s advocacy raises important questions about whose voices we privilege in debates around cultural practices and women’s bodies. While debate is a healthy process of exchange of information and views, vilification of and threats against women who raise the issue of FGM are simply attempts to silence them and must be condemned.

Women are reaching out for state protection because the problem of FGM is not an issue they are able to resolve within the community due to the overwhelming resistance from powerful interests that do not recognise their suffering. Banning FGM could help women resist harm to their daughters and protect the reproductive and sexual health of the future generations of women in Sri Lanka.

The views expressed in this article are the authors’ own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial policy.

Al Jazeera

Dole-Legalizing the illegality in Sri Lanka

This government became to power by pledging to stop all the corrupted tasks of previous Rajapaksa regime. President Sirisena’s election manifesto, there were many statements and promises regarding the environmental protection.

by Kalana Krishantha- Dec 26, 2017

( December 26, 2017, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) “Good governance” government have been trying to legalize the illegal land ownership of, ‘Dole Company”, lands which are located at Kudaa Oya and Demodara areas of Moneragala district nearby to Lunugamwehera National Park. Dole company has been operating commercial banana plantations for export purposes in these two areas of lands which are belonged to Department of Forest Conservation in Sri Lanka. Even company accepted that their land ownership in these two plants is illegal at a court. In Rajapaksha regime they did those things which a help of previous corrupted rulers. Unfortunately, this government who came into the power to end the corruption, has been contributing to the corruptions and various types of mafias like this. The starting of legalization process began with 15th of September 2016, cabinet paper to regularize the ownership of Kuda Oya and Demodara lands. While Department of Forest Conservation working to take court orders against that company, government is trying to avoid taking orders and give these lands to illegal owners-the multinational company.

Dole

Dole company is one of the largest multinational companies of the world which started their operations in Sri Lanka in previous Rajapaksha regime. The company is famous for maintaining plantations of fruits and other crops for export purposes throughout the world. Their history has full of controversies and functioning of this company was challenged many countries in the world. Swedish filmmaker Fredrik Gertten’s film “Bananas’, artistically reveal the dark side of this multinational company.

Sri Lanka and Dole

Even in year 2011, they allegedly tried to establish banana plants in Somawathi National Park according to environmental activists. However, due to heavy protests, they had to abandon the plan. Anyway,after that incident, they have been able to establish another banana plantation in nearby lands (4600 acres) of Lunugamwehera National Park which are belongs to Department of Forest Conservation of Sri Lanka. The company had so many connections with high level politicians of previous government and that paved the way for them to grab the lands in many other areas also. They are consuming these forest lands while violating all the prevailing environmental laws including national environmental act.

Harmful Effects

According to reliable sources, Dole company has been using water resources of Kirindi Oya and Menik Ganga for their commercial banana plant and nearby people have been suffering due to lack of water for their agricultural and daily consumption needs. And Company is using earthed water from digging deep wells and it paves the way for lack of moisture in soil and can be harmful for nearby Lunugamwehera National Park. It is reported that high usage of pesticides and fertilizers there which is contributing to pollute the whole forest environment. And farmers of the area who worked for temporary land permits sold their lands to this powerful company and now some of them have to work as the labors of banana plantations. That phenomena reveal that it has already become a crisis of humanity. The workers of there don’t have any labor rights and necessary safety methods to protect themselves from fertilizers and pesticides.

The Way Forward…

This government became to power by pledging to stop all the corrupted tasks of previous Rajapaksa regime. President Sirisena’s election manifesto, there were many statements and promises regarding the environmental protection. However, unfortunately they have been unable to implement any of these promises.

At least now, government should be able to regain this lands from multinational companies and let the natural environment to prevail without external disturbances. New laws are not essential to keep the environment of Sri Lanka. if politicians do not involve and if prevailing laws are implemented in impartial manner, it is overly sufficient for environmental protection.

Number of criminals in Pohottuwa nomination lists, alleges SB

Tuesday, December 26, 2017

The Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) which will contest the upcoming Local Government election under the symbol Pohottuwa (Flower Bud) has included a number of criminals and corrupt individuals in the nomination lists, Minister S. B. Dissanayake charged yesterday. Speaking at a public event in Kandy, the Minister said, individuals accused of murder and those who threw parties to celebrate the raping of women were allegedly included in the SLPP nominations lists.

He also stressed that the Sri Lanka Freedom Party will not support the SLPP at the local bodies where the SLFP nominations were rejected.

He said views expressed by some that the SLFP will support SLPP at Local Government bodies where the formers nominations were rejected may be personal ones. Minister Dissanayake also said the SLFP unlike the SLPP has not included any disreputable individuals in the party’s nomination lists. Meanwhile, media reports said that the People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) election monitoring organisation was making arrangements to inform the Inspector General of Police about the criminals and corrupt individuals included in the nomination lists of political parties contesting the forthcoming election. 

Interpol notices on Kosgoda Sujee, Makandure Madush

 2017-12-25

The Interpol had issued notices for the arrest of two underworld leaders Kosgoda Sujee and Makandure Madush, STF Commandant Senior DIG M.R. Lateef said.

He said the STF had requested the CID to issue a red notice on the 33-year-old Jagamuni Sujeewa De Soyza alias Kosgoda Sujee, while a blue notice was issued on Samarasinghe Arachchige Madush Lakshitha alias Makandure Madush.

The duo was involved in a number of murders and drug trafficking in the country. However, they have operated these crimes from overseas using their network of accomplices.

It was reported that the duo’s arrest was to be made as soon as possible so as to ensure peaceful Local Government elections.

The Interpol issues a red notice to seek the location and arrest of wanted persons with a view to extradition or similar lawful action, while the blue notice is issued to collect additional information about a person’s identity, location or activities in relation to a crime.

Meanwhile, the Interpol also issued red notice on two Sri Lankans, Antony Emil Luxmi Kanthan and Munisamy Tharmaseelan over criminal misappropriation and weapons possession. (Darshana Sanjeewa)

Lorde Cancels Tel Aviv Concert After Calls to Boycott Israel

"I think the right decision at this time is to cancel the show," 'Melodrama' singer says of withdrawn gig

Lorde has decided to cancel her 2018 concert in Tel Aviv following calls for the singer to withdraw from the gig due to the ongoing cultural boycott. Stefan Hoederath Redferns

By Daniel Kreps-Friday, November 24, 2017

Lorde has decided to cancel her 2018 concert in Tel Aviv following calls for the Melodrama singer to withdraw from the gig due to the ongoing cultural boycott.

Organizers confirmed to the Jerusalem Post that Lorde had canceled the show, scheduled for the Tel Aviv Convention Centre on June 5th as part of her 2018 world tour. In a statement to organizers (via Jerusalem Post's Amy Spiro), Lorde explained her decision without mentioning the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement.

"I've received an overwhelming number of messages & letters and have had a lot of discussions with people holding many views, and I think the right decision at this time is to cancel the show," Lorde wrote of her decision.

"I pride myself on being an informed young citizen, and I had done a lot of reading and sought a lot of opinions before deciding to book a show in Tel Aviv, but I'm not too proud to admit I didn't make the right call on this one."

Representatives for Lorde didn't immediately respond to Rolling Stone's request for comment.

Lorde was initially asked to reconsider her Tel Aviv concert in a December 20th open letter from a New Zealand website The Spinoff. Lorde tweeted in response to the open letter, "Noted! Been speaking w many people about this and considering all options. Thank u for educating me i am learning all the time too."

The clamor for Lorde to boycott the Tel Aviv increased in recent days as the United States announced it would recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital, a decision that sparked deadly riots in Gaza and drew condemnation from the United Nations.

"Tel Aviv, it's been a dream of mine to visit this beautiful part of the world for many years, and I'm truly sorry to reverse my commitment to come play for you. I hope one day we can all dance," Lorde continued.

Israeli culture minister Miri Regev hoped that Lorde would reverse the cancellation in a statement, "Lorde, I'm hoping you can be a 'pure heroine,' like the title of your first album, be a heroine of pure culture, free from any foreign - and ridiculous - political considerations."

Lorde becomes the latest artist to cancel an Israel concert following pressure from the BDS movement, joining Roger Waters, Elvis Costello, Thurston Moore, Lauryn Hill and more. Conversely, both Radiohead and Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds proceeded with planned Israel shows in 2017 despite criticism from the BDS-aligned artists.

Palestinian Ambassador Zuhair M.H. Dar Zaid says:Palestinians are united despite religious differences Muslims, Christians and Orthodox Jews suppressed by Israeli Govt

By Shaahidah Riza-2017-12-24

Most people think that all Palestinians are Muslims. But a significant number of Palestinian Christians will spend this Christmas in apartheid conditions due to severe Israeli aggression, Palestinian Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Zuhair M.H. Dar Zaid said. In an interview with Ceylon Today he noted that the Israelis have commenced encroaching into Jerusalem and are destroying Christian sites. He added that rights of Muslims, Christians and Orthodox Jews are suppressed by the Israeli Government thereby denying them the right to worship at their holy sites.

Excerpts of the Interview:

In Sri Lanka, the Palestine has received the support of a number of senior politicians, who are sympathetic to the Palestinian cause. Is it the same with other countries? Do senior politicians support the Palestinian cause?

A. Across the world many countries support Palestine. On Tuesday we had a vote at the UN General Assembly where 176 countries voted in support of the right of the Palestinians to self-determination. The support that we have from the international community is very clear. We appreciate the support from the non-governmental solidarity societies and the Sri Lankan community.

Sri Lanka has been a friend to the Palestinian people for a long time. Is there anything more that the Sri Lankan Government can do to make a lasting impact on the Palestinian cause?
A. Sri Lanka is doing very well in this aspect. The Government, the people of Sri Lanka and all the communities are very supportive.

We are extremely satisfied with this show of unity from the Sri Lankan people. The rally that took place in Colombo on Friday was organized by the Sri Lankan people and the Sri Lanka-Palestine Friendship Societies. We find support for Palestinians in all corners of Sri Lanka and from all parties too.

What we expect from Sri Lanka, as Palestinians, regarding this issue, is that since they have already recognized Palestine as a State, they can convince and influence others in the region. Sri Lanka can also place Israel in a position to accept the peace process and the two State solution.

Although the creation of Israel in itself is controversial, more than 50 years has lapsed since it was created. What is the best option for the Palestinians at this point?

A. The Palestinians stick to the peace process as they want peace. And it is very clear that the international community recognizes that our leaders and our people adhere to the peace process. We want peace; we want to stop this suffering. Not just for us, but also for the other side. The narrative of the Palestinian issue is also very clear. The Zionists came to Palestine as guests and continued to grab parts of our land. After that, in 1948 they expanded and controlled the rest of the land includingthose of the Arabs.

Throughout our struggle, the international community has asked us to go enter into negotiations and to accept a two-State solution.

We respect the international community and have accepted all the international resolutions; United Nations resolutions, the Security Council resolutions, we also accept the peace process as way of achieving our rights. We have done everything the international community has asked us to do.
However, although we accept and adhere to the peace process, the Israelis have continued to violate these. They grab more land, build illegal settlements and their aggression and policies, in general, go to levels of apartheid and genocide. It should be clear to the international community which pushed us and convinced us to stick to the peace process, but not do anything with regard to Israelis' violations of the peace process.

We are asking the international community to use its influence on Israel, however, they will not listen to mere words. We have negotiated for 30 years but we cannot continue to negotiate while losing our land and living under apartheid and genocide conditions. There is no limit to their aggression. We accept the two-State solution, but with this current reality we are suffering.

If you go through the Israeli Government website, after every Israeli Cabinet meeting there is approval for new settlements. There is declaration for how many apartments should be built there. Recently they have moved into Jerusalem as well. They keep digging into the holy site looking for what they call their temple. Which means, the demolition of the existing holy places of the Muslims and Christians.

Although most countries have diplomatic ties with Palestinians and support the Palestinian cause, they also have military ties with Israel. Such was the case with Sri Lanka. How do you view this?

A. We have a very strong relationship with Sri Lanka. Their commitment also is strong with regard to the rights of the Palestinian people. I don't think the Sri Lankans would ever ignore our plight because they have done so much. Sri Lanka has contributed the land for our Embassy. We are stationed in a good Government building where they have also done some good renovations. The former President of Sri Lanka donated US$ 1 million for the Gaza strip. I don't think the attitude of Sri Lanka towards the Palestinian people will change.

In the interest of Sri Lanka, I hope that it is never put in a position where it would need military support from anyone. I hope Sri Lanka has a very good relationship with its neighbours and would sort out all its internal problems and work towards reconciliation.

Sri Lanka went through 3 decades of war. How do you view Sri Lanka's position in handling the post-war situation? In any manner or form, can parallels be drawn with the Sri Lankan and Palestinian experience?

A. There cannot be comparisons between the three-decade war and the Palestinian struggle. However, before Sri Lanka gained independence in 1948, they were colonized by the British. So were we. Thus parallels can be drawn on that.

However, with regard to the internal matters that Sri Lanka suffered for 30 years, we have to accept that it happened and should focus on how to cure the wounds. Sri Lanka should explore how to have a real sense of reconciliation and how to keep the country united. It is important to keep the people of Sri Lanka united. It is time to focus on how to accept each other and make sure that the rights of everyone is protected in Sri Lanka. It doesn't matter from which community they come. For a country that went through 30 years of war, you can't just pinpoint and say one community suffered more than the other.

Sri Lanka and the Sri Lankan people suffered, it doesn't matter from which community, they all suffered because of this war. We wish to look forward to the future, to have a full reconciliation and each person to be accepted by all parties in Sri Lanka. We wish that Sri Lankans, themselves, will actively participate and help solve their problems without interference from outsiders. Because there is a will, the Government and the political parties can make this happen. I met the Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka who briefed me on Sri Lanka's development. There is real progress in these matters and it is clear that Sri Lanka is going along the right track.

We wish them all success.

Trade is also an important part of international relations. What kind of trade relationship does Sri Lanka have with Palestine?

A. All the borders of Palestine are controlled by the Israelis. All of our trade goes through three States. Some go to the Gaza strip and then to Egypt or Jordan or to the West Bank and through Israel. So it is not easy to give a proper estimate for thetrade that we have with Sri Lanka.

But if you go to Palestine, the tea that we have in the market is Sri Lankan, which is about 95%. This is also the same with regard to our Diaspora. They also consume Sri Lankan tea. More than half of the Palestinian people live outside Palestine. There are many Palestinians who come on holiday and honeymoon to Sri Lanka as well. What we are looking for is to develop this.

We are also working with Sri Lanka to share our experience and expertise. For example we have a lot of European trained surgeons and engineers and we are trying to share what they know with their Sri Lankan colleagues.

We are working on getting Palestinian heart surgeons to Sri Lanka to observe important eye and heart surgeries. We have very good specialists who have won European Awards. The other aspect is to observe and work in agriculture projects. Our engineers already visited and observed how Sri Lanka gets about its agriculture. We are trying to help them have three separate projects. We will supply our knowledge, technology and experience on irrigation and green houses.

It is currently the Christmas season. What is the status of the Palestinian Christians?

A. Palestine has several towns and villages where Christians and Muslims live together. They share their homes and their families. The Christians help the Muslims build their mosques and the Muslims help the Christians build their churches. Also, both Christian and Muslim students study together in schools, they learn the same thing. Muslim students study in Christian schools and Christian students study in Muslim schools.

There is no difference with them. If anyone wants to observe tolerance, love and harmony between communities they should come and see how the Palestinians live together. When the Israelis attacked Gaza in 2014, one of the Bishops took an entire community of Muslims into the church to give them shelter and protection. The Bishop told them to do their azan, to say their prayers in the church and told them to use the church as if it is their mosque.

When the Israelis tried to impose a law to prevent Muslims from making the call to prayer (Azan), the bishops from the church made the Azan. The Muslims and the Christians were together committed to oppose Israel when it tried to impose more security and set up cameras at the holy sites. There is historical basis to their relationship. When the Khaliph Umar ibn Khattab visited Jerusalem, and the then Bishop asked him to pray in the inside the holy site, he refused.

When he was asked as to why he did that, he responded that if he prayed there, just one community will claim that it is theirs because he prayed there. So he prayed outside the holy site, where the Umar ibn Khattab mosque was built. The harmony between the Palestinians goes far back in history. The keys to the Christian holy sites are with the Muslims who have taken care of them for centuries. The Palestinians condemn violence against any Christian or Muslim, not only because it's a humanitarian issue, but also because the Palestinians suffered a lot.

Palestinians are not just Muslims, they are also Christians and orthodox Jews who suffer apartheid conditions due to Israeli aggression. The orthodox Jews suffer just like us. The Israelis forces treat them in a violent manner. They protested against Donald Trump and the Israeli Government, but they had to pay a very heavy price with their lives. When the Israelis burn churches, mosques and synagogues it will lead to a religious war. That is a very dangerous tactic by the Israelis.

Video: Resistance icon Ahed Tamimi in Israeli military court

This video shows Ahed Tamimi in an Israeli military court on Sunday.

Ali Abunimah-24 December 2017

The 16-year-old appears to be in handcuffs as she is led in by Israeli officers. As a lawyer talks to Ahed, a woman, likely the person filming the video, can be heard asking her how she is doing.

Ahed looks at the camera and nods and smiles in answer, indicating she is doing fine.

The video was shared on the Facebook page “Free the Tamimi women.”

Ahed Tamimi has become an international focus of solidarity since Israeli occupation forces seized her from her home in the West Bank village of Nabi Saleh during a night raid last week.

Boy shot

That followed an incident the previous Friday, when Israeli occupation forces shot and gravely wounded her cousin 14-year-old Muhammad Fadel Tamimi.

Ahed and two women from the family – her mother Nariman and cousin Nour – then attempted to remove Israeli soldiers from the family’s property. Ahed was seen in a video lightly slapping and shoving one of the armed men.

Bassem Tamimi, Ahed’s father, explains in an article for Newsweek that less than half an hour before this incident, “a soldier shot Ahed’s 14-year-old cousin in the face at close distance with a rubber-coated steel bullet, causing severe injuries and leaving him in a coma. Then, two soldiers had jumped the wall of our backyard and forced their way on to our property when Ahed confronted them in an effort to make them leave.”

“Israel’s military occupation is in contrast to all that is just and humane, from the abuse of our children to the abuse of our land,” Bassem adds. “As parents, we try to shelter our children against the occupation and all its violence, inequality and lack of freedom, but there is only so much we can do to protect them.”

According to Naji Tamimi, Nour’s father and one of Muhammad’s uncles, Muhammad barely survived his injury.

But he is now recovering after a complex hours-long surgery and will require long-term care and rehabilitation. A photo posted by Naji Tamimi on Facebook shows the extent of the injuries to Muhammad’s face and head.

Nariman and Nour were also arrested as part of a revenge campaign instigated by Israeli political and military leaders bent on expunging the humiliation of heavily armed men being confronted by women from a family known for its sacrifices as part of Nabi Saleh’s ongoing resistance to military occupation and settler-colonization.

Damage control

According to family sources, Ahed’s lawyer requested the hearing on Sunday in an attempt to get the teenager released.

Ahed was held in the notorious Russian Compound interrogation center in Jerusalem overnight and was previously in Ramleh prison.

The Free the Tamimi women Facebook page stated that Ahed “spent the night alone in a cold cell” after enduring several transfers between Israeli prisons.

According to her father Bassem Tamimi, Ahed, Nariman and Nour had previously been held in HaSharon prison.

Arbitrary transfers between prisons under harsh conditions are another way Israel abuses detainees.

Ahed Tamimi is one of hundreds of Palestinian children who each year are subjected to night raids and Israeli military detention each year, where many suffer abuse including torture and solitary confinement.

Concern over this systematic violence against Palestinian children prompted US lawmakers last month to introduce a historic bill to prevent US military aid to Israel being diverted to such practices.

Revenge in the dark

The Israeli army’s attack on the Tamimi family was meant to appease its virulently right-wing and anti-Palestinian domestic audience, but it has become an international embarrassment, prompting The New York Times to go into damage control mode to mitigate further harm to Israel’s tattered reputation.

Writing at Mondoweiss, James North notes that the Times’ coverage “does everything it can to reduce the power of the case” and “make the Israeli soldier look like the victim.”

Ben Caspit, a journalist with Israel’s Maariv newspaper and the online publication Al-Monitor caused shock Saturday when he was quoted by the Associated Press stating in reference to the Tamimi family, “In the case of the girls, we should exact a price at some other opportunity, in the dark, without witnesses and cameras.”

View image on Twitter

jillian blockchain york

✔@jilliancyork

Oh look @BenCaspit—the Israeli columnist who basically suggested that Palestinian girls should be raped—is on Twitter.

4:18 PM - Dec 23, 2017

•  1010 Replies
 
•  6161 Retweets
 
•  8383 likes

This was widely interpreted as incitement to violence including possible sexual assault, though Caspit has vehemently denied this.

Caspit claims that comments he made in a radio commentary were taken out of context and mistranslated.

But as Jonathan Ofir points out, also at Mondoweiss, Caspit had also made the statement in his Maariv column.

After calling for revenge in the dark with no witnesses present, Caspit writes that the “Tamimi family needs to learn the hard way that such systematic provocations against Israeli soldiers will cost them dearly.”

He added that the Israeli army has the “capabilities, creativity and means” to do this “without paying an exorbitant public price.”

Ahed, Nariman and Nour are due to appear in military court again on Monday.

This article has been updated since initial publication.