Emancipated Palestinian Futures? Hard Lessons from the South African Dream Deferred

Dr. Irene Calis discusses how the frequent comparisons of Israel with Apartheid South Africa may obscure more fundamental questions Palestinians we should be asking. From her recent base in today’s South Africa, where “whiteness” still lives on the back of “blackness,” she argues that the post-apartheid moment should alert Palestinians to take stock and reframe both the form of our campaigns and the terms of any proposed resolution. This requires asking qualitatively different kinds of questions, ones which concern not the nature of the apartheid state, but instead, the nature of our preferred future.

South African government action on Palestine is overdue

For how long will the South African government remain a bystander while Israel keeps colonizing ever more land in Palestine? This is a question asked not only by Palestinian victims of Israel’s land grab policies, but also by local solidarity activists. The argument made in favour of more effective action is informed by the support shown for Palestine by the ruling party, the African National Congress. The rationale used is that while the ANC has adopted a number of significant resolutions backing Palestine, the same cannot be said of the government.