NOT IN MY NAME: NIGERIA’S BETRAYAL OF PALESTINE
One had thought the New Year and the Maulud dual breaks
would come with a real break – some hiatus one can enjoy devoid of Nigeria’s politics
and other things mundane. One had really hoped the holidays would come and pass
without as much as a whimper – or even less. Alas! The last few days – nay,
almost the last day – of the year 2014 came with a bang, a shocker; the story
that Nigeria, of all countries, at the United Nations (UN) in far-away New York,
had betrayed the long-suffering Palestinian people.
Nigeria, the country which, despite its distance from
the vicinity of the struggle, had earned itself the honourable title of a ‘frontline
state’ in the fight against apartheid South Africa (and had chaired the UN
committee against apartheid for many decades); the same Nigeria that had
sacrificed resources – human and material – to save the peoples of Congo,
Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ivory Coast and Mali and many other nations from annihilating
themselves; the same Nigeria that had always stood for justice in the comity of
nations; now is the same Nigeria that has betrayed Palestine.
The Betrayal of Palestine
is NOT in my name!
The betrayal story was broken Thursday morning by
many media organisations. Daily Trust, daily sister of this newspaper, carried
the bold front-page headline STATEHOOD
BID AT THE UN: NIGERIA ABSTAINS, PALESTINE LOSES in its Thursday edition.
The story ran: “A last-minute decision by Nigeria to abstain from voting at the
United Nations (UN) Security Council…helped defeat a resolution calling for an
end to Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory by 2017. A ‘yes’ vote would
have paved the way to compel Israel to end its occupation of the West Bank,
East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip which dated back to1967…
“The Palestinians needed nine votes in the 15-member Security Council
but fell short of one when at the crucial moment Nigeria’s envoy Joy Ogwu,
abstained from voting. China, France and Russia were among the eight countries
that voted in favour of the text. Other countries who supported the resolution
are Argentina, Chad, Chile, Jordan and Luxembourg. Australia and the United
States voted against, and five other countries – Nigeria, Britain, Lithuania,
the Republic of Korea and Rwanda – abstained. Diplomatic sources said Nigeria
had been expected to support the resolution and changed its stance at the last
minute. Nigeria had previously said it would vote for the resolution.”
So Nigeria is more
Israeli-loving than China, France, Russia,
Argentina, Chad, Chile, Jordan and Luxembourg, and especially France, Argentina
and Luxembourg that can count many Jewish politicians among their leadership.
The Betrayal of Palestine
is NOT in my name!
Immediately after Nigeria’s
show of shame at the UN, it was reported that the Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has come out openly to
praise President Goodluck Jonathan “after Nigeria pulled a last-minute surprise
that helped thwart a resolution calling for an end to Israeli occupation of
Palestinian territory by 2017…Mr. Netanyahu said he [had] personally spoke[n]
to President Jonathan and [had] received his assurance of support [to thwart
the Palestinian Statehood Bid]”, according to one version of the news reports.
Meaning, it was all planned – there was nothing last minute about the vote.
As should be expected, the Palestinians are in
anguish in relation to what Nigeria has done to their statehood aspirations.
Palestine’s Ambassador to Nigeria Montaser Abuzaid said his country and its
people were shocked, disappointed and hurt at how Nigeria abstained from voting
in support of the resolution to end Israeli occupation…Abuzaid said they were
shocked because they looked up to Nigeria as a big brother that has been in the
forefront fighting for justice all over the world.
The Betrayal of Palestine is NOT in my name!
In order not to try to reinvent the wheel,
two recent media releases from two organisations should suffice to show our
collective anger on this Jonathan Administration’s betrayal of the Palestinian
people. The first was from the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) signed by its
Director Professor Ishaq Akintola, while the second was from the Muslim Public
Affairs Centre (MPAC) and signed by its Executive Chairman Disu Kamor.
MURIC says interalia: “Nigeria…abstained from voting during the United Nations
deliberation on whether Palestine should be recognized as a full-fledged state.
The abstention cost Palestine denial of the recognition just when it needed
only one vote to scale through. Eight votes were secured by Palestine out of
the mandatory nine votes as Nigeria refused to cast a vote…Whereas Argentina,
Chad, Chile, Jordan, Luxembourg, China, France and Russia (8 justice seeking
countries) voted ‘Yes’ to a Palestinian state…Nigeria joined Lithuania, South
Korea, Rwanda and Britain in the abstention camp. The Muslim Rights Concern
(MURIC) is astounded by this conservative shift in Nigeria’s foreign policy.
“It is on record that Nigeria has always been in the forefront of
Africa’s struggle for freedom, justice and equal rights. The latest support
for Zionist Israel which is notorious for killing unarmed civilians, women and
children is therefore most baffling, uncharacteristically cowardly, highly
reprehensible, long in impunity but short in principle. Nigeria has
always been known for its principled stand on international issues. This great
African country confronted the apartheid regime of South Africa until it
collapsed…The
basis has always been the promotion of fundamental human rights on the
international scene. On what basis has Nigeria supported Israel this time
around…?
MPAC, in its own release, said among other
things that the Centre “is deeply concerned over the shift in Nigeria's foreign
policy made apparent…by the refusal of Nigeria to cast a "Yes" vote
during the question of Palestine and the Palestinians’ bid to be formally
recognized as a state and a full member of the U.N. The apparent shift of the
Nigerian position on the issue of Palestine has serious implications and
Nigeria's refusal to support a vote that may have acted as the impetus for
peace in the region is indeed historic…
“Given that the conflict in Palestine is based largely on the historic
wrong of the dispossession of Palestinians, and that a majority of world’s
population sees the resolution of the issue of Palestine statehood as a crucial
component of any peace negotiation, Nigeria's refusal to take a public stand of
support entails the dangerous implication that states can get away with illegal
annexations of territory provided they make the process irreversible through
the establishment of settlements and demographic shifts…
“Nigeria's ‘no-vote’ during this festive period when the
Palestinian Christian community has its spiritual, cultural and economic links
between Bethlehem and Jerusalem, located just a few kilometres [from each
other], nearly severed due to the construction of Israeli settlements around
the city sends a clear message to the Palestinians about where we stand on the
issues of peace and justice…The refusal of Nigeria to support this bid has
strengthened the extremists’ voice, encouraged the actions of the colonists in
Israel, and those in Washington and London who pretend to speak for the
‘international community’. It is very sad that on an issue of important
universal human rights struggle, the government of President Goodluck Jonathan
has let the opportunity to side with justice pass…”
The Betrayal of Palestine
is NOT in my name!
Inna lillaHi wa inna
ilaiHi raji’un! (We
are from Allah, and unto Him shall we return!); And HasbunalLahu wa ni'imal Wakeel! (Allah is Sufficient for us and He
is the Best Disposer of affairs!)
No comments:
Post a Comment