We remind all Malaysians: There is no 'neutrality' in situations of injustice

We read with interest and concern, the recent Memo to Heads of Mission School, Diocese of Kuching, by the Bishop of Kucing, the Right Reverend Datuk Danald Jute.

Indeed, we, as peace loving Malaysians of all faiths, have our hearts broken, as more lives are lost, as a result of the continuing and ongoing crimes committed by the Israeli government and State.

We, as peace loving Malaysians of all faiths, fully agree with the His Excellency the Right Reverend Datuk Danald of the need for a peaceful resolution. When we talk of peace, we call for, we appeal for, to quote Dr Martin Luther King, Jr: "True peace is not merely the absence of tension. It is the presence of justice".

We remind all Malaysians that Gaza has been under severe blockade for 16, almost 17 years, a blockade that has in reality, destroyed the livelihoods, the hopes of many Gazans, destroyed the childhoods of the children of Gaza. We remind all Malaysians that almost half the population of Gaza is under the age of 18. This blockade might be peaceful for the world, the absence of tension, the absence of shocking images on television, computer, phone screens but it is not in anyway peaceful for the Palestinians, especially in Gaza.

We remind all Malaysians that in 2018, the people of Gaza, women, youth, even children, peacefully protested, pleading to the world to recognise, to support their full rights as human beings. According to Amnesty International, at least 195 Palestinians were killed, including 41 children, and 28939 were injured, by Israeli forces using sharpshooters. At least 122 people, including 21 children, had their limbs amputated as a result of their wounds from being shot by Israeli forces.

When the world rejects the peaceful appeal of the Palestinian people for their full rights as human beings, to not live under the brutal hopeless living conditions imposed by the Israeli blockade, this sadly creates a situation of despair that leads some to violence as a response to their oppression and despair.

We remind Malaysians that the Palestinians continue to attempt peaceful resistance, in their struggle for their rights, for example, via the Boycott Divestment Sanctions movement, that, following in the tradition of the anti-Apartheid movement, that freed South Africans from Apartheid, seeks to hold Israel to account, according to international conventions and laws, via boycott, divestment, and sanctions. But even these non-violent means of Palestinian resistance have been subjected to Western attempts to criminalise them.

We urge all Malaysians of all faiths, to read the recent open letter by Palestinian Christians, to the Christians of the world. We briefly quote that letter, here,

“We also remind ourselves and fellow Christians that God is the God of the downtrodden and the oppressed, and that Jesus rebuked the powerful and lifted up the marginalised. This is at the heart of God’s conception of justice. Therefore, we are deeply troubled by the failure of some western Christian leaders and theologians to acknowledge the biblical tradition of justice and mercy, as first proclaimed by Moses (Deut 10:18; 16:18–20; 32:4) and the prophets (Isa 1:17; 61:8; Mic 2:1–3, 6:8; Amos 5:10–24), and as exemplified and embodied in Christ (Matt 25:34–46; Luke 1:51–53; 4:16–21). ”

IF YOU ARE NEUTRAL IN SITUATIONS OF INJUSTICE, YOU HAVE CHOSEN THE SIDE OF THE OPPRESSOR — Archbishop Desmond Tutu.

​Dr Roland Loh is a Malaysian based in London and a Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) activist. The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of Sinar Daily.