Quote of the week
[T]he moral point of the matter is never reached by calling what happened by the name of ‘genocide’ or by counting the many millions of victims: extermination of whole peoples had happened before in antiquity, as well as in modern colonization. It is reached only when we realize this happened within the frame of a legal order and that the cornerstone of this ‘new law’ consisted of the command ‘Thou shall kill,’ not thy enemy but innocent people who were not even potentially dangerous, and not for any reason of necessity but, on the contrary, even against all military and other utilitarian calculations. … And these deeds were not committed by outlaws, monsters, or raving sadists, but by the most respected members of respectable society.
Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on The Banality of Evil
Pity they are not on the ballot…
The Social Justice Coalition will be holding a protest meeting on Thibault Square in Cape Town on Saturday morning from 12 a.m. to protest the Dalai Lama decision, the arms deal corruption and the dismal service delivery. Their plan of action states that they demand a commitment by all political parties to:
- Always act in solidarity with marginalised people by actively promoting the bill of rights and the UN declaration of human rights, both locally and internationally, and make decisions based on its principles;
- Enforce the principle that all are equal before law
- Protect the independence and integrity of the courts and allow for due judicial process without political interference;
- Prioritise the needs of the poor, disenfranchised and most vulnerable;
- Work actively to stamp out racism, bigotry, xenophobia, sexism, religious discrimination and homophobia;
- Ensure that corporations locally and globally engage in fair trade with fair labour practices and openness in financial institutions.
Pity they are not on the ballot because then I could vote for a party in whose principles and values I actually believe. See you there?
