Humaneness and compassion have been abandoned… – Article by Eleni Mavrou – member of the AKEL Political Bureau

 

 

7 April 2024, newspaper “HARAYGI”

The Cyprus Parliament wrote another page of shame on Thursday. After 6 months of Israel’s merciless bombardment of Gaza, 32,000 civilians killed – including thousands of children, the deliberate starvation of thousands of people, attacks on humanitarian missions, hospitals, schools… the majority of Parliament approved a resolution tabled by the DIKO party, which makes no mention whatsoever of the thousands of deaths caused by Israel’s attacks.

It does not denounce any action by Israel, not even the attack on the World Central Kitchen humanitarian mission (which put an end to the much-publicised “Amalthea” shipping aid initiative).

It does not call on the Israeli government to comply with international law.

It does not even dare to utter the word “Palestine” or “Palestinians”!

I recall that a few weeks ago the President of the House of Representatives even rejected AKEL’s proposal to light up the Parliament building with the colours of the Palestinian flag on Palestinian Land Day.

I really wonder what the MP’s who rejected the resolution submitted by AKEL did not agree with?

Did they not agree with the “condemnation of the State of Israel’s use of starvation as a weapon of war through the deliberate deprivation of the Gaza population’s access to food, water, medicine and humanitarian aid”?

Did they not agree with the call for “the immediate release of all Israeli citizens held hostage by Hamas and all Palestinian political prisoners”?

Did they not agree with the “condemnation of the cold-blooded murder of seven volunteers of the non-governmental organization World Central Kitchen in the line of duty”?

Did they not agree with the condemnation of the “murderous action that resulted in the deaths of thousands of civilians, including nearly 200 UNRWA workers, approximately 100 journalists, ambulance crews, medical and paramedical personnel”?

The International Court of Justice speaks of genocide in Gaza, the UN Security Council (at long last) calls in its resolution for “an immediate ceasefire” in Gaza (thanks to the guilty abstention of the US) and in Cyprus, which for years has considered international law as the banner of our anti-occupation struggle, certain forces and people do not dare to speak about the obvious.

An entire country observes in glaring amazement a government and parliament that insist on playing the apologist of the butcher Netanyahu.

We see them “stealing” our homes with their policies, we see them putting their hand deep into our pockets so that the super profits of powerful established interests are not touched, we see them making a fool of Cyprus in the world as a result of their “golden” passports scheme.

Are we going to continue to watch them apathetically deprive us of even our humanness and compassion?