Wofa Akwasi B. Assensoh,
I can't recall precisely when the Palestinians terrorists were being accused of poisoning Jewish fruits and tomatoes – a variation of the blood libel by which Israel has been accused over the centuries, along with deicide, often resulting in pogroms, deportations, banishments and mass executions.
The terrorists themselves probably started the rumour to achieve a boycott of fruits and tomatoes being imported from the Holy Land, on suspicion only- whilst - in spite of acute water shortages for their meager plantations, their own tomatoes were being piled high in pyramids, to rot, in Gaza, because they had no harbour from which to export them. Heard and saw the Mayor of Gaza crying about this at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs sometime in 1986, shortly before Hamas was founded (1987)
If you didn't know Bia, I guess you were in Sweden during the late sixties to early seventies then – when Israel was in the special embrace of the Swedish Left. I arrived in Sweden straight from Ghana (via home with my mother and my wife, in London for a week) and lived at Reimershlome late 1971 – 1976 where we had the best neighbours ever, Kai Henmark and his wife Eva- Britt Henmark and family. Which other neighbours since have consistently invited us to dinners and suppers? It figures: Eva Britt is today the main motor in Progressive Judaism in Stockholm.
Sweden has changed a lot since then. Some of the wrinkled old ladies have become even more wrinkled (and not only their faces) and more old, and Swedish words such as racism, xenophobia, Swedish-ness, immigrant, immigration, Islam, Muslim, terrorism, multiculturalism, islamophobia, homophobia, etc. have entered the mainstream vocabulary of all the political parties, in even the churches, beer parlours and nightclubs
Re - "In spite of that, many of these old women and their daughters were still rushing for our brothers, whom they called real "black power"!"
One of my Gambian friends always reminisces with me about the period to which you refer as "When we were kings" - of course he was reminiscing about himself and the Brethren (as for me, I have always been strictly monogamist) whereas he has always taken a special delight in "grandpa's style"
One to one = missionary style, 4 to 1= Muslim style, whereas Grandpa's style is not different from King Solomon's style…
Although strictly monogamist, even as unprepossessing a guy like me - in the early seventies had my share of temptation. What do you do when you turn up at the club and she complains that her boyfriend has been beating her and could she please stay with you for the night, because she doesn't have anywhere else to stay – that she's all the way from Malmo?
That extends to several chapters….
Meanwhile, they're still going on about the cake: Swedish flag attack on 'racist cake' artist
On Saturday, 6 July 2013 20:52:08 UTC+2, Assensoh, Akwasi B. wrote:
--Brother Cornelius:
Sweden is a place among places, hence you had to drink the milk that way. I can identify with that, and I believe you!
I was in Sweden when it was announced that Palestinian terrorists were poisoning Jewish fruits and tomatoes. One morning, I came out of the underground train (tunnelgatan?), and trying to be polite not to bump into an old (wrinkled) Swedish woman, I tried to move aside, to give the "wrinkled thing" space or way. She pushed me with her umbrella saying: "Move away from my face, you Palestinian terrorist."
"I am not a Palestinian," I protested.
"But you are something, look at your skin [Sveta?", she retorted.
In spite of that, many of these old women and their daughters were still rushing for our brothers, whom they called real "black power"! Is that not so, Brother Cornelius? Just for comic relief!
A.B. Assensoh.
From: usaafric...@googlegroups.com [usaafric...@googlegroups.com ] on behalf of Cornelius Hamelberg [cornelius...@gmail.com]
Sent: Saturday, July 06, 2013 1:12 PM
To: usaafric...@googlegroups.com
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re: The Illusion of Barracks Option
Lady Obe; A little side question: What can you tell us a little about the anti-War movement in Nigeria during the Biafra war – which was waged during the same period when the US was bombing the Vietcong?
About the latter, there was a widespread anti-War movement on five continents – and especially in the US and in Europe – in Sweden the then Prime Minister Olof Palme himself led an anti-War protest demonstration. In Sweden there must have been something of an anti-War awareness – and a greater awareness about the plight of the Biafrans.( In the spring of 1972 – a Swedish guy gave me a lift on his motorbike, over Västerbron and when we got to the other side, he stopped at an automat and there he bought a litre of milk( which cost a krona at that time, today a litre costs eight kronor – after the Arabs/ OPEC jacked up the price of oil in 1974-75) - anyway he then handed the litre of milk over to me and insisted that I drink it all up. Why? He told me that I looked so thin and that he could see that I was his brother from Biafra and had been starving – nI was touched - and so without any further discussion I did as I was requested (obeyed). I drank up – a whole litre of milk - to the last drop – after which he drove me home to the Island of Reimersholme where I lived with my Better Half)
The question again: How extensive was the anti-War movement within Nigeria, outside of the Igbo stronghold of Biafra?
On Friday, 5 July 2013 19:22:21 UTC+2, Ayo Obe wrote:--But you have already dubbed me "Lady" thereby overstepping any possible awkwardness!
The actuality of civil protest generally produces some defenestration amongst our rulers. In this, they show a bit more flexibility than their Arab counterparts (here I'm thinking of Assad in Syria) as they are quite willing to throw a leader to the wolves if that will slow down any revolutionary momentum and nip people-driven movements in the bud. Or they eat an apple and die.
AyoI invite you to follow me on Twitter @naijama" the opposition movement gave Morsi until last Tuesday to step down and call fresh presidential elections, or else face a campaign of civil disobedience which the army capitalized upon to overthrow the government yesterday " (Segun Adeniyi)Two questions to Lady Ayo Obe ( I wonder how your surname would handle being awarded an O.B.E.)1. When did the threat of "a campaign of civil disobedience" against either a civilian or military government produce that kind of result in Nigeria?
2. Is it a threat of "a campaign of civil disobedience" that resulted in the numerous coup d'états that Nigeria has endured - sometimes welcomed?
Patiently waiting to be educated about these pertinent matters. You don't have to" try to forgive" and I don't want to wait in vain nor do I want the Egyptians to lag behind Nigerians in these areas or for more innocent Nigerians or Egyptians to be slain in the streets of Cairo, Alexandria , Mansura or in Tanta or Abuja for that matter….
On Friday, 5 July 2013 03:23:45 UTC+2, Ayo Obe wrote:--
A timely reminder from Segun Adeniyi for those apparently unaware of or unable to remember our history who keep claiming that we are "behind" the Egyptians with their one year's experience of attempt at democracy! One tries to forgive those who were elsewhere (or relaxing quietly at home) when Nigerians were being slain in the streets, but honestly, if they do not know, why not try to inform themselves?
AyoI invite you to follow me on Twitter @naijama
The Illusion of Barracks Option
The Verdict By Olusegun Adeniyi. Email, olusegun...@thisdaylive.com
"Like most human follies, military coups sound good at the time; and always fail. They sound good because what they replace is usually bad: riotous civilian leaders, corrupted institutions, stolen elections. They fail because beneath the chaos are political problems that soldiers cannot unpick..."
The foregoing quote was taken from a January, 2006 edition of the 'Economist' magazine, following a coup d'etat in Bangladesh where some military Generals seized power from a corrupt and inept civilian leadership. However, after the initial euphoria by the people, the reality was to sink in, as it always does, that soldiers have no magic solution for dealing with complex socio-political problems.It is against this background that one can situate the current turmoil in Egypt. On Monday, the military authorities upped the ante with a curious statement that was hailed by many Egyptian protesters and which has also excited not a few Nigerians. With troops deployed in strategic positions across Cairo, General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, defence minister and head of the armed forces, warned that the army would intervene if the government and its opponents failed to heed "the will of the people" within 48 hours. Last night, Al-Sisi made good his threat when he sacked the democratically elected government of President Mohammed Morsi of the Muslim Brotherhood and picked the chief justice of constitutional court to take over.
Not surprisingly, there were jubilations on the streets of Cairo last night following the military intervention. And with the grass always greener on the other side, I have read some of our online commentators disparaging Nigerians for not acting like the Egyptians and that we need that sort of street intervention to deal with our current political challenge. Before I go further, it is important to highlight some of the grievances of the opposition movement behind the seemingly endless protests on the streets of Cairo.
By the expectations of the protesters, a government that had barely spent one year in office ought to have restored security to the level it was before President Hosni Mubarak was toppled in 2011. Aside protesting that there was "no justice" for the people killed by security forces in the course of the anti-government protests of the last two years, they also claimed that "no dignity is left" for Egyptians or their country and that the economy has "collapsed". With all that, the opposition movement gave Morsi until last Tuesday to step down and call fresh presidential elections, or else face a campaign of civil disobedience which the army capitalized upon to overthrow the government yesterday.
For every grouse that an Egyptian can level against their government, a Nigerian can probably come up with ten about our government. So it came as no surprise that some of our compatriots would romanticise "revolutions" or any form of political upheaval that will sweep away the current system and its operators. Incidentally, this had actually been a subject of interrogation in the not-too-distant past, following a May 2005 document from the United States National Intelligence Council, entitled "Mapping Sub-Saharan Africa's Future". Specifically, under the sub-heading "Downside Risks" in the report, the US National Intelligence Council had claimed that "while currently Nigeria's leaders are locked in a bad marriage that all dislike but dare not leave, there are possibilities that could disrupt the precarious equilibrium in Abuja. The most important would be a junior officer coup that could destabilize the country to the extent that open warfare breaks out in many places in a sustained manner."
In his response to the US report back then, President Obasanjo had dismissed most of the assumptions that informed the conclusion. But he also noted most poignantly: "It is important for us to know that we are being rated low, not because of what is happening to us from outside but because of what we do to, for and by ourselves internally..."
Yes, what is true of Egypt is true of our country today as many are disillusioned with our politicians, including those who claim to be in opposition yet whose values are at variance with what they mouth publicly. But the fact also remains that all the demonstrations of the last two years have not improved the material conditions of the people of Egypt and there is no sign that things will get better anytime soon. In fact, chances are that things may actually get worse. To that extent, whatever may be our misgivings about the current political situation in the country, the future of our nation depends largely on sustaining our democracy and making it work.
However, there is also this erroneous assumption that the Nigerian people are docile and that a revolution can never happen here. What I find most interesting is that even people in government believe this lie, the same way it was assumed and always glibly said in the past that an average Nigerian loves life so much that not one of our nationals could ever be a suicide bomber. Now, we know better.
Far more difficult to understand is that public office holders who call for "revolution" always assume that if such ever happened, it would leave them untouched. Two days ago in Lagos, House of Representatives Speaker, Hon Aminu Tambuwal, said in a paper he personally presented: "The most compelling reasons for revolution throughout the ages were injustice, crushing poverty, marginalization, lawlessness, joblessness, and general disaffection of the ruling elite. You will agree with me that these factors capture the conditions of our nation now, to a large extent." Fair enough you will say, but then Tambuwal would rather prescribe an "intellectual revolution" to resolve such contradictions, evidently because he is well aware that he is also in the line of fire should our people ever revolt!
What those who misread the maturity of the Nigerian masses ignore is that political upheavals are usually spontaneous actions that most often result from innocuous things; like the self-immolation of the Tunisian man which ignited the uprising in his country and eventually, the entire Arab world. Even then, it is not true that Nigerians cannot offer sustained resistance against authority. Many of us were living witnesses to the June/July 1993 post-annulment (of the presidential election) demonstrations on the streets of Lagos that ultimately forced then military president, General Ibrahim Babangida out of power. And the January 2012 national protests against hike in fuel price is still fresh in our memory. It will therefore be baseless for anybody to assume that the Nigerian people are not capable of rising against those in power.
The point never to be missed, however, is that perpetual street protests offer no predictable outcome and they could engender sectarian violence from which it may be difficult for a nation to recover as is evident in several Arab countries today. But as the Egyptian protesters rejoice the overthrow of Morsi, I have a message for them: At the end of the day, the ultimate beneficiaries of their struggle may be the same corrupt forces that were in bed with the 30-year dictatorship of Mubarak they upended two years ago. If allowed to take root, democracy, for all its imperfections, has in-built mechanism for improvement and self-correction, even in Egypt.
All said, what happened in Cairo is a good warning to the powers at home that we cannot assume indefinite immunity against the things that provoke outrage in other counties. Tahrir Square is perhaps nearer than we may be ready to concede as our people can see around them the combination of factors that are fuelling protests from Rio to Cairo. Worse still, our population distribution in favour of young people makes us prone to impatient revolt. Nobody should therefore be under any illusion that the tide of violent rejection of substandard governance blowing across the world will elude us simply because "this is Nigeria". Those who have ears…
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