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by Peter A. Belmont / 2011-05-25
© 2011 Peter Belmont
This morning, surprising and pleasing me, WNYC’s (New York City) program “TheTakeaway” had an interview (MP3) with Diana Buttu (“What Would a Palestinian Leader Say to Congress?” Wednesday, May 25, 2011)
After all, WNYC and NPR seem to almost never give a Palestinian point of view or report seriously on the facts-on-the-ground of the occupation. I guess they have “all kinds of reasons for not doing so.” (See remarks of Terry Gross, below!)
Some highlights: Buttu suggested the US should spend the $3B/year which it goves to Israel (and which, she said, Bibi Netanyahu told Congress that Israel doesn’t even need!) to get Israel to comply with international humanitarian law and to work for equality and freedom rather than allowing the $3B/year to be spent to allow Israel to remain above the law. (“Above the law” was not explained, but she said it and The Takeaway’s host did not question it.)
He asked, did the Fatah/Hamas unity agreement complicate peacemaking? She said that before this agreement, Israel complained that Abbas did not speak for or control all the Palestinians in the occupied territories, Hamas controlling Gaza. In other words, before the deal there was no-one to negotiate with. After the deal, the Palestinian Authority (PA) does speak for all Palestinians (in the occupied territories), she said, and Israel now complains that it cannot negotiate with terrorists (as Israel and the USA describe Hamas). Again, no-one to negotiate with. It’s all excuses for Israel not to negotiate, she said.
Bibi’s party does not recognize a right to a Palestinian State, or equality for Israeli Palestinians, she said, but Bibi still he gets standing ovations from the USA Congress, and $3B/year. Congress simply doesn’t understand the issue—she said. They think it is a conflict between equals, rather than an occupation of a much more powerful power over a much weaker one—she said.
She also said she hoped for “strong leadership” from the USA, the UN, and the EU working toward peace, a pretty explicit invitation to far stronger EU involvement. (Could she have meant this?) She said that Congress, which had 20 standing ovations for Bibi when he addressed them the other day didn’t understand the issues, since Israel is not allowing freedom or equality.
But turning to NPR and Terry Gross
After this interview with Diana Buttu, WNYC ran a fund-raising segment featuring Terry Gross (of “Fresh Air”), who said there were all kinds of reasons (presumably bad ones) for NOT giving money to WNYC and NPR. And I wondered, why doesn’t Terry Gross run interviews with Palestinians?
I guess she has all kinds of reasons for not doing it. Hmmmm.
And in another fund-raising segment, WNYC was patting itself (and NPR) on the back for doing “real journalism” at a time when newspapers are folding right and left. And, again, I wondered what excuse they had for generally ignoring the Palestinian issues—Israeli settler pogroms and terrorism against Palestinians in the West Bank, illegalities generally, etc.?
Well, as Terry Gross said, I guess there are all kinds of reasons for not doing it.
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