Open Letter to Fellow South Africans
As I write this brief note the forces of terror and tyranny are on the march in Cape Town. A peaceful rally on the Sea Point promenade organised by a Christian organisation to support Israel in its struggle against a terror group which openly declares its intention to annihilate the Jewish State, has been prevented by pro-Palestinian thugs threatening violence.
Just yesterday, however, a march of thousands of supporters of Hamas took place without incident through the streets of Cape Town. They did not require massive police protection to stage their protest since, as the Mayor of Cape Town, pointed out, it was their democratic right to express their opinion.
But today, a protest meeting, carefully organised in conjunction with SAPS and the Metro police, was cancelled because of violence by bands of thugs threatening the safety of the protestors. The excuse was that the police could not guarantee their safety.
So let it be clear, that if we allow it democracy and the rule of law died this day in South Africa. The right to peaceful assembly is a fundamental democratic right and is written into our Constitution. This is a trial run for the forces of totalitarian tyranny in South Africa.
The Jews have been the canary in the cage for two millennia. There is nothing that enrages political bullies more than a successful group of people who are small enough to be beaten into submission. What enrages them even more is when the small group bands together to fight for their survival against their hostile neighbours.
We don’t have evidence yet but I sense the hidden hand of the ANC testing the waters. But even if they did not plan this it was their responsibility to ensure the right to protest peacefully for all South African citizens. This right is foundational to all our other rights. If we surrender this we have lost our democracy. Even if the government has to mobilise the army, that right must be guaranteed.
The protest was organised by Christians respecting the right of Israel to exist and to defend itself against a savage attack that killed 1400 innocent civilians, took over 240 hostages and much worse which I’ll not repeat in this letter. This peaceful rally was cancelled because the police claimed that they could not protect the couple of thousand protesters who had signed up.
Let there be no doubt that violence and intimidation is central to Hamas and to its supporters here in South Africa and elsewhere. If we surrender to it we are doomed.
Whether through incompetence or political calculation our government must be held responsible for the abrogation of our basic democratic freedoms by violent thugs marching under the banner of a foreign organisation.
The whole of democratic South Africa, irrespective of religion or ethnicity must unite against this fascist threat to our democracy. I call on the Mayor of Cape Town to lend his support to our right to call for the return of hostages safely back to their families and for the right of Israel to defend itself against Iran and its proxies on its border who ain to destroy it.
This is not just about the Jews. It’s about all of us. It’s about SA and democracy and about a liveable world. Let us not be found wanting.
Mike Berger