70 bitter years of struggle for the freedom of Palestine has taught us many lessons; none more valuable than knowing who our enemies are and who are friends of our struggle.
The Palestinian struggle is our struggle and Trump since coming to power has consistently shown his bias towards Apartheid Israel. He has followed the advice of arch Zionist and his son in law Jared Kushner and done the bidding of Netanyahu. He has cut USD 400 million in development aid to UNRWA affecting the lives of millions of Palestinian refugees depriving them of food and emergency medical care. He has defied international law and unilaterally declared Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Trump can therefore never be trusted to put forward a fair deal. Trump is acting vicariously to realise the goals of Apartheid Israel by attempting to legitimise illegal settlements.
The Deal of the Century is a hoax designed to rob Palestinians of their land and deny more than six million Palestinians the right of return.
The Hoax of The Century must be rejected with the contempt it deserves. Yes, we need a political solution to the Palestinian struggle but not a hoax that sells out the interests of the Palestinian people to the highest bidder; nor a hoax that turns occupied Palestine into a bantustan; nor a hoax that denies the six million Palestinians refugees the right of return.
We call on the Arab leaders of the region not to sell out their Palestinian brothers and sisters especially at a time when even our Jewish brothers and sisters in the occupied territories are growing in support of the rights of the Palestinian people. Instead of demanding the implementation of international law demanding the immediate cessation of illegal settlements, the Hoax of the Century seeks to legitimise the illegal settlements in violation of international law.
We call on the South African government, civil society and all freedom loving people of the world to stand unwaveringly with the Palestinian people and to support their leadership in this critical hour. We must remain relentless in our support of the internal popular uprising, the global boycott, divestment and sanctions movement and the efforts at a multilateral level in the UN and other institutions of global governance.
We must especially give hope to the youth of occupied Palestine; we tell the youth of Palestine that the children of Nelson Mandela will never desert you and we will stand with you until Palestine is free!
We reject the Hoax of the Century and call on the United Nations not to abdicate its responsibility nor to allow the imposition of solutions that purport to advance the Palestinian cause but in reality violate the rights of Palestinians to self determination and freedom.
Nkosi Zwelivelile “Mandla” Mandela, chief of the Mvezo Traditional Council and grandson of famed South African President Nelson Mandela. Member of Parliament (MP) South Africa National Assembly. All articles by Nkosi Zwelivelile “Mandla” Mandela
