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Andreas Fagerbakke

The Apartheid Lie

People continue to accuse Israel of being an Apartheid State. I think people use the term without really knowing what “apartheid” means. Apartheid was a system of racial segregation used in South Africa from 1948 to 1994. This was an official policy that declared blacks second class citizens in every aspect of life. Blacks couldn’t vote or hold political office. They couldn’t marry whites and they couldn’t use the same public restrooms as whites. These are just a few examples.

Let’s take a look at Israel… Arabs in Israel can vote, they can hold political office, they work in professions alongside other Israelis, they can own businesses, they can be judges, lawyers, doctors, ambassadors… Does this sound like apartheid to you? The accusation is absurd, and I think everyone that has been to Israel can agree on that.

Then some people say: “Well, what about the Palestinians in Judea and Samaria (West Bank)?” What about them? They are not citizens of Israel, so of course they don’t have the same rights as Israelis. These Palestinians are not governed by Israel, they are governed by the Palestinian Authority in Judea and Samaria.

Is there racism in Israel? Yes, you will find racism in Israel. Israel isn’t Disney land. You will find racism in every country and it is inexcusable no matter where you find it. But what I find despicable is that some people focus so much on the racism they find in Israel compared to other countries, and at the same time they blow it way out of proportion and call every case of racism in Israel “apartheid”.

I’ll end this blog post with some posters from www.elderofziyon.blogspot.com, just to give you an idea of how ridiculous this accusation is:



About the Author
Andreas Fagerbakke is a Pro-Israel blogger from Norway