So Ariel Sharon was invited to Tunisia for the WSIS 2005 (World Summit on the Information Society) and apparently he accepted the invitation.
This was met with mixed reactions by Tunisians and Arabs alike. Some people are totally against it and feel that it is wrong to host the man behind the Sabra and Chatila massacres and all the Palestinian bloodshed.
Others think that it’s a very normal thing and that it shouldn’t be taken out of context as the WSIS is a world summit and many leaders from all over the world will be attending.
Some people try to look a bit deeper and think it’s a step closer to normalization of ties between Tunisia and Israel, after the mood was set with the Sharm El Sheikh summit and the Egyptian and Jordanian ambassadors returning to Tel Aviv.
Of course Ariel Sharon is a horrible man and he was behind a lot of Palestinian bloodshed, but when he comes to Tunisia in November he comes as a leader of a country that is recognized by the UN in a summit that is organized by the UN.
And I think that’s how the Tunisian government looked at it when the decision to invite Sharon was made.
More on the subject: AquaCool, Je Blog, Hou-Hou (FR).
Interesting viewpoint. One question – Did all these Tunisians, who seem so sensitive to human suffering, complain when Yasir Arafat, responsible for a huge amount of Jewish/Palestinian/Jordanian bloodshed lived in your country as well? I’m not being facetious, I’m really interested – was there any outcry by these same people against the PLO, especially when they were murdering people around the world?
Thanks, Dash
Dash, I think the Tunisians who protested didn’t only protest for the sake of human suffering, they’re taking it as a matter of principle based on Israel’s actions that are violating peace processes and ceasefire agreements as well.
Anyway, your question is interesting. I believe there is no possibility to compare Yasser Arafat to Sharon. I’m not saying Palestinians are all angels, or are all great people who have no bad ones among them, but at least they never caused massacres anywhere close to Sabra and Chatila (only one of the many war crimes Sharon is accused of).
Anyway, all I can say is that Tunisia has been hospitable to Palestinians all the way, that’s right, but they never did this on the account of their own people and their own country. And when there were negative acts Tunisians protested and they said no in the most diplomatic way.
In every country there are those who agree on something and those who oppose it, why focus on those who are opposing?
Tunisians spoke out after the Arab Summit, they comment on international affair whether it involved Israel or not.
I would agree that you cannot compare the morality of Arafat and Sharon, but probably more for the reason that Arafat consciously targets the innocent while Sharon (much as you may believe otherwise) does not. Anyway, it’s good to hear that the Tunisians protested against the negative actions of the Palestinians. We don’t really hear much about that in the West; what kind of form did it take?
Well Dash, I have to strongly disagree with you here. Sharon has been and is targeting innocent Palestinians and harmless children, but then again, being in the west explains why you’re not aware of this fact. You only see what they choose to show you. So please don’t base your knowledge on what you’re getting and try to open up more to non-biased and reliable sources. On the other hand, the negative acts protested were not that big a deal. Just like any people who are occupied and forced to leave their land, their presence in other countries may very possibly cause some misunderstandings and trouble due to many factors. And when misunderstanding on certain political or social issues occurred, there were negotiations and discussions that solved any problem, so there were no way for it to become bigger and cause a threat. Everything was under control.
But the Tunisians never complained to Arafat when his “fighters” murdered the Israeli schoolchildren in Metulla, or the bathers omn the beach in Rosh Hanikra, or the Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics, or any of the other dozens of times?
Dash, I see where you’re trying to go with all this.
But, you have to understand that the ties between Tunisians and Palestinians are those of brotherhood and strong solidarity. The Palestinian people always had and will always have the support of all Tunisians.
In this relationship of brotherhood, concerns and problems are voiced, talked about and solved directly and in a family fashion.
So, you can’t really try to compare.