Nicholas Wilczynski
Sometimes Inequality is directly imposed. This is the case in the Gaza strip. Nowadays Israel permits food and most consumer goods to flow into the area, but they made news recently when they allowed the construction supplies to upgrade a constantly overflowing sewage treatment plant.
As far as what this should be compared to in order to give a feel of inequality, the GDP per capita in the Gaza strip is half what it is in Israel. The Gaza Sp is not allowed to export their goods, 90% of their factories have had to shut down production because of the lack of material from the blockade. (Source: IMEU.net).
Past that this also creates an inequality in the Israel experience for the two Palestinian provinces. Certainly the West Bank has seen it's share of trouble from Israel, they were invaded last year by the Zionists and still have serious issues with settlements. But what strikes me about the inequality of the experience is this; It is common for opponents of the state of Israel (which is a inarguable, permanent fixture on the International Stage) to reflect that the Israeli state is in many ways similar to colonial governments that imported first class citizens from abroad and relegated the natives to second class status.
I am not here to argue about whether or not this is an accurate depiction, but if you look to the history of the colonial legacy I am moved by the story of the Hutus and Tutsis. In Rwanda the Belgian colonial regime made a distinction in the economic and social status of these two tribes. Not that Tutsis weren't also second class citizens in Belgian Rwanda, but the inequality in experience for the two tribes fueled internal divisions in Rwanda for generations after the Belgians had left.
As far as the West Bank and the Gaza strip you can already see these divisions in place. The Palestinian Authority has no Authority in the Gaza strip, it is instead ruled by Hamas and as more and more repressive and general methods are employed to quell the presence in the region Israel only shores up support for their opponents.
This is an impediment to the current peace process, sure but it will also be a tool for Israel for generations.
Source:
The Associated Press
2 comments:
I would argue that Israel is not an inarguable country. It was drawn out after WWII, which hardly seems fair to the residents from before.
This issue is something that I don't think will ever be resolved. With religious tensions and the constant changing of the "official" line, it's something that will continue to be an ongoing problem. I agree with Mark in that it definitely isn't fair to the previous residents who are now somewhat stuck in limbo.
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