Posted on 02/21/2005 5:34:19 PM PST by SJackson
Dear Prime Minister Bondevik,
The Norwegian Israel Centre Against Anti-Semitism (NIS) wishes to express its deep disappointment over your criticism of Israel during your visit there during the 12th to 14th of February, 2005. We presume that you are familiar with the clear connection between what is today termed "reasonable criticism of Israel" and the marked increase of hatred for the Jews in the world, even in Norway. In that context we would like to point out that approximately half of the Jewish youths of Norway have chosen to move out of Norway during your tenure as prime minister (Aftenposten 7.7.2004). The reason for this is the increasing hatred of the Jews, which we are seeking your help to oppose.
Nevertheless, we hope that you appreciated your invitation to Israel's capital by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, even though for your part, you limited his visit to Norway to the provincial city of Molde and kept him away from Oslo. On the other hand, you invited Mahmoud Abbas and Ahmed Qureia, representatives of the terrorist organisation PLO, to Oslo, to a meeting with the king and to the parliament.
According to Aftenposten (14.2.2005), you have "asked Israel not to respond if the Palestinian extremists break the ceasefire," and "asked Israel to respect Shimon Peres' past promises to the PLO." The articles published in Norway and in Israel about your visit and statements also give the impression that you have different standards for criticising Israel as opposed to the Arabs. That is reflected also in your earlier criticism of Israel:
1. Norway has never asked any other country but Israel, the world's only Jewish state, to refrain from defending itself against attacks. This is discrimination.
2. Norway, and you, have not come up with corresponding demands on those who attack, viz., the terrorist organisations Hamas, Fatah and the PLO. Why hasn't the prime minister asked these organisations to refrain from reacting when Israel liquidated two of its leaders -men who organised serial murders of Jews? We also missed your criticism of the Arab countries and Iran over the terrorist organisations they have established for the total destruction of the Jewish state. This is discrimination.
3. We are shocked when Norway, and you, consistently react strongly to the least breach of human rights in Israel - but only when it benefits Israel's enemies. Norway remained silent when the PLO and Syria carried out a massacre of the Christians in Lebanon (1974-82), when Iraq carried out a massacre of the Kurds in northern Iraq, and when Syria massacred its own civilians in Hama in 1982. You, and Norway, were so concerned about Israel's affairs, but at the same time, kept silent about the genocide in Rwanda in 1994; and the silence continues when, these days, Muslims are carrying out a genocide in Sudan. As of now, two million Christians have been killed, with the situation in Darfour only a drop in the ocean. This is discrimination.
4. We notice the difference between your criticism of Israel and of the others. We note that you, and Norway, are not equally concerned about human rights in other places, and do not let such facts as oppressions, murder and torture stop you from investing billions in Iran, Libya and other dictatorships. During the Nazi period, Norway invested in companies that contributed to the Holocaust. Even today, Norwegian companies invest heavily, with the government's full support and blessing, in countries that are trying to "complete Hitler's unfinished job" on the Jews in Israel. This is thought-provoking.
5. We find Norway's criticism of "Israel's occupation and breach of human rights" completely out of proportion, considering the fact that Norway turns a blind eye to the repression and occupation of Tibet by China, with which Norway has very extensive economic cooperation. Neither has Norway ever criticised the Arab occupation of the whole Middle East and North Africa, an area which is 650 times larger than the whole of Israel. The Arabs' repression of the Kurds, the Christians, the Copts, the Berbers, the Jews and others is kept silent about in Norway. This is discrimination.
6. We note that Norway sends warplanes and soldiers to Afghanistan to fight terrorism, although it has not been affected by it, instead of using the Norwegian peace mediators and peace strategists, which you demand for Israel. Here also your demands are different of the Jews in Israel, who are hard hit by terrorism. This is discrimination.
7. Your criticism of Prime Minister Sharon stands in sharp contrast to your lack of criticism of Chairman Abbas, who denies the Holocaust and compares the Jews to the Nazis, and who for several decades has been a central figure in organising terrorism against the Jews. This is discrimination.
8. NIS would like to remind you that during your tenure in the opposition, your party, the Christian Democratic Party (KrF), and you yourself, had criticised the Labour Party's government, which you had rightly stated that in supporting the PLO, "the government was supporting a corrupt regime with a disregard for human rights." (3.6.1996) Why was this criticism reversed into support for the PLO when you became prime minister? The human rights situation has not changed for the better. Arafat, Abbas and the other PLO leaders continued to delude and repress the people.
9. We are shocked that you allow Norwegian money to continually finance a regime that educates small children to hate and kill Jews. We are deeply disappointed that you do not attach any firm demands for a total halt to terrorism and recognition of Israel's right to exist to Norway's technical and economic aid to the PLO. This is discrimination.
10. Your criticism of Israel is quite strong and clear. You single it and its leader out by name; whereas, you only criticise in general terms and without the same clarity those who call for Jihad and murder of the Jews in Israel - such as the PLO, Arafat, Abbas and the other Arab leaders. This is discrimination.
We therefore request that you and your government stop operating with two sets of moral standards - one applicable to Israel and the other for Norway and other countries.
As a person of proud Norwegian descent, I am only left to conclude that those with intelligence and moral character emigrated to the U.S. a long time ago.
Uf da!
As a person of proud Norwegian descent, I am only left to conclude that those with intelligence and moral character emigrated to the U.S. a long time ago.
Uf da!
Since there is a lot to critize Norway for, there is no need for the author of this piece to make up his own stories.
Cheers.
I said it before, and I'll say it again. Anti-Semitism is increasing all around the world and it is only going to get worse. If the liberal Jews who have a lot of influence in our country, continue their hatred for moral values and keep pushing the "political correctness" agenda, anti-semitism in America will grow by leaps and bounds. It appears that liberal Jews have learned nothing from the holocaust during WWII. I have no pity or sympathy for them when it does come to these liberals because they are doing it with their eyes wide open.
And you of course have proof that this is made up, right?
Please enlighten us with this proof you have debunking this story.
Do you want me to go point by point? :-)
First of all, I absolutely detest Prime Minister Bondevik. I remember one of the first times I watched John Kerry in the primaries, it struck me, Kerry is just as slimy, slick, and wily as our "honourable" PM.
Some of the points in this list are IMHO spot on. Others are twisted in weird ways and are to me very hypocritical. And some are outright lies.
If you give me a sec I'll do the point by point.
PS. Bondevik really IS a slimeball :-(
Cheers.
Thank you for your response and upcoming proof of your statement. It is very important that people back up their statements with facts and proof. Only the demonicrats don't have to. For to them, facts don't mean anything, it's the thought that counts.
A journalist making up his own stories? I am totally SHOCKED!
Ouch. That's gonna leave a mark.
At least me thinks it was dat tway in my family. ;-)
Norway has urged Israel to show restraint. As has President Bush repeatedly. Perhaps, the paper is right. We are all discriminating against Israel? Not exactly so. Norway has, as you might have observed had an unhealthy tendency to get involved in many of the world trouble spots as peace makers. One should think Oslo would have been enough to teach us a lesson...
Anyhow, we got involved in Sri Lanka, and just to show you that getting involved in a dog fight is rarely a good idea if you want to make friends: Norwegian flags are regularly burned in Sri Lanka. Yet, Norway repeatedly has urged restraint on the warring parties. To my knowledge, the Tamil Tigers are not one of the lost tribes, but who knows? On a personal note, I don't agree with the calls for restraint, and had the honours of posting the breaking news thread here on Freerepublic when Rantisi was sent straight to the gates of hell that he himself had just opened. Oh, here is a link for one story about restraint urging in Sri Lanka: http://wwwnotes.reliefweb.int/w/rwb.nsf/0/cce564de9182703849256f6d0022a515?OpenDocument
As for the the terrorist actions from Hamas et al., they have always been condemned. Here in my opinion, the author, could have made a real point if hehad chosen to refrain from hyperbole. The balance between the condemnation of terror and the calls for restraint to Israel has in my opinion been mightily skewed. I.e. the calls for restraint are made in direct diplomatic contact with Israel, whilst often the condemnation against the Palistinian terror has taken the form of general platitudes. But, I digress, the statement number one as it is made is false.
2. Norway, and you, have not come up with corresponding demands on those who attack, viz., the terrorist organisations Hamas, Fatah and the PLO. Why hasn't the prime minister asked these organisations to refrain from reacting when Israel liquidated two of its leaders -men who organised serial murders of Jews?
See above. No terror is accepted.
We also missed your criticism of the Arab countries and Iran over the terrorist organisations they have established for the total destruction of the Jewish state. This is discrimination.
Here, I have to agree with the author. I am sickened to see Norwegian government officals cosy up with the Mullahs in order to win big contracts in the Iranian petroleum sector. Off course, there is some mute critisism, but not anything of the order that is warranted. If it was up to me, we'd bomb Teheran and Damascus :-)
3. We are shocked when Norway, and you, consistently react strongly to the least breach of human rights in Israel - but only when it benefits Israel's enemies. Norway remained silent when the PLO and Syria carried out a massacre of the Christians in Lebanon (1974-82), when Iraq carried out a massacre of the Kurds in northern Iraq, and when Syria massacred its own civilians in Hama in 1982. You, and Norway, were so concerned about Israel's affairs, but at the same time, kept silent about the genocide in Rwanda in 1994; and the silence continues when, these days, Muslims are carrying out a genocide in Sudan. As of now, two million Christians have been killed, with the situation in Darfour only a drop in the ocean. This is discrimination.
This simply isn't truth. Norway, is one of the main actors attempting to bring peace to Darfur. This is what REP. FRANK WOLF (R-VA), said in a recent statement, "I want to commend all the countries that played a critical role in the peace – particularly Norway." - http://www.house.gov/wolf/news/2005/01-11-darfur.html
As for the other cases, I am not sure as it happened way before my time. That said, the mentioning of Halabja sounds remarkably like the talking points of Pilger, and Fisk for whatever that is worth. Actually, mentioning Fisk spurred my mind. I can remember that my party in Norway, which is the most decent rightwing, most Israel (and US) friendly party in Norway wanted to sell weapons to Iraq after the Halabja incident, but was turned down in parliment due to Iraq's status as a cruel dictatorship. Off course Hussein was some sort of ally back then. This was brought up endlessly by leftist in the run-up to the current Iraq war, in a simiar way to the way American leftist brought up American ties to Iraq at the time. Anyhow, that Norway only cares about human rights infractions that occur in Israel is simply absurd. Heck, Norway cares about human rights infractions in the US :-) Norway campaigns against the death penalty.
4. We notice the difference between your criticism of Israel and of the others. We note that you, and Norway, are not equally concerned about human rights in other places, and do not let such facts as oppressions, murder and torture stop you from investing billions in Iran, Libya and other dictatorships. During the Nazi period, Norway invested in companies that contributed to the Holocaust. Even today, Norwegian companies invest heavily, with the government's full support and blessing, in countries that are trying to "complete Hitler's unfinished job" on the Jews in Israel. This is thought-provoking.
I largely agree with this point. Disgusting. Nuff said. Then again, with Libya now being a "nice guy" western companies, including American ones are rushing to get in on the action. Off course, Israel itself is not above doing business with dictatorships like the Chicoms.
5. We find Norway's criticism of "Israel's occupation and breach of human rights" completely out of proportion, considering the fact that Norway turns a blind eye to the repression and occupation of Tibet by China, with which Norway has very extensive economic cooperation. Neither has Norway ever criticised the Arab occupation of the whole Middle East and North Africa, an area which is 650 times larger than the whole of Israel. The Arabs' repression of the Kurds, the Christians, the Copts, the Berbers, the Jews and others is kept silent about in Norway. This is discrimination.
Uff da :-) This is taking a while... Doing business with China? Everyone, INCLUDING Israel is doing business with China. The arab occupation of the whole middle east and Africa? The arab occupation of that region is now ancient history. Do they want Norway to condemn the arab occupation of Egypt? Heck, even Iraq, I believe, was originally conquered by the arabs way back when. End the arab occupation of Fallujah? And, the author is simply not truthful when he says that the plight of all minorities who are being repressed by arabs is being hushed down. How could we not know about the kurds for instance, we have taken them in by the thousands to save them from Arab oppression, just to have the pleasure of kurds running around in Norway threatening to behead little Norwegian girls.
6. We note that Norway sends warplanes and soldiers to Afghanistan to fight terrorism, although it has not been affected by it, instead of using the Norwegian peace mediators and peace strategists, which you demand for Israel. Here also your demands are different of the Jews in Israel, who are hard hit by terrorism. This is discrimination.
Well, here I totally agree with the author. Bomb them all.
7. Your criticism of Prime Minister Sharon stands in sharp contrast to your lack of criticism of Chairman Abbas, who denies the Holocaust and compares the Jews to the Nazis, and who for several decades has been a central figure in organising terrorism against the Jews. This is discrimination.
Agree. At least watching them kissing up to Abbas makes me less ill than the case was with Arafat.
8. NIS would like to remind you that during your tenure in the opposition, your party, the Christian Democratic Party (KrF), and you yourself, had criticised the Labour Party's government, which you had rightly stated that in supporting the PLO, "the government was supporting a corrupt regime with a disregard for human rights." (3.6.1996) Why was this criticism reversed into support for the PLO when you became prime minister? The human rights situation has not changed for the better. Arafat, Abbas and the other PLO leaders continued to delude and repress the people.
Why did Bondevik flip-flop? Didn't I in that earlier post say that he reminded me of Kerry? He is a weasel.
9. We are shocked that you allow Norwegian money to continually finance a regime that educates small children to hate and kill Jews. We are deeply disappointed that you do not attach any firm demands for a total halt to terrorism and recognition of Israel's right to exist to Norway's technical and economic aid to the PLO. This is discrimination.
I am getting really tired of the, this is discrimination line by now, but I digress, the author is right in this case.
10. Your criticism of Israel is quite strong and clear. You single it and its leader out by name; whereas, you only criticise in general terms and without the same clarity those who call for Jihad and murder of the Jews in Israel - such as the PLO, Arafat, Abbas and the other Arab leaders. This is discrimination.
Spot on.
Well, that took me a lot longer than I intended. To sum up my view, I find that the author makes a couple of wild statements that doesn't correspond well with the truth, but also makes quite a few valid remarks. There is an overall, for a lack of a better word, "whining" quality to this letter that puts me off to some degree.
I just feel that since the author has such a strong case to make, why resort to half truths and hyperbole?
Cheers.
Here's the real irony: leftist Jews in the US and elsewhere actively support open immigration for Muslims into this country and others after which - surprise! - they start to carry out Islam's instructions regarding Jews! (Kill the Jew wherever you find him, etc.)
Look up the Jewish author Stephen Steinlight, he was formerly a leftist who was active in the Abe Foxman/ADL/Barry Lynn leftist anti-Christian jihad. It started to dawn upon him that it was rather strange to walk through all of the heavy security and guards there as a result from Muslim threats and actions to discuss the great threat to the Jews from Jim Dobson and the like. That's what caused him to come to his senses and stop believing leftist insanity.
A very interesting piece that was published in the "Week in Review" section of this past Sunday's NYT, for anyone who is interested in learning more about this intriguing political realignment.
-good times, G.J.P.(Jr.)
As for doing business with China, no one does more business with China than us (the U.S. of A.), and a lot of it is on credit - for which we will eventually pay a big bill.
Norway, like many of its European neighbors, Russia, and unfortunately, much of the United States, seems to have succumbed to the discredited theory that a cold peace-of any kind-is preferable to a hot war.
It's this type of thinking that-taken to its logical extreme-leads to the feckless, collaborationist policies that marked the administrations of Chamberlain, Quisling, Buchanan, among others, who were all operating under the delusion that you can forestall conflict indefinitely.
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