South Sudanese Slave Sees Israel as "Heaven"

Simon Deng, a former South Sudanese slave taken by a neighbor as a young boy to Islamist Northern Sudan gave this impassion speech at Durban Watch Conference in New York on 22nd Sept.

He puts the lie to the Zionism is Racism canard of Durban III painting Israel as a pariah state. Rather as he points out it is the Arab Muslim Jihadis who have engaged in racial genocide of millions of Sudanese, whether Muslim or Christian. As he further points out it is Israel that is the ultimate destination of Sudanese refugees, as Egypt has oppressed them.

Below is Simon Deng’s Speech before the Durban Watch Conference. _______________________________________________________

Thank you for those kind words:

I want to thank the organizers of this conference, The Perils of Global Intolerance. It is a great honor for me and it is a privilege really to be among today’s distinguished speakers.

I came here as a friend of the State of Israel and the Jewish people. I came to protest this Durban conference which is based on a set of lies. It is organized by nations who are themselves are guilty of the worst kinds of oppression.

It will not help the victims of racism. It will only isolate and target the Jewish state. It is a tool of the enemies of Israel. The UN has itself become a tool against Israel. For over 50 years, 82 percent of the UN General Assembly emergency meetings have been about condemning one state - Israel. Hitler couldn’t have been made happier.

The Durban Conference is an outrage. All decent people will know that. But friends, I come here today with a radical idea. I come to tell you that there are peoples who suffer from the UN’s anti-Israelism even more than the Israelis. I belong to one of those people.

Please hear me out.

By exaggerating Palestinian suffering, and by blaming the Jews for it, the UN has muffled the cries of those who suffer on a far larger scale.

For over fifty years the indigenous black population of Sudan -- Christians and Muslims alike -- has been the victims of the brutal, racist Arab Muslim regimes in Khartoum.

In South Sudan, my homeland, about 4 million innocent men, women and children were slaughtered from 1955 to 2005. Seven million were ethnically cleansed and they became the largest refugee group since World War II.

The UN is concerned about the so-called Palestinian refugees. They dedicated a separate agency for them, and they are treated with a special privilege.
Meanwhile, my people, ethnically cleansed, murdered and enslaved, are relatively ignored. The UN refuses to tell the world the truth about the real causes of Sudan’s conflicts. Who knows really what is happening in Darfur? It is not a “tribal conflict.”

It is a conflict rooted in Arab colonialism well known in north Africa. In Darfur, a region in the Western Sudan, everybody is Muslim. Everybody is Muslim because the Arabs invaded the North of Africa and converted the indigenous people to Islam. In the eyes of the Islamists in Khartoum, the Darfuris are not Muslim enough. And the Darfuris do not want to be Arabized. They love their own African languages and dress and customs. The Arab response is genocide! But nobody at the UN tells the truth about Darfur.

In the Nuba Mountains, another region of Sudan, genocide is taking place as I speak. The Islamist regime in Khartoum is targeting the black Africans - Muslims and Christians. Nobody at the UN has told the truth about the Nuba Mountains.
Do you hear the UN condemn Arab racism against blacks?

What you find on the pages of the New York Times, or in the record of the UN condemnations is “Israeli crimes” and Palestinian suffering. My people have been driven off the front pages because of the exaggerations about Palestinian suffering. What Israel does is portrayed as a Western sin. But the truth is that the real sin happens when the West abandons us: the victims of Arab/Islamic apartheid.

Chattel slavery was practiced for centuries in Sudan. It was revived as a tool of war in the early 90s. Khartoum declared jihad against my people and this legitimized taking slaves as war booty. Arab militias were sent to destroy Southern villages and were encouraged to take African women and children as slaves. We believe that up to 200,000 were kidnapped, brought to the North and sold into slavery.

I am a living proof of this crime against humanity.

I don’t like talking about my experience as a slave, but I do it because it is important for the world to know that slavery exists even today. I was only nine years old when an Arab neighbor named Abdullahi tricked me into following him to a boat. The boat wound up in Northern Sudan where he gave me as a gift to his family. For three and a half years I was their slave going through something that no child should ever go through: brutal beatings and humiliations; working around the clock; sleeping on the ground with animals; eating the family’s left-overs. During those three years I was unable to say the word “no.” All I could say was “yes,” “yes,” “yes.”

The United Nations knew about the enslavement of South Sudanese by the Arabs. Their own staff reported it. It took UNICEF – under pressure from the Jewish–led American Anti-Slavery Group -- sixteen years to acknowledge what was happening. I want to publicly thank my friend Dr. Charles Jacobs for leading the anti-slavery fight.

But the Sudanese government and the Arab League pressured UNICEF, and UNICEF backtracked, and started to criticize those who worked to liberate Sudanese slaves. In 1998, Dr. Gaspar Biro, the courageous UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights in Sudan who reported on slavery, resigned in protest of the UN’s actions.

My friends, today, tens of thousands of black South Sudanese still serve their masters in the North and the UN is silent about that. It would offend the OIC and the Arab League.

As a former slave and a victim of the worst sort of racism, allow me to explain why I think calling Israel a racist state is absolutely absurd and immoral.
I have been to Israel five times visiting the Sudanese refugees. Let me tell you how they ended up there. These are Sudanese who fled Arab racism, hoping to find shelter in Egypt. They were wrong. When Egyptian security forces slaughtered twenty six black refugees in Cairo who were protesting Egyptian racism, the Sudanese realized that the Arab racism is the same in Khartoum or Cairo. They needed shelter and they found it in Israel. Dodging the bullets of the Egyptian border patrols and walking for very long distances, the refugees’ only hope was to reach Israel’s side of the fence, where they knew they would be safe.

Black Muslims from Darfur chose Israel above all the other Arab-Muslim states of the area. Do you know what this means!!!?? And the Arabs say Israel is racist!!!?
In Israel, black Sudanese, Christian and Muslim were welcomed and treated like human beings. Just go and ask them, like I have done. They told me that compared to the situation in Egypt, Israel is “heaven.”

Is Israel a racist state? To my people, the people who know racism – the answer is absolutely not. Israel is a state of people who are the colors of the rainbow. Jews themselves come in all colors, even black. I met with Ethiopian Jews in Israel. Beautiful black Jews.

So, yes … I came here today to tell you that the people who suffer most from the UN anti-Israel policy are not the Israelis but all those people who the UN ignores in order to tell its big lie against Israel: we, the victims of Arab/Muslim abuse: women, ethnic minorities, religious minorities, homosexuals, in the Arab/Muslim world. These are the biggest victims of UN Israel hatred.

Look at the situation of the Copts in Egypt, the Christians in Iraq, and Nigeria, and Iran, the Hindus and Bahais who suffer from Islamic oppression. The Sikhs. We - a rainbow coalition of victims and targets of Jihadis - all suffer. We are ignored, we are abandoned. So that the big lie against the Jews can go forward.

In 2005, I visited one of the refugee camps in South Sudan. I met a twelve year old girl who told me about her dream. In a dream she wanted to go to school to become a doctor. And then, she wanted to visit Israel. I was shocked. How could this refugee girl who spent most of her life in the North know about Israel? When I asked why she wanted to visit Israel, she said: “This is our people.” I was never able to find an answer to my question.

On January 9 of 2011 South Sudan became an independent state. For South Sudanese, that means continuation of oppression, brutalization, demonization, Islamization, Arabization and enslavement.

In a similar manner, the Arabs continue denying Jews their right for sovereignty in their homeland and the Durban III conference continues denying Israel’s legitimacy.

As a friend of Israel, I bring you the news that my President, the President of the Republic of South Sudan, Salva Kiir -- publicly stated that the South Sudan embassy in Israel will be built--- not in Tel Aviv, but in Jerusalem, the eternal capital of the Jewish people.

I also want to assure you that my own new nation, and all of its peoples, will oppose racist forums like the Durban III. We will oppose it by simply telling the truth. Our truth.

My Jewish friends taught me something I now want to say with you.
AM YISROEL CHAI! The people of Israel lives!

DURBAN II

The original aim of the upcoming UN conference on Racism was to help the African continent but it was hijacked by the Arab states to promote their agenda. With the chairmanship of the conference in the hands of Libya and the Deputy chair held by Cuba plus other muslim countries on the committee there has been a total distortion of the original aims.

The wording of the documents to be discussed at Geneva during the UN conference on racial discrimination in April has crossed the stated red lines of the Europeans and yet only Italy has had the courage of its convictions to withdraw.

These red lines are:-
a. The singling out of Israel for blame.
b. The inclusion of the "defamation of religion" clause that would protect Islamist extremist ideology from criticism.
c. Listing a hierarchy of racisms, with Islamophobia as the most disturbing form. All racisms are to be fought equally.
d. Removing the mention of the importance of Holocaust commemoration and removing the condemnation of anti-Semitism from the past document.

In FRANCE on February 13th 2008, Nicolas Sarkosy said quite categorically "France will not allow a repetition of the excesses and abuses of 2001.
Our European partners share France's concerns. France will chair the EU in the final months preceding the review conference. I say to you: if ever our legitimate demands are not taken into account, we will disengage from the process. I think my answer is unambiguous.

In BRITAIN in a parliamentary debate on May 13th 2008 Jim Murphy, minister for Europs said "We will play no part in an international conference that exhibits the degree of anti-Semitism that was disgracefully on view on the previous occasion. If it gets to a point that we come to the view that the conference cannot be a success, the option of withdrawal from the conference remains available to us."

In HOLLAND on May 18th 2008, the Foreign Minister said "The Netherlands will not accept it if there are any attempts to call Israel a racist state at a UN conference."

Finally in DENMARK on October 28th 2008, their Foreign Minister said "If the OIC (Organization of the Islamic Conference) pushes through this draft
resolution, they shall not expect European or Western countries to be present at the table... we cannot accept that religion be conflated with racism."

Now, just why have these countries not taken the decision to withdraw? All their red lines have been crossed. What a moral outrage

Racism Durban Style and Italian Style

With the imminent start of 2009, the infamous Durban II conference gets nearer and nearer. Nothing in the preparation for this conference suggests that it will be any different from the Durban I Israel bashing forum. I would have hoped that by now that more governments would have made the decision to opt out of this fiasco of a conference, but no such luck.

So far only Canada and Israel have made the decision not to participate and the USA and Holland are “threatening” not to participate.

Thus, as so my commentators far more professional than me are writing, the Islamization of Europe is continuing apace. In my simplistic mind I would have thought what has been proposed for the conference in black and white would be sufficient for the governments of the EU to announce as a body their unwillingness to be part of this conference. Ah well, such is the reality of European politics today.

I suppose that many think of my comments as not politically correct, even racist, but as Michael Richards, better known as Kramer from TV's Seinfeld series, said in his defense speech in a US court after making racial comments in his comedy act.
“I'm proud To Be White, there, someone finally said it.
How many are actually paying attention to this?
There are African Americans, Mexican Americans, Asian Americans, Arab Americans, etc.
And then there are just Americans.You pass me on the street and sneer in my direction.You call me 'White boy,' 'Cracker,' 'Honkey,' 'Whitey,' 'Caveman' ... and that's OK.But when I call you, Nigger, Kike, Towel head, Sand-nigger, Camel Jockey, Beaner , Gook, or Chink .....You call me a racist.

You say that whites commit a lot of violence against you, so why are the ghettos the most dangerous places to live?
You have the United Negro College Fund the Martin Luther King Day, Black History Month, Cesar Chavez Day.You have BET, if we had WET (White Entertainment Television) we'd be racists.

If we had a White Pride Day, you would call us racists.If we had White History Month, we'd be racists.If we had any organization for only whites to 'advance' OUR lives we'd be racists.A white woman could not be in the Miss Black American pageant, but any color can be in the Miss America pageant.

If we had a college fund that only gave white students scholarships you know we'd be racists. There are over 60 openly proclaimed Black Colleges in the US. Yet if there were 'White colleges' THAT would be a racist college.

In the Million Man March, you believed that you were marching for your race and rights. If we marched for our race and rights, you would call us racists. You are proud to be black, brown, yellow and orange, and you're not afraid to announce it. But when we announce our white pride, you call us racists.Why is it that only whites can be racists?”

I suppose in Italy there will be calls of racism after the centre-right gov't in Italy,
the only EU country where the elected Gov't rules in full respect of citizens' will as manifested in their clear electoral choice, by gradually erasing the previous Prodi's Left's disastrous policies of indiscriminate immigration which had been responsible for social turmoils and abuses from the growing Islamic contingent ..

The good news now concerns a project of a package of laws regulating future authorizations of Mosquees and of so-called Islamic Centers, representing in reality the perfect Trojan Horse for Islamic propaganda and indoctrination, AND incitement to terrorism - as proved by recent arrest of Moroccan (Italian resident) terrorists planning attacks in Milan and surroundings.

By this body of laws, one of the requirements will be that sermons and speeches shall have to be delivered in Italian language. There's no doubt that one country where good sense and sane minds rule is Italy.

An Italian minister has proposed a register of imams in Italy in order to control the construction of mosques and a referendum to integrate new places or worship in a social and urban context.Andrea Ronchi, European Affairs Minister, and member of the rightist National Alliance party (note: accused of 'fascist tendencies' by the left) proposed the move on Tuesday in what he called a bid to improve interreligious dialogue.

Ronchi also wants to restart dialogue between Muslims and institutions such as the state-backed Islamic Council or 'Consulta per l'Islam'. However, Ronchi said he did not want Italy's largest Muslim group, the Union of Islamic Communities of Italy (UCOII) to take part in the initiative, calling them "the real exponents of non-dialogue".

"We do not speak to those who deny the existence of Israel," he said.

Ronchi announced his proposal after meeting the vice-president of the Italian Islamic Religious Community (COREIS), Yahya Pallavicini.Ronchi said that the existence of new mosques in Italy should be dealt with in a transparent manner and included in a national register. "We need to put a stop to mosques being hurriedly built, without the consensus of the community. We need to match them with the reality of the place," said Ronchi.

The initiative has already been carried out by COREIS, which has trained 20 Italian-speaking imams.Italy's rightist Northern League, allied to Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, wants to limit the growth of Islam and block the construction of mosques through strict new regulations.

Durban ll - review of racism "around the world"

Since racial hatred has animated some of the worst atrocities in history, one would think that an opportunity for nations to come together and seek solutions to racial tensions would be welcomed. So says Ken Connor http://www.townhall.com/Columnists/KenConnor/2008/07/20/fanning_the_flames_of_racism?page=full&comments=true

Think again. The upcoming United Nations Durban Review Conference in Durban, South Africa—billed as an international effort to achieve racial reconciliation—is likely to make a mockery of any bona fide attempt to overcome racial discrimination.

The Conference, scheduled for 2009, will review the international progress made in response to the "Durban Declaration and Programme of Action" released by the first Durban conference in 2001.

Among those countries attending the 2001 conference were China, Columbia, Cuba, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Two of these countries (Syria and Cuba) are on the U.S. State Department's top ten list of worst human rights violators, and China was only just dropped from the list in 2008. The United States and Israel quickly saw that they were going to be the scapegoats of the conference, and not surprisingly, they withdrew their delegations a few days into the conference.

As the Durban review conference (or "Durban II") approaches, many are wondering whether the United States will participate at all. The U.S. voted against holding the review conference, but has not yet taken an official stance on whether or not it will attend the proceedings. Canada and Israel have already stated that they will boycott the proceedings, because they are convinced that the conference will be another exercise in anti-Israel propaganda.

Casting a further shadow over Durban II is the new U.N. Human Rights Council (HRC) which is planning the conference. Among the members of the council are traditional human rights violators China, Cuba, and Saudi Arabia. The HRC has been a disappointment since its inception in 2006. Its stated purpose is to "[promote] universal respect for the protection of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for all" and to "address situations of violations of human rights." All signs so far indicate that Durban II will be no better than Durban I.

A well-framed international condemnation of racism has the potential to transform the global discussion on race and discrimination. All countries ought to acknowledge their own shortcomings as we work to overcome racial hatred at home and around the world.

They say it's good for your health

I have just completed the annual eye tests for glucoma and the like and I suddenly thought to myself how we have come to take these routine tests for granted. If I review the various tests I automatically do each year, even routine blood tests it does seem that there is a great effort in preventative medicine here in Israel.

Life expectancy in Israel at birth is: 79.32 years (2005 est.), males: 77.21 years and female: 81.55 years. the comparable figues for the UK are 78.7 yrs, 76.23 yrs and 81.3 years. by the way the figures for the USA are even lower than the UK. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_life_expectancy

With all the controversy of boycotts, the charges of apartheid and racism, the reality is that in the medical field these charges just reflect ignorance.

In a letter to a paper this weekend by the head of a department in the hospital in Safad, he writes: " I invite anyone to visit my hospital to see for themselves the complete equality the Arab citizens enjoy not only as professionals but also as patients".

I must add that I have a number of friends working in the Haifa University and their comments re the academia echo that of the doctor.