Letter to Tony Ehrenreich

Dear Tony

I joined the struggle for human rights and the fight against Apartheid in the early 1980's. During the Apartheid era I was shot at more time than I care to remember, I was tear-gased and chased by police dogs, harassed by policemen, had my phones bugged and my mail opened. I established the Jewish Anti-Apartheid movement of which I remained a leader for many years. In 1994, I joined the IEC and for 6 years I devoted my life to building sustainable democracy in South Africa.

I too support the right of Jews to live within their historical homeland, Israel. I support Jerusalem as the eternal capital of the Jewish people and I support the fact that Israel, as a democratic state allows full franchise to all its citizens regardless of race, ethnicity or religion. I oppose the occupation of any people including the Palestinians and I hope dearly that as soon as Hamas learns that it cannot murder or expel Jews from the middle-east, as it proudly professed to do, that a comprehensive peace deal will be concluded between Israel and Palestine with Jerusalem as the capital of two Independent States,one Jewish and one Palestinian. This view makes me a proud an unashamed Zionist.

I believe firmly that any nation has a right to defend itself and I certainly believe that Hamas firing more than 2 000 rockets indiscriminately at Israeli civilian targets constitutes a war crime and a crime against humanity. If I was not sensitive to the death of civilians in Gaza I would not be human. The sight of children killed while playing on a beach sickens me, as do the daily pictures of horrified Israeli Children cowering in bomb shelters hiding from Palestinian rockets and tunnel attacks. I do however understand that when Hamas started this war, used civilians as human shields, fired rockets from schools and hospitals that civilians would die - this was designed by Hamas to ensure the maximum effect.

The last time people told my family to pack their bags, genocide erupted in Eastern Europe and today you may visit the mass graves of my ancestors buried in open pits in a forest in eastern Lithuania, where they were murdered by their neighbours, next to whom they had lived for hundreds of years.

My family have lived in South Africa for more than a hundred years, I am a proud, patriotic and committed South Africa who fought a struggle against Apartheid so racist imbeciles like yourself would be granted freedom of speech in my country to spew your vile rhetoric and hatred.

I fought Apartheid so labour unions like Cosatu would be allowed to organize and assemble and be able and express genocidal xenophobic hatred as you now do on their behalf.

This is the freedom I helped create for you. And you in my country, my land to spew hatred and tell me that I should leave?

You have abused the privileges I fought for, you have disgraced the people of this country you have come to spread division and hatred - you are the enemy of the people of South Africa. You of all malignant people should pack your bags and go spread your unique brand of hatred somewhere else - maybe in Syria where 170 000 civilians have been massacred by the Assad government without you raising any issues of concern.

So pack your bags, say farewell and stop your bigoted hatred against the people of South Africa. And with you gone, we will all build a better society free of your racist rhetoric and unbridled hatred.

Howard Sackstein

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