African Arguments

Top Menu

  • About Us
    • Our philosophy
  • Write for us
  • Contact us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter
  • RSS feed
  • Donate
  • Fellowship

Main Menu

  • Home
  • Country
    • Central
      • Cameroon
      • Central African Republic
      • Chad
      • Congo-Brazzaville
      • Congo-Kinshasa
      • Equatorial Guinea
      • Gabon
    • East
      • Burundi
      • Comoros
      • Dijbouti
      • Eritrea
      • Ethiopia
      • Kenya
      • Rwanda
      • Seychelles
      • Somalia
      • Somaliland
      • South Sudan
      • Sudan
      • Tanzania
      • Uganda
      • Red Sea
    • North
      • Algeria
      • Egypt
      • Libya
      • Morocco
      • Tunisia
      • Western Sahara
    • Southern
      • Angola
      • Botswana
      • eSwatini
      • Lesotho
      • Madagascar
      • Malawi
      • Mauritius
      • Mozambique
      • Namibia
      • South Africa
      • Zambia
      • Zimbabwe
    • West
      • Benin
      • Burkina Faso
      • Cape Verde
      • Côte d’Ivoire
      • The Gambia
      • Ghana
      • Guinea
      • Guinea Bissau
      • Liberia
      • Mali
      • Mauritania
      • Niger
      • Nigeria
      • São Tomé and Príncipe
      • Senegal
      • Sierra Leone
      • Togo
  • Politics
    • Elections Map
  • Economy
  • Society
    • Climate crisis
  • Culture
  • Specials
    • From the fellows
    • Radical Activism in Africa
    • On Food Security & COVID19
    • #EndSARS
    • Covid-19
    • Travelling While African
    • From the wit-hole countries…
    • Living in Translation
    • Red Sea
    • Beautiful Game
  • Podcast
    • Into Africa Podcast
    • Africa Science Focus Podcast
    • Think African Podcast
  • Debating Ideas
  • About Us
    • Our philosophy
  • Write for us
  • Contact us
  • Advertise
  • Newsletter
  • RSS feed
  • Donate
  • Fellowship

logo

African Arguments

  • Home
  • Country
    • Central
      • Cameroon
      • Central African Republic
      • Chad
      • Congo-Brazzaville
      • Congo-Kinshasa
      • Equatorial Guinea
      • Gabon
    • East
      • Burundi
      • Comoros
      • Dijbouti
      • Eritrea
      • Ethiopia
      • Kenya
      • Rwanda
      • Seychelles
      • Somalia
      • Somaliland
      • South Sudan
      • Sudan
      • Tanzania
      • Uganda
      • Red Sea
    • North
      • Algeria
      • Egypt
      • Libya
      • Morocco
      • Tunisia
      • Western Sahara
    • Southern
      • Angola
      • Botswana
      • eSwatini
      • Lesotho
      • Madagascar
      • Malawi
      • Mauritius
      • Mozambique
      • Namibia
      • South Africa
      • Zambia
      • Zimbabwe
    • West
      • Benin
      • Burkina Faso
      • Cape Verde
      • Côte d’Ivoire
      • The Gambia
      • Ghana
      • Guinea
      • Guinea Bissau
      • Liberia
      • Mali
      • Mauritania
      • Niger
      • Nigeria
      • São Tomé and Príncipe
      • Senegal
      • Sierra Leone
      • Togo
  • Politics
    • Elections Map
  • Economy
  • Society
    • Climate crisis
  • Culture
  • Specials
    • From the fellows
    • Radical Activism in Africa
    • On Food Security & COVID19
    • #EndSARS
    • Covid-19
    • Travelling While African
    • From the wit-hole countries…
    • Living in Translation
    • Red Sea
    • Beautiful Game
  • Podcast
    • Into Africa Podcast
    • Africa Science Focus Podcast
    • Think African Podcast
  • Debating Ideas
Politics
Home›African Arguments›Politics›“˜Genocide Industry’ has Hidden Agenda

“˜Genocide Industry’ has Hidden Agenda

By Pieter Tesch
June 27, 2009
6007
41

“˜Attempts at equalising historical wrongs are often aimed at Holocaust obfuscation’

Lessons for Darfur from an unfortunately not-enough-known Nazi versus Stalinist crimes debate in Europe.

The “˜genocide’ activists who cried the expected howls following the Washington Post‘s “˜Sudan’s “˜coordinated’ genocide in Darfur is over’ (18 June) report and the ABC news story (broadcast 17 June), “˜US envoy: Sudan experiencing “˜remnants’ of genocide’, in the recent resurgence of efforts of linking the terminology of genocide to the ongoing tragic situation in Darfur, could do nothing better than to read carefully articles published in the Irish Times of Dublin in May about the “˜Red (Soviet Stalinism) equals Brown (German Nazism)’ debate in the so-called “˜New Europe’, see the subtitle above.

Revisionism of the role and impact of the German Nazi occupation during WWII and of the role and impact of the Soviet Union, particular under Stalin, in defeating the Third Reich and the subsequent establishment of the Soviet hegemony in eastern Europe splitting Europe in the middle, is rampant in many newly established countries that were part of the former Soviet Union, such as the Baltic states or its satellites in the former Warsaw Pact, such as Poland, sometimes referred to in sections of the British and American media as the “˜New Europe’.

The hidden agenda of this revisionism is “˜Holocaust obfuscation’, according to Professor David Katz, Director of the Vilnius Yiddish Institute in Lithuania, in his article under the same title as above published in the Irish Times of 30 May, responding to an earlier article, “˜History holds key to mutual understanding’, published on 16 May.

This has led in turn amongst other to “˜bogus redefinitions of the word “genocide”,’ according to Professor Katz, with the aim to replace the history of the Shoah with a “˜theory of equal genocides with where everybody was killing everybody’, resulting in the equalisation of the crimes of the Nazis with the crimes committed by the Soviet Union, in particular under Stalin, such as for instance comparing the victims of Auschwitz with those of the Ukrainian famine of the 1930s.

While Professor Katz is absolutely not minimising the crimes committed by the Soviet Union, in particular under Stalin from the 1930’s to his death in 1953, his warnings about the danger of the misuse and sloppy definitions of the word “˜genocide’ for political motives should be equally a warning to the Darfur activists who continue to demand that western, in particular US, policy towards Sudan should be based on the assumption of the “˜ongoing genocide’ in Darfur, despite the fact that the concept of the “˜Darfur genocide’ in the first place, even during the bloody period of 2003-04, remains justifiable heavily contested and controversial.

Whatever was meant by the US special envoy, retired Air Force Major General Scott Grattion, when he spoke of “˜remnants of genocide’ in Darfur and that it was no longer “˜coordinated’, as if one could have an uncoordinated genocide or a little bit of genocide, the activists predictably howled, even tough they themselves have offered not one credible definition or description of what constitutes “˜genocide’ in Darfur.

But the result is the same, an amorphous and ill defined terminology for atrocity or atrocities that is applied for political convenience of the day replacing a definition and terminology based on historical facts and precedent, with as the result that the victims of the Shoah themselves are loosing that quality which has made the crimes against the European Jewish and Roma communities so unique and grotesque.

That something of this nature was happening in Nazi German occupied Europe had dawned on the Allies by 1944, but instead of diverting the war effort to disrupt the genocide infrastructure, as some scholars and commentators argued afterwards should have been done, implying, wrongly, that by default the Allied leadership was somehow complicit in the genocide of European Jewry, the Allies concentrated on defeating Nazi Germany.
The flipside is that the Nazi German High Command refused to divert its resources from the completion of the “˜final solution’ of the “˜Jewish question’ to the defence of the fatherland as defeat and destruction of the fatherland was considered to be preferable if the Nazi world vision could not be implemented and the final solution should be implemented as much as possible to the very dead end.

Whatever one may want to accuse the Sudanese government of, that kind psycho- or sociopathic approach and motivation is absent in Darfur, but “˜genocide’ itself has already become in fact so meaningless in Africa as when Ugandan president Yoweri Museveni the other day felt obliged to describe the indeed enormous and basically manmade humanitarian crisis in Somalia as “˜genocide’ to draw attention to it.

In other words every man-made humanitarian crisis is potentially a “˜genocide’, but whether it will be actually defined as such seems to depend, especially in Africa, on the political convenience of the day whether some victims deserve to be labelled as victims of “˜genocide’, such as those who have been described as “˜African’ Darfuri in Sudan, or just “˜victims’ of a man-made humanitarian crisis, such as in Somalia, or despite even obvious ethnic connotations relating to the conflict that victimised them, as for instance in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Professor Katz has called on the European Parliament to reject the “˜Red equals Brown’ concept pushed by certain ultra-nationalist interests from the “˜New Europe’ to become the accepted narrative of the history of 20th century Europe to hide the complicity of their ultra nationalist predecessors in the Shoah during WWII, and to deal with the crimes of Stalinism and the Soviet Union in their own right and context instead.

Equally so the European Parliament, European national parliaments and last but not least the US Congress should reject “˜Darfur genocide’ narrative as pushed by the activists despite their populist appeal with the backing of celebrities such as Mia Farrow and reject their hidden agenda of a war on Khartoum as part of the by now discredited “˜war on terror’.

Instead they have to start concentrating seriously and constructively on how to assist efforts to find a political solution to the conflict in Darfur, which has to include Chad and the Central African Republic against the vested interests of France, and to preserve the CPA and prevent the north-south civil war to re-ignite for a third time in Sudan.

Previous Article

A Visit to Kober Prison

Next Article

Sudan: Measuring the Drowned and the Saved

Pieter Tesch

41 comments

  1. KarasevMug 11 August, 2021 at 00:05

    http://fcstal.com.ua/employees
    https://hobby.rin.ru/articles/html/23.html
    http://quimicasiris.ru/kecontact.htm
    http://strikerfootball.ru/istoriya-futbola/chto-takoe-strayker-v-futbole
    http://horses56.ru/?cat=15

  2. Richardcog 11 August, 2021 at 12:42

    строительство бани под ключ проекты и цены – строительство 2 этажного дома из кирпича, дом из бруса под ключ цены

  3. BruceBok 11 August, 2021 at 14:41

    строительство дома из пеноблоков под – строительство домов под ключ проекты, под строительство дома из газобетона цены

  4. JamesWer 11 August, 2021 at 15:22

    кредит наличными под низкий процент – брокеры кредитные в получения кредита, кредит под залог с плохой кредитной историей

  5. KeenanNeosY 11 August, 2021 at 18:05

    primedic heartsave 6 – дефибриллятор primedic defi цена b, дефибриллятор defi b германия

  6. PrestonTut 11 August, 2021 at 20:01

    маслостанция гидравлическая – маслостанция гидравлическая высокого давления, гидростанции высокого давления

  7. RalphCow 11 August, 2021 at 21:21

    купить женскую оправу – солнцезащитные очки женские купить, купить очки для зрения в красноярске недорого

  8. Josephram 12 August, 2021 at 06:10

    регистрация в каталогах статей – список каталогов сайтов, регистрация каталог

  9. LouisMulky 12 August, 2021 at 07:13

    discover here carders forum

  10. KennethTak 12 August, 2021 at 16:33

    Hydraruzxpnew4af onion – Гидра ссылка, Gidra

  11. RubenReaks 14 August, 2021 at 01:57

    check my source https://topcasino-pl.com/wazamba-oferuje-bonus-rejestracyjny

  12. CharlesSkino 14 August, 2021 at 03:24

    why not look here https://1win-bet.com/

  13. WoodrowIrone 14 August, 2021 at 03:26

    my explanation https://slottica-pl.com/pl/category/bonusy

  14. Daviditact 14 August, 2021 at 18:29

    you can find out more https://vulkanroyall.com/

  15. ThomasCoeno 14 August, 2021 at 19:24

    site https://slotumkasyno.com/

  16. SonnyGuict 14 August, 2021 at 20:21

    go right here https://vulkanvegaspl.com

  17. RichardAbume 14 August, 2021 at 20:38

    go to website https://vulkan-vegas.de/vulkan-vegas-mobile/

  18. Davidaburo 14 August, 2021 at 22:48

    their website https://ikcc.jp/

  19. Donaldber 14 August, 2021 at 23:06

    Web Site https://betamokasyno.com/bonusy/

  20. JoshuaDYete 15 August, 2021 at 02:19

    i loved this https://herrwett.de/mr-bet-gewinn/

  21. Gordonfut 15 August, 2021 at 04:00

    blog link https://sport-wins.com

  22. RogerBen 15 August, 2021 at 05:38

    description https://vulkanvegas100.pl/bonusy/

  23. RubenReaks 15 August, 2021 at 07:12

    have a peek at this web-site https://topcasino-pl.com/

  24. WoodrowIrone 15 August, 2021 at 08:16

    this content https://slottica-pl.com/pl/

  25. CharlesSkino 15 August, 2021 at 08:17

    Learn More https://1win-bet.com/

  26. TerryPlaro 15 August, 2021 at 10:35

    my company https://zigzag-casino.pl/

  27. WilliamMaree 18 August, 2021 at 08:11

    Где купить двухсторонний поисковый магнит – Магнит квадрат, Магнитные диски купить

  28. RaymondOvath 18 August, 2021 at 14:46

    близкий веб сайт https://lolz.guru/market

  29. Eddienow 18 August, 2021 at 22:06

    Сертификация продукции в Украине – Сертификация ISO 27001 в Украине, Сертифікація ІСО 45001

  30. Howardkam 18 August, 2021 at 22:37

    forex signals providers – forex signals providers, forex copy trading

  31. Jamesfrema 19 August, 2021 at 02:47

    хорош сайт https://lolz.guru/articles/

  32. Stevenbum 19 August, 2021 at 11:18

    порядочный сайт https://lolz.guru/forums/dota2/

  33. RobertKep 20 August, 2021 at 06:12

    go to my site
    https://yourbetlucky.com/bonus-e-codigos-promocionais/

  34. MichaelSus 20 August, 2021 at 09:43

    clubhouse для бизнеса – как перейти в бизнес аккаунт инстаграм, управление прибылью менеджмент

  35. KevinBlith 20 August, 2021 at 20:05

    helpful resources
    https://pinupcassino.com/pin-up-casino-versao-movel/

  36. Justinlax 20 August, 2021 at 20:36

    Заказать эротический массаж – Приватный танец, Салон эротического массажа

  37. BernardToobe 22 August, 2021 at 13:52

    Отрисовка штампов – Отрисовка банковских карт, Отрисовка прав

  38. Kerrydrody 25 August, 2021 at 16:58

    Герметизация швов – Бурение скважин, Установка бытовой техники

  39. Kennethjam 31 August, 2021 at 02:00

    Music has tied us
    Keyboards & Pianos
    https://fas.st/NNXXI

    Drums & Percussion
    https://fas.st/Vay4s

    String Instruments
    https://fas.st/32jbD

  40. Stephenappef 31 August, 2021 at 04:31

    official site buy online Oxymetholone

  41. Davidlax 31 August, 2021 at 12:23

    gydra – гидра правильная, hydra

Leave a reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

  • Politics

    Africa, the U.S., China and the Economic Crisis

  • Politics

    Adaptation and Devastation: Markets and Livelihoods

  • Politics

    Enforcing the Dodd-Frank Act Would Promote Transparency and Development in Africa

Subscribe to our newsletter

Click here to subscribe to our free weekly newsletter and never miss a thing!

  • 81.7K+
    Followers

Find us on Facebook

Interactive Elections Map

Keep up to date with all the African elections.

Recent Posts

  • Oligarchs, Oil and Obi-dients: The battle for the soul of Nigeria
  • Of cobblers, colonialism, and choices
  • Blackness, Pan-African Consciousness and Women’s Political Organising through the Magazine AWA
  • “People want to be rich overnight”: Nigeria logging abounds despite ban
  • The unaccountability of Liberia’s polluting miners

Editor’s Picks

Editor's PicksPoliticsSomalia

To counter al-Shabaab, Somalia’s new govt must do something for the kids

President Mohamud must honestly examine why thousands of children have been recruited by the militants, whether forcibly or otherwise. Earlier this month, Somali legislators selected Hassan Sheikh Mohamud to become ...
  • At a media roundtable in Gondar, Ethiopia, in 2015. Credit: UNICEF Ethiopia / 2015/Tesfaye.

    Four ways the Ethiopian government manipulates the media

    By Meron Gebreananaye, Saba Mah’derom & Kisanet Haile Molla
    February 1, 2022
  • angola elections The Cidade Alta in Luanda, Angola. Credit: David Stanley.

    The real winners of Angola’s election

    By Cláudio Silva
    September 14, 2022
  • Marking Mawlid, the Muslim festival full of diversity, dhows and donkeys

    By Jaclynn Ashly
    November 17, 2021
  • Chad: The bed Déby made

    By Helga Dickow
    April 22, 2021

Brought to you by


Creative Commons

Creative Commons Licence
Articles on African Arguments are licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
  • Cookies
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms & Conditions
  • en English
    am Amharicar Arabicny Chichewazh-CN Chinese (Simplified)en Englishfr Frenchde Germanha Hausait Italianpt Portuguesest Sesothosn Shonaes Spanishsw Swahilixh Xhosayo Yorubazu Zulu
© Copyright African Arguments 2020
By continuing to browse this site, you agree to our use of cookies.
en English
am Amharicar Arabicny Chichewazh-CN Chinese (Simplified)en Englishfr Frenchde Germanha Hausait Italianpt Portuguesest Sesothosn Shonaes Spanishsw Swahilixh Xhosayo Yorubazu Zulu