Current location:travel >>
VOX POPULI: Palestinian writer’s novel is a poignant echo of Gaza tragedy
travel97181People have gathered around
Introduction“Why didn’t you knock on the sides of the tank? Why didn’t you bang the sides of the tank? Why? Why? ...
“Why didn’t you knock on the sides of the tank? Why didn’t you bang the sides of the tank? Why? Why? Why?”
The Palestinian writer Ghassan Kanafani’s (1936-1972) novel “Men in the Sun” ends with an anguished cry of lament from a Palestinian water tank truck driver.
“You” refers to three Palestinian refugees. They attempt to smuggle themselves into Kuwait to find jobs with the help of the driver and hide inside the closed water tank at checkpoints.
At the Kuwaiti crossing, the men die from the heat as they do not knock on the sides of the tank to seek help.
The novel was published in 1963. Fifteen years earlier, Israel had declared its independence and about 700,000 Palestinians were displaced from their homes during the 1948 First Arab-Israeli War.
Kanafani, who became a refugee at the age of 12, joined the liberation struggle and was assassinated when he was 36.
The ongoing fighting in Gaza makes me reflect on the history of the Palestinian issue. The armed conflict between the Israeli military and Hamas began half a year ago, but its roots trace much further back.
It’s always the civilians who suffer in these situations. In the past six months, about 33,000 people have died in Gaza.
Homes have been destroyed, hospitals have lost their ability to function and restrictions on land transport have escalated a hunger crisis.
According to an international nongovernmental organization, in northern Gaza, people are forced to survive on an average of 245 kilocalories a day (equivalent to about 1.5 slices of bread). Children are dying from hunger and malnutrition.
“Food is a universal human right,” argued the World Central Kitchen aid organization, which had been delivering food to starving people in Gaza by sea. They provided more than 43 million meals in Gaza, but seven of their staff members were recently killed in an Israeli airstrike.
Help is being sought by banging on the sides of a tank. It is outrageous to see even those who noticed and reached out to help also being killed.
The echoing “why” in the desert described at the end of the novel now continues to resonate in my head.
--The Asahi Shimbun, April 7
* *
*Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
Tags:
Reprint:Friends are welcome to share on the Internet, but please indicate the source of the article when reprinting it.“Culture Canvas news portal”。http://croatia.mybodyonelife.com/article-42b799953.html
Related articles
76ers president Daryl Morey has big plans to build NBA title team around Embiid and Maxey
travelCAMDEN, N.J. (AP) — Say goodbye to the 76ers.No, not Joel Embiid. Tyrese Maxey is sticking around, t ...
【travel】
Read moreA ban on single
travelHONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong has long been a major producer and consumer of great food, and a great am ...
【travel】
Read moreArkansas teen held on murder charge after fatal shooting outside party after high school prom
travelHELENA-WEST HELENA, Ark. (AP) — An Arkansas teen is in custody on a first-degree murder charge in co ...
【travel】
Read more
Popular articles
- Signatures submitted for 'top two' primary election in Republican
- Armenia asks UN court to throw out Azerbaijan’s claim alleging racial discrimination
- Nearly 80 die in 3 weeks at Myanmar refugee camps: aid workers — Radio Free Asia
- Express files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, announces store closures, possible sale
- Wisconsin judge dismisses lawsuit challenging state's new wolf management plan
- Rafael Nadal poised for Laver Cup swansong in Berlin in September
Latest articles
Tampa Bay Rays reinstate outfielder Josh Lowe from the 10
Nearly 100 Belarus political prisoners have severe medical problems, rights group says
No rest for Rodgers! Controversial New York Jets quarterback continues Achilles recovery with early
The flooded housewives of Dubai: Chanel underwater, supercars swept away and mega
Moyes leaving West Ham at the end of the season. Lopetegui linked as the replacement
Poland's prime minister celebrates after his party wins a string of cities in mayoral votes
LINKS
- SW China's Yunnan makes great efforts to protect wildlife species
- Xi Focus: Xi Inspects Navy of PLA Southern Theater Command
- Xi Sends Congratulatory Message to Lanting Forum on Chinese Modernization and the World
- Acrobatic rendition of The Swan Lake staged in Fuzhou
- New festival leisure modes boost domestic tourism
- Autumn scenery at Pofengling Scenic Area in Beijing
- Swans pictured at lake in Shandong
- China’s national park system starts to yield fruits
- Scenery of Xiezi Mountain in China's Shandong
- The 22nd China International Environmental Protection Exhibition was held in Beijing