Thursday, December 7, 2006
Interesting conversation on Al-Arabiya:
Interviewer: Do you have any popular or official mandate to establish the Sudanese-Israeli Friendship Association, or is this your own personal initiative?
Taraji Mustafa: First of all, I do not need a mandate to talk about my personal beliefs, or those of some of the Sudanese people. None of the Sudanese friendship associations, like the Sudanese-Indian or the Sudanese-Swedish associations, and many others, needed a popular mandate. Why do I need a mandate to establish a friendship [association] with that part of the Israeli people that believes in friendship?
Interviewer: Would you agree that your comparison with the Sudanese-Indian friendship association and others is not appropriate in the case of Israel, in light of the Israeli-Arab conflict?
Taraji Mustafa: This question takes us back to another issue: Are the Sudanese Arab or not? Does membership in the Arab League mean Arab identity? In my opinion, despite all the years that have passed since we joined the Arab League and since we gained independence, we have failed, or rather, the Arab brothers have failed in making us feel we are Arab brothers. There has always been a stereotypical view of the Sudanese people... yes?...
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Everrrryone should watch that video for that lady takes apart the Arab media as the interviewer is condescending and arrogant towards her.
She shows how the Arab media is the problem, the racism of the Arab world and the Palestinians towards blacks and particularly the Sudanese.
The guy even tries the bullshit line that "are you saying Arab gov't should intervene in Sudan's affairs" and she blasts right back "They have always intervened taking the side of the gov't."
Tariji Mustafa is obviously a very brave woman, also very intelligent and articulate. She really gave that interviewer as good as she got.
One thing that troubled me, though, was when she would say that SOME Israelis were good people, and that she knew that because she had met them. She wanted to connect with the "peace-loving" people among the Israelis, and I'm not sure whom she meant by that. At least a couple of times she specified "some Israelis." And she made a point of saying that she was not for the Israeli "government" ... whatever that means.
Either she herself is still influenced by the political culture she grew up in, so that she sees Israel as having some good people but being a problematic per se. Or she is saying these things to make her message more palatable to the Sudanese public. Either way, it is troubling. But I guess you can't have everything at once; it's a question of evolution.
Clearly, though, this is one remarkable woman. And the points that the interviewer raised! His researchers must've been working overtime to come up with his questions. And his manner was one of skepticism bordering on sarcasm, barely restrained. She nevertheless came out on top.
Dear Dr. Taraji,
I have been following with great enthusiasm, you efforts to establish a Sudanese Israili Frienaship. This is great, and I would look forward to be an active member. Please reply back so we could go into further discussions.
Regards
Dr. Noreldaim Hussein
University of Juba
Sudan
much people whom I met and talk to them about the frienship between sudanese and israeli support the idea and we thy will be very broud to be amember of this society