Do You Realize???
Content Warning - war, death, genocide.
Before you read, I just want to add that this a creative non-fiction piece that heavily criticises the UK government's role in the Israel-Hamas conflict. My aim by writing this piece was to spread awareness. If you find yourself feeling uncomfortable/offended by anything I’m saying here, please ask yourself why. And then think about what you can do to change your viewpoint.
Title credit to the Flaming Lips.
Do you realise the UK government has committed £100 million to Gaza in aid?
That’s what the headlines say. And it’s lovely stuff. It’s the stuff that keeps the electorate content and the government in power. But that’s not all. Let’s look beyond the headlines to what else is actually happening.
Do you realise that Israel accepts arms exports from foreign countries?
Do you realise that the UK is one of them?
Since 2015, the UK government has exported over £448 million worth of arms to the Israeli army. That therefore means that the government is committing aid to the conditions that it itself helped cause.
Do you realise how fucked up this is?
When the government committed to providing shelter to those displaced by the conflict, its arms were used to forcibly displace people from their homes.
When the government committed to delivering food parcels to feed 275,000 people, its arms were used to flatten a similarly sized town, wiping it off the map.
When the government committed to providing medical care to those who needed it the most, its arms were used to destroy the last remaining hospital, killing those at their most vulnerable.
Do you realise the hypocrisy?
But of course the government isn't going to jump in and put a halt to things, because the attacks are helping to line their pockets.
Do you realise the direct conflict of interest?
The people march for Gaza, for ceasefires, for increased aid, for the Palestinian people. But what people don’t realise is that their own government is directly involved with the attacks. People don’t realise that the government is using their taxpayers money to build these weapons, which are then being used to commit war crimes.
Do you realise that through the government’s actions, we all UK taxpayers are involuntarily complicit in a genocide?
Thought not.
Perhaps you should. And then together we can do something about it. We can put pressure on those in charge to do the right thing, for once in their fucking lives. And when they don’t, we can simply get rid of them. We are a democracy. We vote for the people in charge, the people responsible for where our tax money goes. The members of parliament, government ministers and secretaries of state. One simple cross in a box can change a lot.
Because the people of Gaza won’t forgive and they certainly won’t forget.
Because the people of Palestine won’t forgive and they certainly won’t forget.
Because history won’t forgive, and it certainly won’t forget.
