Protests in South Korea against the saber-rattling of Dumb-as-a-Stump Trump. We can expect a similar greeting for him from the antiwar movement in the Philippines, including burning of his effigy.

https://www.facebook.com/fox8news/videos/10154916820147623/?hc_ref=ARQyWecFSBc4HZah_Nhx98VfHrthsnDgHUUzWATo_9DpJapts24hatWsckXbGH95UuQ&pnref=story

“Today, 13 terrorists of Indian Army injured in road accident on Kashmir highway; five critical. 👉Terrorists were in valley on a Mission Occupation.”

#FreeKashmir

–tweeted by Rida Rubab‏ @RidaRubabSayed

There are three narratives about Burma still clung to by politicians & in media which are mocked by realities of the Rohingya genocide.:

First is the portrayal of Aung San Suu Kyi as a fallen angel & champion of human rights heading a civilian government. What we now know for certain is that the fascist military junta has always ruled Burma & used the facade of a civilian government to remove US & European sanctions. Suu Kyi was an essential component & willing accomplice in that deception.

Second is the narrative that actions by ARSA terrorists incited the Burmese military to genocide. What we now know is that the junta was preparing militarily for the genocide long before alleged ARSA actions on August 25th. But the torching of hundreds of villages, the rape, torture, murder of hundreds & the diaspora of between 600,000 & 800,000 Rohingya are not in proportion to even the alleged ARSA actions.

Third & the most pernicious narrative is calls for repatriating Rohingya refugees back to Burma when the genocide has not yet ceased, while the junta & Suu Kyi continue to deny it is going on, when thousands of Rohingya are still fleeing for their lives. It is a vicious sarcasm that Burma & Bangladesh are engaged in discussions about an orderly method of repatriation when Bangladesh has not been able to provide an orderly method for asylum, when Burma will not take back Rohingya refugees & those repatriated for show would be subject to continuing genocide. The main issue is that Rohingya refugees are not even consulted about what they want. There can be no decisions made about their future without their direct & democratic involvement.

Focusing on repatriation is a switch & bait maneuver since Rohingya are fleeing Burma for their lives, not attempting to return to certain death. The first demand of governments must be that Burma end the genocide by immediately withdrawing all its troops & dismantling its bases in Arakan state. The need right now is not repatriation to a death trap but massive refugee assistance in Bangladesh, including asylum in whichever country they wish to relocate with safe transportation, visa rights, & access to work, housing, education, healthcare, social services.

This photo is of 5-year-old Rahim Ullah standing in a food line at a refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh. If the Bangladeshi government can’t provide a humane system to feed hungry kids, who would trust it to negotiate a humane repatriation program? You cannot repatriate people back to genocide.

(Photo by Navesh Chitrakar/Reuters)

The photo (on left) of Faris Odeh was taken October 29, 2000. Faris was a 14-year-old Palestinian boy in Gaza protesting the Israeli occupation. Ten days later on Nov 8th, young Odeh was shot dead by Israeli soldiers in another stone throwing incident. Thousands of Palestinians attended his funeral. Captured in this iconic moment, he remains a symbol of courage & resistance not just to Palestinians but to all who struggle for justice.

Kashmiri photojournalist Showkat Nanda had the image of Faris Odeh in mind when he took the photo (on right) of a small Kashmiri boy facing off with stones against an Indian armored vehicle in 2009. In a very moving account, Nanda described how Indian paramilitary forces were shooting at unarmed protesters in the town of Baramulla. Young boys carried the body of an injured boy shot in the chest away from the scene & handed him to Nanda as he died. As gunfire cleared the scene of protesters, this small boy came running toward the paramilitaries “as if from nowhere” to stand defiant & fearless against the armored vehicle.

For his fearless defiance against occupation, young Odeh has been called an “adolescent daredevil.” Islamophobes claim his martyrdom is due to “Islamization” & the “culture of death” of Palestinian resistance even though many Palestinians are Christian. Some say stone-throwing is a distraction for children who do not understand the danger. Did the unidentified Tank Man of Tiananmen Square who stood defenseless against an army tank not understand the danger!? Did Rachel Corrie, mowed down by an Israeli bulldozer, not understand the danger? Is it conceivable that Odeh & this young Kashmiri boy stood in front of 60-ton vehicles without grasping the danger? Or is it more likely that commentators underestimate the ardor & commitment of young people, don’t have a clue about fearless commitment to justice & about the willingness to brave all against oppression & occupation?

We should take a moment to honor Faris Odeh on the 17th anniversary of his death & to honor this Kashmiri boy & all Palestinians & Kashmiris who have lost so much & stand so fearlessly against military occupation & colonialism.

Our fullest respect & solidarity.

(Photo on left of Faris Odeh from Laurent Rebours/AP; photo on right of Kashmiri boy by Showkat Nanda)

CBS morning news gave a lengthy report about Trump not visiting the DMZ between North & South Korea, including a history of all the US presidents visiting the place & how they traveled there. A subject of interest to no one. Not a peep about wars, refugees, occupations, genocide. Subjects of interest to millions of us.

We should take a moment to honor Waseem Ahmad, a militant killed with two others in an encounter with Indian occupying forces. Thousands of Kashmiris attended his funeral today in his ancestral village of Drabgam, about 45 kilometers from Srinagar.

May he Rest In Peace.

(Photo by Basit Zargar)

Burmese dissident Maung Zarni once said “What is really scary is the Burmese military’s attempt to expand the circle of enemies against the Rohingyas.” We are seeing that played out around the world where media, human rights NGOs, think tanks, UN officials, rightwing & fascist political forces are mobilizing to portray the Rohingya people as Saudi-backed terrorists.

This is 7-year-old Mohammed Shoaib who was shot in the chest by Burmese soldiers or death squads before crossing the border into Bangladesh. Keep this little guy in mind when you read the rubbish pouring out to vilify the Rohingya people. Since when is fighting terrorism about shooting little kids? Or is targeting children what the war on terror is really all about in Gaza, Kashmir, Burma, the Philippines, & elsewhere?

(Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters)

We often forget that among the Rohingya refugees are thousands with special needs, including especially healthcare needs. True also for the injured, infirm, elderly, pregnant–a medical infrastructure is essential for the refugee camps.

(Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters)

“The main inhabitants of the Mayu River region east of the Naaf {River}, who are known today as the Rohingyas {Rohingya} are a fine type of devout & scholarly-minded Muslims, who claim to have inhabited this region for over a thousand years.”

–Gordon H. Luce (1889-1979), English scholar of pre-colonial historical studies of Burma; from Phases of Pre-Pagan Burma: Languages & History, Volume I, Oxford University Press, 1985

So sorry Senator Rand Paul got the crap kicked out of him. But I well understand the desire to throttle him within an inch of his life.