On December 8th 2009, I was sitting quietly behind bars when something very strange happened. Out of the blue, I received an email from Zackie Achmat. I had never corresponded with him before, so it was quite a shock when Zackie popped up on my computer's screen. And this is what he had to tell me:
"I (Zackie Achmat) am part of a broader secular struggle for Palestinian people and the restoration of the humanity of the Jewish people of Israel."
Well, between you and me, I was taken aback. Dumbfounded. Perplexed. There I was, digesting a banana, and Zackie Achmat informs me that he is struggling "for the restoration of the humanity of the Jewish people of Israel". Apparently, not just some of the Jews in Israel lacked humanity. It was the whole damn lot of them! Now that was a turn up for the "non-racist" books.
So, I sat back and took a deep breath. Was it really possible that the much acclaimed "human rights" activist, Mr Zackie Achmat, was an anti-semite? To put my mind at rest, I decided to email him with the following:
"You write that you are campaigning for "the restoration of the humanity of the Jewish people of Israel."
Are you seriously implying that "the Jewish people of Israel" now have no humanity? If so, then one might conclude that you are anti-semitic, as well as anti-zionist."
Unfortunately, Zackie decide not to respond. It was a perfectly legitimate question but it received no reply other than a request that I remove him from my mailing list.
Moreover, at a meeting organized by "Open Shuhada Street", Zackie Achmat stood up and told the audience that in Israel, 95% of the Jews are racists. Clearly, Achmat's claim that he was struggling for "the restoration of the humanity of the Jewish people of Israel", was not a one-off.
As a result, I publicly pose the following questions to Mr Achmat":
"Are you an anti-semite? And are you using your various "non-racist" NGO's as vehicles to promote racism?"