'Fearless' Israeli & Indian women police talk feminism (& ignore the occupation)
India-Israel water programs, Israeli arms exports on the up and a virtual discussion on Kashmir and Palestine.
Hello everyone,
We start off this edition with a webinar that took place earlier this week between two women police officers from India and Israel.
Hosted by the Israeli embassy in India, the event was part of the a series of activities celebrating International Women's Day and was branded as a meet between “fearless women police officers” who “show that women can do anything”.
The event was headlined by Chayya Sharma, the police officer who helped solve the horrific Delhi gang-rape case from 2012 as well as Anna Ben Mordechai Raziel, one of the highest ranked women police officers in the Israeli police force.
In her introduction, moderator Bhatti Chhibber, an international relations commentator based in Delhi, lauded the purported roles Israeli and Indian police played during the covid-19 pandemic.
“They helped the victims, the sufferers, and also maintained law and order in their societies.
“So we can say kudos to our law enforcement agencies, both in India and Israel for their their important initiatives during these trying times,” Chhibber said.
Chhibber would later describe Raziel as “an idol for women around the world.”
The discussion on Zoom would go on to talk about women’s empowerment, breaking the glass ceiling “in occupations that are male dominated” and keeping women and children safe.
The event was just another example of the attempts being made by both countries to try and elevate their democratic credentials by alluding to a special interest in women’s rights and gender empowerment. And they do so while completely ignoring that both governments, and especially their so-called law enforcement agencies, are the among the biggest purveyors of violence on women and children in India, in Kashmir, and in the occupied Palestinian territories.
Still interested? You can watch the webinar here.
In other notable developments, the Israeli embassy announced earlier this month that they would be adding a ‘water attache’ to their team in a bid to assist the Indian deal with water security.
The announcement came days before the Indian government held a Water Summit in which Israel was a partner country.
At the summit on March 18, Ambassador Ron Malka delivered one of the key notes. I have yet to find the speech, so if you happen to come across it, do send it over.
India and Israel have been talking about water projects for some time.
In August 2020, the Uttar Pradesh and Israeli governments signed the India–Israel–Bundelkhand Water Project to address the water crisis in the drought hit regions of Bundelkhand, UP.
According to news reports the project would comprise of “three key components including water conservation, water efficient transportation and advanced water practices for agriculture.”
Israel routinely presents itself as an innovative, miracle nation when it comes to water security without ever mentioning the theft from the occupied Palestinian territories.
Human rights groups, like Btselem, have time and again pointed to the ways in which Israel has dispossessed Palestinians and denied them access to water resources.
“One of its most devastating consequences is the impact of Israel’s discriminatory policies on Palestinians’ access to adequate supplies of clean and safe water.” Amnesty International has said.
Speaking of the occupation and the military, some days ago, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released a new report on arms sales around the globe. Saudi Arabia is still the world’s biggest arms importer, followed by India. The US is still the biggest exporter, followed by Russia.
Two important data points to note here: Israeli exports increased by 55% between 2016-2020 while Russian exports decreased by 22%. India is purchasing more Israeli arms, developing its own manufacturing sector and reducing imports from Russia. Between 2016-2020, India purchased 43% of Israel’s arms exports. It is therefore still the biggest buyer of Israeli weapons.
Event alert: Next week Wednesday, March 24, the West London Palestine Solidarity Campaign is holding an event titled: “Palestine and Kashmir -Two Sides of The Same Coin?”
Register for the event here.
Scholars and activists are increasingly making the case that India is following Israeli tactics in Indian-occupied Kashmir. Here is a primer:
And on the topic of Kashmir and Palestine, writing in 1995, Arthur G Rubinoff says:
“In the early 1990s, New Delhi found the Israeli lobby “useful” in Washington in such issues as Kashmir. Given the rise of Islamic-supported fundamentalism in that Muslim majority-state, there was parallel thinking on terrorism in New Delhi and Tel Aviv even if officials in both capitals would not admit they were were cooperating on the issue.”
Thanks for reading. If you have any questions/comments, do write in.
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until next time,
Azad