On the air since 1987, Amandla is a weekly African current affairs program founded in response to racist and misleading mainstream media coverage of Southern Africa.

Since then, the team has expanded the show’s mandate to cover the entire continent, to take stories past the headlines of the mainstream media to show the complexity, creativity, courage and vision of Africans as they confront their colonial past and neo-colonial present.

Other collaborators include Sama Elibyari, Mouloud Idir, Roberto Nieto, Zahra Moloo and Sophie Toupin.

November 15, 2023: Amandla's grande farewell and statement of solidarity with Palestine

After 36 years, Amandla officially passes the reins to new programmers.

Amandla stands in solidarity with Palestine and demands an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Our statement:

Amandla! Radio denounces Israeli apartheid and supports the freedom struggle of the Palestinian people.

Amandla! Radio was founded during the freedom struggle against apartheid, imperialism, settler colonialism and in support of a free and independent panAfrican continent. The imperialist domination of colonial Africa was—and is—based on racist theories of superiority enforced by brute force and has cost millions of African lives.

On November 6, 2023, South Africa withdrew all its remaining diplomats from its Embassy in Israel and is threatening to expel the Israeli ambassador to South Africa, and I quote: “whose position has been described by Pretoria as “untenable”, over his aggressive stance in defence of apartheid policies being imposed by the Zionist state…” The South African President’s office issued a statement declaring that, quote: “the government was “disappointed” by the “impunity” of the Israeli government and its “refusal” to respect international law and United Nations resolutions.” “A genocide under the watch of the international community cannot be tolerated. Another holocaust in the history of humankind is not acceptable."

Since its founding, Western imperial interests have manipulated the story of Israel and Palestine to justify Israeli occupation of territory seized from already established communities. In reality, Israel is a Western imperial project and the current authoritarian, right-wing regime controlling power and fomenting racial hatred in Palestine/Israel is fully backed by Western imperialism’s flotillas of warships and weaponry.

The tragic irony of 2023 is that it is the 85th anniversary of Krystal Nacht and the Nazi state’s drive for a final solution to its Jewish population and it is the 75th anniversary of the Nakba which marks the beginning of the dispossession of the Palestinian people from their homeland. The genocide we are witnessing in Gaza and the West Bank in November 2023, reflects Israel’s commitment to the total elimination of the Palestinian people.

One injustice does not justify another. “Never again” was the refrain after the horrors of the Nazi concentration camps and death chambers. “Not In my Name” is the protest of Jewish opponents of Israel’s state sanctioned genocide of the Palestinian people. From its inception progressive Jews have denounced the colonial nature of Israel. Jewish faith leaders, following the precepts of their own historic liberation from slavery in Egypt, swore to ensure the right of all people to live free of oppression.

African nations along with the majority of the United Nations in countless resolutions have consistently denounced the injustices perpetrated by Israel in its illegal occupation of Palestinian land. They know the evils of colonialism first hand and denounce it despite enormous pressure from the imperial powers which promote Israel’s interests and defend its terrorist attacks on the Palestinian people.

We condemn attacks on civilian populations whoever they are. We defend the right of the Palestinian people to live free in their homeland. We denounce Israel’s apartheid policies that have restricted Palestinians to prison conditions throughout their territory as they watch imported settler populations take over their homes and their land. We defend the right of the Palestinian people to resist the terror visited upon them.

The most immediate need is to end Israel’s genocidal attacks on the populations of the Gaza and the West Bank. We join with the Independent Jewish Voices and the Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East in calling for:

• an immediate ceasefire of all hostilities in Israel-Palestine
• an end to the blockade of Gaza and for the restoration of humanitarian aid and access to the basic necessities of life

Beyond these immediate steps, the world must support efforts for a just and lasting peace in Israel-Palestine and address the root cause of the violence: Israel’s decades-long occupation of Palestinian territory.

Canada abstained from an emergency resolution at the UN General Assembly for a ceasefire, backed by 120 countries. We demand an immediate reversal of this position. Since 2011, Canada has voted “NO” to at least 149 UN resolutions, making it Israel’s biggest backer after the United States.

Palestinians, Israelis, and all people in the region deserve to live in peace and security and with justice for all.

We therefore call for:

• A reversal of Canada’s historic complicity in Israeli crimes against the Palestinians, and for Canada to stand in solidarity with Palestinians and to staunchly advocate for the end of Israeli apartheid;
• Canada to accept the right of the Palestinian people to resist the colonial occupation of their country;
• Canada to withdraw all military, diplomatic and moral support for the Israeli regime’s illegal occupation and war crimes;
• Canada to work towards a full and comprehensive peace treaty with the Palestinian people as full and equal partners in the negotiations.

Amandla! Ngawethu.

Also see Doug and Gwen's farewell statement on the Spoken Word blog here: https://ckut.ca/spokenword/farewell-amandla/

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