New Zealander Shona Laing wrote the song, I'm Glad I'm Not a Kennedy back in the late 80's and it came to mind as I was reading der Spiegel just now.
An extract from the song, disturbingly pertinent today
...and is not peace basically a matter of human rights?
The right to live out our lives without fear of devastation?
The right to breathe air as nature provided it?
The right of future generations to a healthy existence?
Let us if we can step back from the shadows of war and seek out
the way of peace...
These days, I'm thinking 'I'm glad I'm not a person who might be suspected of terrorism by virtue of my travel or the ethnicity of my parents, grandparents or great grandparents'.
Der Spiegel wrote: After months of negotiations, the German government has secured the release of a Bremen resident who has been held at Guantanamo since 2001. German officials say Murat Kurnaz has no connection to terrorism or al-Qaida.
For the past five years, Murat Kurnaz has been living in a kind of purgatory. Snagged in Pakistan in 2001, he was captured by the United States military and taken to Camp Delta at Guantanamo Bay, where he has been held ever since without charges or a trial. Now, however, high-level negotiations have secured the release and transfer back to Germany of the man once dubbed the "Bremen Taliban."
I'm sure he's relieved to be reassured that he has no connection to terrorism ... I wonder who he writes the 'thank you for your hospitality and violation of my human rights' card to?
2 comments:
Poignant points - wonderful photography - what a treat to read your blog.
That song by Laing is a classic eh!
The Laing, suddenly I wished I had taken the time to listen to her more ...
Chiefbiscuit, I am glad you stop by :)
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