(Source: Jerusalem Post) 

Lithuania’s shame

By EFRAIM ZUROFF

15/05/2012

On May 17, the remains of former head of Lithuanian Provisional Government of June 1941 post Nazi invasion to be reburied in Vilnius.

On Thursday, May 17, the remains of Juozas Ambrazevičius, the head of the Lithuanian Provisional Government established in the wake of the June 1941 Nazi invasion of the Baltics, will arrive in Vilnius from the United States where he died in 1974, to be reburied in Kaunas (Kovno), with full honors.

  (Source : Mail and Guardian   http://mg.co.za/article/2012-05-07-unshakeable-faith  )

Who will shake SA Jewry's faith in Israel?

07 MAY 2012 05:40 - KEVIN BLOOM

In SA's Jewish community there is no one to explain to us that we can no longer use past victimhood to justify Israel's actions, writes Kevin Bloom.

Not since Justice Richard Goldstone released the Goldstone Report has the Jewish world been this at odds over one of its own. If you’re a Jew who pays close attention to world events, there’s no middle ground—you either believe American journalist and author Peter Beinart is a dangerous traitor, and behind closed doors you tell your kids he’s the worst kind of anti-Semite, or you welcome him as a saviour, as a man who may finally break the political stranglehold of the Jewish American lobby.

Apartheid is a sexy catchword to denounce Israel, but it makes a mockery of and cheapens the tremendous suffering endured by South Africa’s black citizens.
As an ex-South African and now a citizen of Israel, I am compelled to speak up. The State of Israel has been put on trial this week in Cape Town for supposed Apartheid crimes against the Palestinians by the “judicial” (and I use that term loosely) farce known as the Russell Tribunal on Palestine.

To, the Editor of the Cape Times,
cc.Mr.  Terry Crawford-Browne,
Organizing Secretary of the Russel Tribunal.
 ---------------------------------
Cry!  My beloved Cape Town.
 Dear Sir/Madam,
 I am writing this in the form of an “open letter”, in the hope that it will reach as many Capetonians as possible in the City that I grew up in and learned all the values that I have tried to practice and observe throughout my life.  As you will see I have sent a copy to the Russel Tribunal, in the hope that the Organizing Secretary and individual members of the jury will also see it, and have the opportunity of responding publicly to it through your newspaper.
 I matriculated at the Sea Point Boys High School in 1943 – studied at the University of Cape Town where I had the honour of serving on the Students’ Representative Council in 1949 (my final year) when I graduated in law, and commenced practicing as an advocate of the Supreme Court.

(source : http://www.jwire.com.au  )

 November 8, 2011 by Dan Brotman

South African Jewry held a conference last week on the effect of Apartheid on its community…

South African Jewry is unique for three reasons: 1) The community is ethnically and religiously homogeneous, as almost all members have roots in Lithuania and are self-described as “non-practicing Orthodox”, 2) One umbrella organization speaks on behalf of the entire community, 3) While most Western Jews grew up in an open and democratic society, most South African Jews grew up in a closed society where the government censored information and instilled fear in those who opposed its racial policies.

 An open letter to the chairman of the Russell Tribunal and members of the "Jury"
From Maurice Ostroff
November 3, 2011 
Sir,
I am writing this letter because I am familiar with both the Israeli and South African views on the forthcoming session of the Russell Tribunal “Are Israel’s practices against the Palestinian People in breach of the prohibition on Apartheid under International Law”. 
I presently live in Israel and in my earlier years I was an anti-apartheid activist in South Africa. Among my activities I participated in the WW2 ex-servicemen’s Springbok Legion. With nearly 60,000 members including a large number of Jews, the legion was probably the first mass movement of whites promoting the liberation of Blacks. 
 

 [source : http://www.timeslive.co.za/local/2011/10/30/lies-told-about-israel-are-b... ]
Oct 30, 2011 | Benjamin Pogrund
A new flood of propaganda is about to add to misconceptions about the state, writes Benjamin Pogrund
 FULL OF JOY: Young Israelis celebrate after the arrival home this week of captive soldier Gilad Shalit Picture: GALLO/GETTY
" Yelling slogans to the effect that "Israel is apartheid" and "Zionism is racism" doesn't make any of it true "
THERE is much passion among South Africans about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It's understandable. The struggle against white domination and apartheid was against ethnicity and tribalism. The aim was a united, nonracial South Africa.
Israel, to many South Africans, seems to run counter to this. They view it as an apartheid and racist state; some even say it's worse than apartheid. Its founding ideology, Zionism, is rejected as racism. It is pilloried as a colonialist oppressor of Palestinians.
 

As downturn grinds on here, more ambitious young professionals lured by Israel’s robust economy.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Helen Chernikoff
Staff Writer

Two years ago, Gil Margulis was in a completely different place, emotionally and geographically. His New York life was losing its fizz, especially after the financial crisis killed his company. His solution: immigration. As a citizen of the start-up nation, he would rejuvenate his career by plugging into Israel’s robust economy. Also, he was sick of being single.

“Economies elsewhere are sputtering, and Israel is booming. You feel that dynamism, you feel that energy. It’s happening,” said Margulis, 42, who is starting what he calls a mobile content company.