Struggle for justice – Evening Report https://eveningreport.nz Independent Analysis and Reportage Sun, 19 Jan 2025 05:17:21 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.1 https://eveningreport.nz/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/cropped-MIL-round-logo-300-copy-1-32x32.png Struggle for justice – Evening Report https://eveningreport.nz 32 32 John Minto: A triumph of the human spirit https://eveningreport.nz/2025/01/19/john-minto-a-triumph-of-the-human-spirit/ Sun, 19 Jan 2025 05:17:21 +0000 https://eveningreport.nz/2025/01/19/john-minto-a-triumph-of-the-human-spirit/ Read more]]> LETTER: By John Minto

With the temporary ceasefire agreement, we should take our hats off to the Palestinian people of Gaza who have withstood a total military onslaught from Israel but without surrendering or shifting from their land.

Over 15 months Israel has dropped well over 70,000 tonnes of bombs on this tiny 360 sq km strip of land, home to 2.3 million people.

This is more than the combined total of bombs dropped on London, Hamburg and Dresden during the six years of the Second World War.

PSNA national chair John Minto’s “human spirit” letter in solidarity with Palestinians. Image: The Press

Just as we saw in Vietnam and Afghanistan the determination to resist has proven itself more decisive than the overwhelming military firepower  of Israel and the US.

Palestinian courage, tenacity and sumud (steadfastness) represent a triumph of the human spirit against overwhelming odds.

For New Zealand, the great tragedy has been our government [Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s National-led three-party coalition] response which has been to condemn every act of Palestinian resistance but refuse to condemn even the most blatant of Israeli war crimes.

Mr Luxon has put us on the wrong side of yet another human struggle for justice.

John Minto
National Chair
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA)

Letter published in the The Press, Christchurch, on 18 January 2025.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

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