Statement of the African National Congress in support of the UN Secretary-General's invocation of Article 99 of the United Nations Charter to prevent the Genocide of the Palestinian people
8 December 2023
78 years ago, when the world adopted the UN Charter and formed the United Nations Security Council to be responsible for our collective security, we said Never Again. This was after it took the deaths of millions of Jews and Roma people for the world to act against Nazism and fascism.
And yet 49 years later the United Nations abandoned the people of Rwanda, and within a space of less than 100 days nearly a million Tutsis and moderate Hutus were murdered as the world looked on. Again, we said Never Again.
Today, we are watching the genocide in Gaza unfolding in front of our eyes.
Over the last 60 days, at least 17 177 people have been killed – 16,000 Palestinians and 1,200 Israelis from 7 October 2023 and thousands of men, women and children are still unaccounted for under the rubble left by Israeli carpet bombardments of Gaza. 70% of the victims are women and children, as well as 63 journalists and media workers, over 100 UN aid workers and at least 250 health care staff. The number of injured without basic medical care is astronomical.
In addition to the bombing of apartments and houses, hospitals, mosques and churches, schools, universities, and libraries in Gaza, as well as the invasions, killings and arrests in the West Bank, the people of Gaza are being starved of food, electricity and water, as well as basic communications. In addition to the daily harrowing pictures of children killed and injured, we now see men being dehumanized, stripped, paraded and arrested nakemd by apartheid Israeli soldiers.
After ordering 1.8 million people to move from northern Gaza to the south, the Israeli regime has now ordered people into a ‘safe area’, the size of Heathrow Airport, whilst continuing its indiscriminate bombing.
This is Genocide and Ethnic cleansing. No more, no less.
The ANC applauds the UN Secretary-General for invoking Article 99 of the United Nations Charter, which gives the Secretary-General the power to force the UN Security Council to attend to “any matter, in his
opinion, (that) may threaten the maintenance of international peace and security,” calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.
According to the UN, this clause has not been invoked in decades. We agree now is the time. Sekunjalo. The ANC applauds the UNSG for doing the right thing. We expect UN Security Council members to do the right thing.
Statement issued by Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri, ANC national spokesperson, 8 December 2023
