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On 8/23/2011 1:30 PM, Lenin's Tomb wrote:
That isn't much of an argument. Of course, not every rebel is a
racist. But anti-black racism did become an important feature of
opposition activity in terms of flushing out the 'fifth column' of
Qadhafi's supposed mercenaries (all based on untrue and pernicious
rumours), in terms of lynchings, mass arrests, harrassment,
beatings, racist graffiti, etc. To say that this is effaced by the
appearance of black soldiers among the rebels is unconvincing.
Of course, despite Qaddafi's overtures to various sub-Saharan
African caudillos, he was racist against immigrants on a much
grander scale.
The Guardian
Comments Are Free,
June 14, 2009
Treating refugees as refuse
Berlusconi’s deal with Gaddafi to use Libya as a dumping ground
for migrants who arrive in Italy rides roughshod over their rights
by Bill Frelick
With the visit of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi to Rome this week,
Italy and Libya are celebrating their recently ratified Friendship
Treaty. But this pact, which has already resulted in joint naval
patrols that run roughshod over refugee and migrant rights – as
Tana de Zulueta commented – is hardly cause for celebration.
About 500 migrants have already been summarily returned to Libya
since early May, and boat departures from Libya have been sharply
curtailed. Today, the migrant detention centre and asylum
reception centres on Italy’s outpost island of Lampedusa are
empty, a dramatic contrast to the way they looked in January, when
1,850 people were crammed in space designed for 800, with many
sleeping on the floor. But asylum seekers don’t simply disappear.
Many will be denied the opportunity to seek asylum from war and
persecution and almost all will be subjected to indefinite
detention, poor conditions and perhaps abuse.
Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi promised to provide $200m
(£121m) a year over the next 25 years through investments in
infrastructure projects in Libya. Italy provided three patrol
boats to Libya on 14 May, and has promised three more. Italy has
also said that it will help construct a radar system to monitor
Libya’s desert borders, using the Italian security company,
Finmeccanica.
In building their friendship agreement, Berlusconi and Gaddafi
seem to be regarding migrants and asylum seekers from other
countries as expendable. The deal enables Italy to dump migrants
and asylum seekers on Libya and evade its obligations while Libya
gets investment, bolstered security infrastructure and acceptance
as Italy’s friend and partner.
---
And here's an example of his enlightened racial thought:
Black people are now in a very backward social situation, but such
backwardness works to bring about their numerical superiority
because their low standard of living has shielded them from
methods of birth control and family planning. Also, their old
social traditions place no limit on marriages, leading to their
accelerated growth. The population of other races has decreased
because of birth control, restrictions on marriage, and constant
occupation in work, unlike the Blacks, who tend to be less
obsessive about work in a climate which is continuously hot.
--Green Book, page 29
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