This ZGram comes in three parts - 1) a preface by a cyber activist well familiar with the revisionist struggle and all that it entails; 2) an Open Letter by Jürgen Graf, one of the organizers of the aborted Beirut conference, and 3) comments by Dr. Alloush.
The Open Letter is directed at Edward Said, one of the 14 intellectuals who "signed" their okay to the Lebanese censorship moves, even though they seem to have been tricked.
In his preface, our cyber activist feels that Jürgen Graf is too harsh on Edward Said. I don't agree he is too harsh in his judgment, but I think he is too harsh with his words.
Certainly Graf makes his points exceedingly well to Edward Said: "Inform yourself before you join the pack of censors!"
That being said, here are the three letters:
Cyber activist:
Friends,
As you know, the planned "H" revisionist conference was banned by the Lebanese government as a result of American and Jewish pressure. Before it was banned, a letter circulated, signed by some notable Arab intellectuals, which called for the banning of the conference. Edward Said was one of the signers. It now appears that Said did not really advocate that the government ban the conference; he only stated that he opposed it. The statement as it appeared in the press was apparently fabricated.
Now, revisionist historian Juergen Graf, one of the sponsors of the conference, is outraged by Said's action. Graf questions whether Said has read anything by leading revisionists. And I am sure that Said has never dared to look into such a taboo issue.
However, Graf is much too harsh on Said. Said's response was quite understandable, given his loyalty to his own Palestinian people. Now Said is respected in liberal and left-wing circles and has a forum to present his views. Should Said even go so far as to say that questioning the Holocaust is appropriate, his reputation would be destroyed. So if Said is going to be a public spokesmen for the oppressed Palestinian people, he cannot burden himself with taboo causes. On the other hand, the belief in the systematic extermination of millions of Jews in gas chambers is one of the ideological pillars for Israel--a shield to justify Israel's oppressive actions against the Palestinians.
http://www.russgranata.com/jgletter.html
From Juergen Graf
Open Letter to Edward Said
Dear Mr. Edward Said,
I am the head of the association "Verite et Justice" which planned to hold the Beirut conference on "Revisionism and Zionism" together with the I.H.R. As you know, the conference was forbidden by the Lebanese government which evidently yielded to American and Jewish pressure.
I am living in exile. If I went back to my native country, Switzerland, I would have to serve a 15 months jail sentence for "Holocaust denial" plus an additional sentence for things written since my condemnation. Several of my colleagues from Verite et Justice have also been sentenced to prison terms or are facing trial within the near future.
In Germany, hundreds of revisionists have been imprisoned for "Holocaust denial". Other revisionists in several countries have been killed, driven to suicide, disfigured with acid, beaten up, sentenced to stiff fines, have had their professional career ruined and been submitted to social ostracism because of media smear campaigns. To the best of my knowledge, not one of us has ever resorted to violence.
The relentless persecution of revisionism is mainly being orchestrated by the Jews. The Jewish organizations are responsible for anti-revisionist legislation in several European countries (except for Germany, where the survival of the entire political elite hinges on its ability to keep the "Holocaust" story alive so that the German government did not need Jewish pressure to introduce an anti-revisionist law).
Why are we being persecuted? Because we are practicing our constitutionally guaranteed rights to free speech and free research.
We are persecuted because we critically analyze the Jewish version of World War Two and the "Holocaust". We are persecuted because we use our brains. We are persecuted because we have a conscience, and because our conscience does not allow us to endorse monstrous exaggerations (like the six million figure) and downright lies (like the gas chamber story).
Together with 13 other Arab intellectuals, you, Mr. Said, have signed a petition condemning revisionism and castigating the revisionists as "falsifiers of history".
What do you know about revisionism, Mr. Said? Have you read "Dissecting the Holocaust", which is the most important revisionist work? Have you read the Rudolf Report about the Auschwitz "gas chambers"? Have you studied Carlo Mattogno's work about the capacity of the Auschwitz crematoria? Have you studied John Ball's book "Air photo evidence"? Have you studied Walter Sanning's demographic work "The Dissolution of Eastern European Jewry"? Are you familiar with Arthur Butz's book "The Hoax of the Twentieth Century"? Have you heard about Richard Krege's ground radar scanning/investigation on the site of the alleged "extermination camps" Belcez and Treblinka?
If the answer to these questions is yes, I wonder why you have not publicly exposed the errors of the revisionists. After all, if you accuse somebody of "falsifying history", you should be able to prove this serious accusation.
But perhaps the answer to my questions is no. Perhaps you have never read "Dissecting the Holocaust" and other serious revisionist works.
If this is the case, I wonder how you can condemn revisionism. I have never read any of your books - so what would you say if I called you a "lousy writer" and stated that your books are devoid of any literary value? Would you not be outraged and retort that somebody unfamiliar with your works has no right whatsoever to criticize them?
Should you condemn revisionism without knowing it, I would be forced to conclude that you are parroting the Zionist party line for purely opportunistic reasons. After all, the Jewish-controlled media hail you as a brilliant Palestinian intellectual, and I assume that your books are regularly being reviewed and praised in the "New York Times".
I would be forced to conclude that you collaborate with the oppressors of your people for the sake of your personal fame and your personal wealth.
Of course, you are perfectly aware of the fact that Israel would not exist without the "Holocaust". You know that the gas chamber story and the six million story permitted the Jews to embark on an anachronistic colonialist adventure after World War Two. You know that, but for the "Holocaust", the Palestinians would not have been robbed of their country.
If you condemn revisionism without knowing what it is all about, you are deliberately endorsing the lies of those who have stolen your land and who are killing unarmed Palestinian demonstrators day after day. In this case, you are a despicable traitor to your people and to your country.
I hope this suspicion is unfounded. I hope your condemnation of revisionism is based upon your solid knowledge of the revisionist arguments and your ability to refute them. In this case, I urge you to publicly expose the deficiencies of revisionist research.
Please prove that we are "falsifying history". Please refute Germar Rudolf's chemical and technical expertise about the Auschwitz "gas chambers". Please refute Carlo Mattogno's thermotechnical study of the Auschwitz crematoria. I earnestly entreat you to show us our errors.
If proven to be wrong, we will publicly apologize to the Jews.
We are willing to yield to arguments. But we are not willing to yield to brute force and terror. This we have in common with the Palestinian resistance fighters.
I am looking forward to your answer.
Yours faithfully, Juergen Graf
Beirut Conference News Said Repudiates Call to Ban Conference
(4/2/2001)
Edward Said Repudiates Arab Intellectuals' Call to Ban Beirut Revisionism
Conference
Date: Tue, 3 Apr 2001 14:28:23 -0700 (PDT)
From: Ibrahim Alloush
Reply-To: Al-Awda@yahoogroups.com
Dear List members,
Below you shall find a message from Edward Said on the banning of the conference of revisionist historians. As you all know, that conference was supposed to take place in Beirut on March 30. However, the Lebanese government banned it as a result of pressures from Western governments and the Zionist movement. A statement by fourteen Arab intellectuals calling on the Lebanese government to ban the conference of revisionist historians in Beirut was circulated in the media and on the internet. That alleged statement was used as a political cover to justify the banning of the conference and the curtailing of free speech rights.
It seems, however, that the statement was FABRICATED according to a statement by Dr. Edward Said below. The original text read to signatories over the phone was different from the one published in the press. Edward Said says he still does not have a copy of either texts.
Many of the signatories did not know that they will be signing a request to an Arab government to ban free speech. Initial contacts with Mahmoud Darwish indicate the same, even though there is no document like the one below to prove that yet.
This journalistic scoop was made by Samaa Abu Sharar, the daughter of Majed Abu Sharar, the Central Committee member of Fateh who was assassinated in Rome in 1981. Samaa is a journalist living in Amman, Jordan, who writes in English and French. She was out to prove that even if Edward Said disagreed with revisionist historians, he could have never signed the statement calling for banning their conference, which constitutes a violation of free speech rights. After all, Arab regimes don't need much encouragement in this area.
Below you shall find Edward Said's response to Samaa Abu Sharar's query. Please be aware that he authorized her to quote him in part or in full, and hence, she forwarded his message to others to make her point.
In the cause of objectivity, I am forwarding it to those who supported the banning of the conference of revisionist historians in Beirut without any alterations. I still think, however, that it is incumbent upon those whose names were added to a statement that they did not endorse, to MAKE A PUBLIC DECLARATION to that effect.
Later
Ibrahim Alloush
------------------------------------------------------------ ------------------
-- From: Edward W Said
To: samaa Abu-Sharar
Subject: Re: A message from Amman
Date: Mon, 2 Apr 2001 07:15:17 -0400 (EDT)
Dear Samaa,
I don't have and never saw the memo since I was called by phone, told that there was no time to send a copy for me to see, and was asked to approve the text for signature. I did, on condition that there would be no appeal to any government concerning the banning of the conference.
I don't believe a), in addressing governments and b), asking governments to ban anything, least of all conferences, books, etc. Having been the victim of such governmental decisions I couldn't put myself in such a position. I was very clear about this. The next thing I knew is that the statement appeared with a request to Hariri's government to ban the conference.
All I had agreed to sign was a statement denouncing the holding of such a conference in Beirut. To repeat, I did not ask the government to ban it, nor would I ever. This request was added against my wishes, and without my knowledge. I am deeply opposed to holocaust-deniers but I am equally opposed to banning by government edict everyone's right to free speech.
This was a terrible breach of confidence and a small group of franco-arab "intellectuals" simply betrayed my trust. To this day they haven't had the decency to send me a copy of what I supposedly signed. You may use any and all of the information I've sent you here.
Best,
Edward Said
Thought for the Day:
(Understanding political issues involved) "... is a gift that is important to re-examine - especially now, on the eve of Holocaust Remembrance Day. This is a gift that should be meaningful to us, that should reach our hearts, the hearts of the first generation of survivors of the Holocaust and their offspring - or at least those of them who do not interpret the murder of their people and their families in Europe as an eternal seal of approval for suppressing and dispossessing the Palestinian people, and for presenting them as the enemy which replaced the Germans."
(Amira Hass)
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