The South African government has officially condemned anti-Semitism after Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Fatiema Hajaig accused Western countries of being controlled by "Jewish money". However it has asked Jews not to meddle in the controversy, appealing them to stay in their banks, operating theatres and jewelers' shops to avoid provoking the public.
PRETORIA. The South African government has officially condemned anti-Semitism after Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Fatiema Hajaig accused Western countries of being controlled by "Jewish money". However it has asked Jews not to meddle in the controversy, appealing them to stay in their banks, operating theatres and jewelers' shops to avoid provoking the public.
Hajaig has been roundly condemned for her statements, made at a rally last week, in which she said that the "control of America, just like the control of most Western countries, is in the hands of Jewish money, and if Jewish money controls their country then you cannot expect anything".
However this morning the Ministry of Foreign Affairs defended its Deputy Minister, saying that her statements had been taken out of context.
"Our respect for Jews is as plain as the noses on their faces," said spokesman Adolph Sephuma
"But we must stand by our Deputy Minister. I mean, who would you believe? A cadre of the ANC, or Shylock?"
He said anti-Semitism was wrong and perpetuated "gross and harmful myths" about Jews.
"Nobody is saying that Jews eat their babies, like it says in The Protocols of the Elders of Zion. Little prime cuts, maybe, but never the whole baby. That's ridiculous."
However he urged Jews to stay indoors for their own safety until the fracas blew over, and warned them not to provoke non-Jews by spending money or trying to arrange marriages.
He also suggested that Government would find it easier to protect Jews if they were more easily identifiable, "perhaps with arm-bands showing the Star of David".
Asked if Hajaig would be fired or at least suspended, Sephuma said that as an ANC minister she would only be fired if she did "something suicidal, like making direct eye contact with Comrade Jacob Zuma".
He also faced tough questions over Hajaig's diplomatic and academic qualifications, but confirmed that she had all the skills necessary to be an ANC Deputy Minister.
He added that her copy of Diplomacy for Dummies, prominently displayed in her office next a box set of the films of Leni Riefenstahl, was just there for reference.
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See full story here ANC's Fatima Hajaig’s Anti-Semitism
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