VOX POPULI: Palestinian writer’s novel is a poignant echo of Gaza tragedy
“Why didn’t you knock on the sides of the tank? Why didn’t you bang the sides of the tank? Why? Why? Why?”
The Palestinian writer Ghassan Kanafani’s (1936-1972) novel “Men in the Sun” ends with an anguished cry of lament from a Palestinian water tank truck driver.
“You” refers to three Palestinian refugees. They attempt to smuggle themselves into Kuwait to find jobs with the help of the driver and hide inside the closed water tank at checkpoints.
At the Kuwaiti crossing, the men die from the heat as they do not knock on the sides of the tank to seek help.
The novel was published in 1963. Fifteen years earlier, Israel had declared its independence and about 700,000 Palestinians were displaced from their homes during the 1948 First Arab-Israeli War.
Kanafani, who became a refugee at the age of 12, joined the liberation struggle and was assassinated when he was 36.
The ongoing fighting in Gaza makes me reflect on the history of the Palestinian issue. The armed conflict between the Israeli military and Hamas began half a year ago, but its roots trace much further back.
It’s always the civilians who suffer in these situations. In the past six months, about 33,000 people have died in Gaza.
Homes have been destroyed, hospitals have lost their ability to function and restrictions on land transport have escalated a hunger crisis.
According to an international nongovernmental organization, in northern Gaza, people are forced to survive on an average of 245 kilocalories a day (equivalent to about 1.5 slices of bread). Children are dying from hunger and malnutrition.
“Food is a universal human right,” argued the World Central Kitchen aid organization, which had been delivering food to starving people in Gaza by sea. They provided more than 43 million meals in Gaza, but seven of their staff members were recently killed in an Israeli airstrike.
Help is being sought by banging on the sides of a tank. It is outrageous to see even those who noticed and reached out to help also being killed.
The echoing “why” in the desert described at the end of the novel now continues to resonate in my head.
--The Asahi Shimbun, April 7
* *
*Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.
Related articles
US opens investigation into Ford crashes involving Blue Cruise partially automated driving system
DETROIT (AP) — Two fatal crashes involving Ford’s Blue Cruise partially automated driving system hav2024-04-30Missing Chinese exchange student found cold and scared in Utah
Your web browser is no longer supported. To improve your experience update it here2024-04-30China news: President Xi Jinping reveals vision to change world
Your web browser is no longer supported. To improve your experience update it here2024-04-30VOX POPULI: Message for this year’s rookie workers: You are an empty glass
Around this time every year, I look forward to Suntory Holdings Ltd.’s newspaper ad.I saw it in the2024-04-30Inside Kate Middleton and Prince William's 13
They have been married 13 years and together for more than 20, and while all families have their ups2024-04-30NZ public service job cuts: what we know so far
Wellington's public sector workforce will take a hit. Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller2024-04-30
atest comment