The United States revoked the visa of South Africa’s former international relations minister Naledi Pandor last week, in what is being seen as the latest effort by Washington to punish Pretoria for taking Israel to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the charge of genocide, Middle East Eye reported on Nov. 21.
Pandor told Middle East Eye that she had no idea why her visa had been revoked, but it appeared to stem from her work on Palestine. “I understand that it has happened to other South Africans, too,” she remarked. “There is a sort of malevolence if one is not toeing the line when it comes to the question of Palestine. We have seen actions taken against South Africa following the case at the ICJ,” she added.
MEE notes that, since Pretoria took Israel to the ICJ, the former minister has been the subject of character assassination across large swathes of conservative and right-wing media. “What we have is a situation where there is a lack of recognition of the Palestinians’ right to self-determination. And if one speaks of their right to self-determine, then you are portrayed as a monster, as I have been,” Pandor said. “I am seen as a visible voice on Palestine, and this is meant to silence me. And it won’t work. These are issues of principle not issues of convenience. There will be no u-turn,” she insisted.
