Woke up and thought of writing on something. A rather oldstory, but persistently renewed over time. I remember of expressing my outrageduring a plenary talk in the 10th World Congress of Bioethics inSingapore, August last year. It was when Justice and former NZ Governor-General Dame Sylvia Cartwright spokeon her experiences running a special war crime tribunal for bringing to justice themonsters of Khmer Rouge. Well…I asked, or rather expressed, that who can denyPolpot’s brutality. Look at those pictures, circulating around the entireworld’s media, being re-told over and over again on pages of newspapers andfinally haunting the world’s everyone’s lives. Tons of skulls piling up, as ifhe fed his troops with those bodies. Torture chambers, as if he simplysatisfied his hobbies. Stories of excruciating sorrows of the people ofCambodia, such that their everyday life was. Well…those are all facts. Onlyequally monstrous individuals can deny. But…could you turn your head just a few degrees westward.PALESTINE! Don’t you see similar brutality ? Don’t you see similar intensity ofpain and sorrow ? Don’t you see similar evil acts causing all the suffering ? Well…when people of justice seems to stand firm over all Polpot’sbrutality and now turn the ever-dreamed illusion of justice into the reality ofCambodian people, what would you say to some people over there in Palestine whohave been there in the setting for more than half a century ? Could yourjustice penetrate (indeed, I remember of using the word “penetrate”) thissetting ? I challenged. It is so unfortunate that I couldn’t recall she answered it to the heart of my question, ended upme giving her my back in huge disappointment. Isn’t it silly, when people were so proud talking in arespectable world forum about justice, but at the same time stand weak against thisideological nonsense ? Isn’t silly, when we discovered that all those so-calledjustice are simply politically-driven, live from just a bit of mercy from itsmaster ? Do we actually have justice in this ever-aging world of civilization? I remember a Malaysian Datin, a professor, approached mejust to show her appreciation to what I have expressed. I also remember anIranian colleague approached me for the same purpose. Alright…apparently I amnot alone. They did put up a smile on my face, giving a hope that we are not alone indeed. Thanks. But well...I would be completely relieved IF...my own Indonesian fellows attending the talk approched me for the same purpose...which none...I am worried. Indeed. Kota Bharu (Malaysia), 10 June 2011
