Separate bus queues for Palestinians is racism

In the latest act of bigotry and discrimination, officials in Israel have introduced separate bus queues for Palestinians — lest they come in contact with Jews. Really? This is nothing more than racism in its most base form — segregating people from mingling on the basis of ethnicity.

How ironic that the Jewish state should impose such a move — how quickly its officials have forgotten the lessons of history of similar administrative and official polices against the European Jewry in the days before the Second World War.

According to the Palestinian Federation of Trade, Workers and Labour Unions, the move is being brought to the attention of the International Labour Organisation. The group condemns it as blatant racism and discrimination.

But the move shouldn’t be just up to labour organisations to condemn. Every right-minded person or government should scream from the rooftops long and loud that this is repugnant, degrading, immoral and simply wrong.

Bad enough that Israel illegally occupies Palestinian land and persecutes its people, it now openly and racially denigrates them.