The second part

Seeing, they say, is believing. Evidence, supposedly, generates action. But as we see the images from Gaza, of starving people, wasting children, and bodies that are being hollowed out from within, the only action seems to be bizarre, conditional promises of statehood that are both offensive and mind boggling at the same time. One has to ask, if a man-made famine, broadcast in real time, does not compel us to do something from another human being, what would? Is the notion of caring for other human beings just an abstract notion with no real substance? Are the only kids who matter are our own?

While Gaza's starvation and horror is making headlines at the moment, the issue of our collective apathy is not limited to a particular place on the planet. Weaponisation of food and water is not a new tactic. For those who have been paying attention, the deliberate denial of life saving commodities, or intentional targeting of the most basic human needs, has been going all around us. In addition to Gaza, Sudan has been bleeding for years, and there is ample evidence (pictures, videos, testimonies) to haunt us for a lifetime. For many of us this is either old news, or irrelevant information that does not concern us.

Closer to home, cold blooded murder of a couple captured on video, captivates us, but only briefly. We see, we recognise the evil, and then? A senior elected official deliberately muddies the water by questioning the morality of the couple. In a country where there are warped views on what honour is, he suggests that the couple was having an affair. The dead cannot defend themselves. In the midst of information and misinformation, we move on.

We must also ask, if we are incapable of changing the condition of those who suffer with all the videos and images, testimonies and reporting, what hope can one have for those who suffer without the focus of global media? Can there ever be justice for those who remain incarcerated in nameless prisons funded by state institutions, those who are held in concentration camps (sometimes labeled as reeducation centers) in an environment of news blackout? If there was no one to make a video, can the missing persons ever be united with their loved ones?

It is easy, perhaps natural, to feel insignificant, powerless and small at this time. How can we see all that is happening around us, and still not be able to do anything? As a friend recently said, it seems that humans have lost the plot. That may be true - but this cannot continue. If we have lost the plot, we must rediscover it. Giving up on our humanity is akin to collective suicide - and one that manifests itself on a painfully slow timescale.

In seeing is believing argument, maybe there are two parts of the said belief. The first one is to recognise the horrors, acknowledge the pain, believe that this is real and happening now. But maybe there is a second part of that belief - one that rests on recognising that this is unacceptable, acknowledging that this is a low point of our collective humanity, and believing that a better future is not just possible, it is our ultimate destiny and worth fighting for.

This second part requires us to not just speak the truth, and empower those who help us see, both in the world and within ourselves, but also requires us to speak the whole truth. Truth in our midst, truth in far-off places; truth for those who share our last name, our faith, our tribe, and truth for those who do not. It is likely that our belief in a better future is tested by change that is too infinitesimal to even notice. It is likely that we may never see the change in our own lifetimes. But belief is supposed to be abstract and complicated, and despite the abstractions, it remains our blueprint to act and bring meaning to our existence.