Speech for Nakba Day Commemoration – Deputy Speaker Dr. Rizvie Salih delivered on Thursday May 15 in Colombo
COLOMBO ; ” Your Excellency the Ambassador of Palestine, Honourable Prime Minister, Honourable Leader of the Opposition, Distinguished Members of Parliament, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I stand before you today not just as the Deputy Speaker of the Parliament of Sri Lanka as i was introduced but as a fellow human being – like each of of you , deeply moved, profoundly saddened, and, most of all, duty-bound to speak on a cause that transcends borders, religions, and political lines. Today, we gather not merely to mark a date on a calendar. We are here to honour memory, to uphold justice, and to amplify and augment the cry of a people who have endured pain beyond measure – the people of Palestine.
The Nakba – “the catastrophe” – was not a single event. It was a beginning. A beginning of displacement. Of dispossession. Of generations born into exile. Of families separated by barbed wire and closed borders. Of olive trees uprooted, homes razed, histories erased. In 1948, over 700,000 Palestinians were driven from their homes. And today, over seven decades later, that wound is still open. Still bleeding and festering.
But, Nakba is not just a Palestinian tragedy. It is a human tragedy. Because when the rights of one people are trampled, the dignity of all humanity is compromised. When a child is denied food and water, when mothers grieve in the silence of demolished hospitals, when fathers carry the lifeless bodies of their sons and daughters – that sorrow belongs to all of us.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The significance of Nakba Day lies in our collective conscience. In the fundamental truth that every people, regardless of race, faith, or geography, has the right to live in freedom, in dignity, and in peace. And when those rights are violated with impunity, it is our collective responsibility – as governments, as nations, as citizens of the world – to speak, to act, and to uphold justice.
We are not here to choose sides. We are here to choose values. Humanity. Freedom. Compassion. Truth and above all peace and dignity.
Today, Gaza is not merely under siege. It is being strangled. The people of Gaza face what can only be described as a man made catastrophic humanitarian crisis. The blockade has not only denied them freedom – it has denied them the very basics of life. Water is scarce. Food is rationed. Electricity is sporadic. Hospitals are overwhelmed. And children – children – are dying of malnutrition. Of dehydration. Of bombs. Of neglect. Of silence.
It is shamful that basic food and water are being used as weapons of war and tools to anhilate a population.
Let us be very clear: Silence, in the face of such suffering, is complicity. And selective outrage is a luxury we can no longer afford.
The international community, including us in Sri Lanka, must use every resource at our disposal – political, diplomatic, legal, and moral – to press for the immediate implementation of the United Nations resolution calling for a two-state solution. A sovereign Palestine, co-existing peacefully alongside Israel, based on the 1967 borders. This is not only a political necessity – it is a moral obligation. The people of Palestine must not be reduced to a permanent refugee population. They deserve statehood. They deserve sovereignty. They deserve a future.
I say this as a member of a nation that, despite its own struggles, has always stood for peace. Sri Lanka has known the value of reconciliation. We have paid the price of division. And we know – deeply – that without justice, there can be no peace. Without dignity, there can be no security.
To my fellow parliamentarians present here today – regardless of political colour – I urge you: Let us unite our voices in Parliament, not as members of government or opposition, but as representatives of a people who believe in justice and decency. Let us pass resolutions that call for peace. Let us lead delegations that push for humanitarian aid. Let us be counted among those who stood up and did not turn away.
To the governments of the world – it is no longer enough to express concern. It is time to act. Condemnations without consequences are meaningless. The global architecture of human rights must not collapse when the victim is Palestinian.
Let us remember: when we allow injustice in one corner of the world, we risk destabilizing the entire fabric of international law and order. And history has shown us, again and again, that the cost of apathy is never paid by the powerful – it is always borne by the innocent.
Today, I recall the words of the late Archbishop Desmond Tutu who said: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” We cannot – must not – be neutral.
As we mark this solemn day, let us not be engulfed in despair. Because despite everything, the Palestinian people have shown us something extraordinary. They have shown us resilience. They have shown us hope. They have shown us the power of memory and the strength of resistance.
That unyielding spirit – the spirit that refuses to die – is, in itself, a victory. And it reminds us that no occupation lasts forever. No wall can block the march of history. No silence can erase the truth.
In closing, I say this: The Nakba is not just a story of the past. It is a mirror to our present and a test of our future. Let us not fail that test.
Let us stand, not in pity, but in solidarity.
Let us speak, not with outrage alone, but with resolve.
I recall a video clip , a bloodied, Battered , emaciated dehydrated dying/ dead child in the arms of his equally dehydrated and emaciated father. The father tells the child ” today you are going to another world… you will have peace there, no harm will come your way …you will have lot’s of friends there who went before you..you will have lots of toys to play with…stay there , be happy there. I will join you there when my time is up ” .
If that has not touched us ….
God alone save us !! Nothing will !!
Let us act – for peace, for justice, and for the children of Palestine who deserve not just our tears, but our truthful commitment.”
