Prior to its work in SA, Rheinmetall’s grotesque history includes the use of Jewish slave labour during the Nazi period, and its current complicity with Saudi-UAE war crimes
09 May 2022 - 16:27
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
An Israeli soldier places a flag near the Golan Heights. Picture: REUTERS
Since Allan Wolman again demands I should focus on fixing SA (“Lies about Israel must stop,” May 6), for his information World Beyond War works with the Macassar community in Somerset West in the campaign to close down the Rheinmetall-Denel Munitions (RDM) factory, where eight workers were killed in an explosion in 2018.
To evade German arms export regulations, Rheinmetall deliberately locates much of its production in countries where the rule of law is weak. It is totally untenable for safety and environmental contamination reasons to locate an ammunition factory in a residential area.
After a public inquiry into the explosion prompted by media coverage, the Macassar community awaits a decision whether RDM will be prosecuted for criminal negligence. RDM exports over 80% of its production, mainly to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, both of which are notorious for abuses of human rights.
Rheinmetall’s grotesque history includes the use of Jewish slave labour during the Nazi period, as well as its current complicity with Saudi-UAE war crimes and the humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen. As mentioned in my letter, I was the first person in SA to expose the arms deal scandal corruption, but I still await Wolman’s explanations on which of the three Palestinian BDS demands are anti-Semitic.
Terry Crawford-Browne World Beyond War SA
JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Send us an email with your comments to letters@businesslive.co.za. Letters of more than 300 words will be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Writers should include a daytime telephone number.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
LETTER: How is BDS anti-Semitic?
Prior to its work in SA, Rheinmetall’s grotesque history includes the use of Jewish slave labour during the Nazi period, and its current complicity with Saudi-UAE war crimes
Since Allan Wolman again demands I should focus on fixing SA (“Lies about Israel must stop,” May 6), for his information World Beyond War works with the Macassar community in Somerset West in the campaign to close down the Rheinmetall-Denel Munitions (RDM) factory, where eight workers were killed in an explosion in 2018.
To evade German arms export regulations, Rheinmetall deliberately locates much of its production in countries where the rule of law is weak. It is totally untenable for safety and environmental contamination reasons to locate an ammunition factory in a residential area.
After a public inquiry into the explosion prompted by media coverage, the Macassar community awaits a decision whether RDM will be prosecuted for criminal negligence. RDM exports over 80% of its production, mainly to Saudi Arabia and the UAE, both of which are notorious for abuses of human rights.
Rheinmetall’s grotesque history includes the use of Jewish slave labour during the Nazi period, as well as its current complicity with Saudi-UAE war crimes and the humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen. As mentioned in my letter, I was the first person in SA to expose the arms deal scandal corruption, but I still await Wolman’s explanations on which of the three Palestinian BDS demands are anti-Semitic.
Terry Crawford-Browne
World Beyond War SA
JOIN THE DISCUSSION: Send us an email with your comments to letters@businesslive.co.za. Letters of more than 300 words will be edited for length. Anonymous correspondence will not be published. Writers should include a daytime telephone number.
LETTER: Israel is an apartheid state and is worse than SA was
CHARISSE ZEIFERT: The line between anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism is clear
LETTER: SA shows two faces on Israel
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.
Most Read
Related Articles
MILTON SHAIN: It is not atrocities the ANC deplores, but the Jewish state itself
LETTER: Racist ANC disguises anti-Semitism
Published by Arena Holdings and distributed with the Financial Mail on the last Thursday of every month except December and January.