LET’S rewind the tape after decolonisation. European empires went into the developing countries, brutalised the non-white world, and exploited their resources. The Namibian President, last week, accused Germany of committing genocide in Namibia.

They left the developing countries impoverished after Independence. By the 1970s, Europe was overtaken by the United States as the main presence in the Third World. The United States and an economic bloc known as the European Union became the chief aid donor to the post-colonial world.

A new form of colonialism emerged after Independence. Radical scholars from the Third World referred to this process as neo-colonialism. One of the main planks in the relationship between the US and the EU with the post-colonial world was the West’s dictation of what constitutes a democratic country.

From Independence to January 2024, the West has been lecturing the post-colonial world on the contents of democracy which they stress must contain freedom of expression, competitive general elections, a free press, an independent judiciary.

All of that came crashing down in October 2023 with the Israeli invasion of the Gaza. The democratic values the West “taught” the Third World to scrupulously adhere to, nonchalantly, arrogantly and barefacedly were abandoned by the West from October 2023 and it continues right at the moment of writing.

If it wasn’t for the West’s most barefaced double standards in relation to Gaza, I would not have known that Canada, Germany and 23 States in the USA legally prevent the formation of any organisation that calls for a boycott of Israel.

Let me repeat it so it can soak into your mind – in Germany, Canada and 23 States in the US, you will be charged for a criminal offence if you form a group that advocates for a boycott of Israel, which is an ordinary country of nine million people occupying a small piece of land of 9,000 square miles.

So, the Gaza invasion came and the free press that we in the developing world were told was precious by the West no longer existed in the West. Hundreds, not dozens but hundreds of journalists, columnists and television anchors in the West were either dismissed or sanctioned or victimised because they denounced Israeli bestialities in Gaza.

Not that they denounced some great country in the world whose presence has been played a crucial role in the shaping of history but a small country named Israel occupying 9,000 square miles with just nine million people. In the UK, one of the most respected media houses in the world, The Guardian, fired its cartoonist after 40 years of employment for drawing a cartoon depicting Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel who is facing jail time for corruption.

So the Gaza invasion came and the right to dissent which we in the developing world were told was precious by the West no longer existed in the West. To shout, “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” can get you into trouble in any country in the West right now.

So, the Gaza invasion came and academic freedom which we in the developing world were told was precious no longer existed in the West. Academics and students are being removed by their universities for denouncing Israeli action in Gaza, the most high profile victim was the Black President of Harvard University accused of being insensitive to anti-Semitism in the US.

So the Gaza invasion came and 23,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israeli air force and army in a graphic display of war crimes, but the West have called upon the developing world to denounce Russia for war crimes.

And what is the war crime that Putin is currently facing? Moving children from Ukraine to Russia. About 16,000 children and women have been killed while those Ukrainian children are still alive.

There are politicians in the US who have sought to lecture Guyana on democracy. But those same politicians attended a pro-Israeli event in November and participated in the chant – “no ceasefire.” In Gaza there is no war, just the Israeli air force bombing buildings and killing people inside of them, a total of 23,000 so far.

But no Western country, not one of them, not even Ireland has called for a ceasefire. No Western country, not one of them, has supported the South African proclamation of genocide against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). Now brace yourself for the incredible. I am telling you without fear of contradiction you are not going to believe what I will now inform you about.

Three weeks ago, the UK took the leaders of Myanmar (formerly Burma) to the ICJ for committing genocide. The same country that denies genocide is taking place in Gaza. Can you believe that? No, you cannot!