Palaver

How touching when thousands of Palestinians cheered President Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank last week after he announced a “Palestinian Spring” following his historic speech to the UN last week demanding that the UN recognize Palestinian independence. You would have mistaken the crowd for that of Tahrir Square when President Hosni Mubarak announced his departure. Question is, how much rope is Israel willing to give him before they snap it? Like President Barack Obama says: “Ultimately, it is Israelis and Palestinians, not us, who must reach agreement on the issues that divide them: on borders and security; on refugees and Jerusalem.”

Weird world this. When the Saudi King fell sick, he was promptly jetted abroad for treatment. Venezuela’s Hugo Chavez sought cancer treatment in Cuba. Many other leaders in Africa are whisked abroad for treatment to such places as India, the UK, USA, France or Switzerland. India is a favourite and affordable destination for many Kenyans, but when ruling Congress chief Sonia Gandhi fell ill, she was flown to the US for surgery. Is there something wrong with my view of things or are we not putting our money into medical facilities and would rather take a long flight across oceans for treatment?