Dr Swee Ang, founder of Medical Aid for Palestinians, deplatformed by the BMA
10 Comments
May 28, 2026 at 10:11 am
Ang Swee Chai, co-founder of Medical Aid for Palestinians speaks to crowd during the demonstration demanding ceasefire, showing solidarity with Palestinians in London, United Kingdom on December 16, 2023. [Rasid Necati Aslim/Anadolu via Getty Images]
by David Mond
148Shares
==Introduction and summary
This article sets out to rectify a long-standing wrong done to a co-founder of Medical Aid for Palestinians, Dr Swee Ang and to call out the cynical and malicious abuse of accusations of antisemitism, and the moral panic they can engender, to defame and above all cancel advocates of the Palestinians.
In 2014 the Daily Telegraph published an article accusing her of antisemitism for forwarding to a small group of friends and colleagues a troubling video which unbeknownst to her was published by a notorious antisemite. As soon as she discovered her mistake, she withdrew the post and apologised, though her apology was not included in the Telegraph article.
Nevertheless, the accusation stuck and has dogged her over the years, resulting in the last-minute can- cellation, in April 2025, of a prestigious invitation from the British Medical Association to speak about her work for Palestinians. This article documents the sequence of events leading up to the cancellation of the BMA invitation. We go on to question the use of allegations of this kind, and the role of organisations like UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) in creating a climate of impunity for the state of Israel, and in triggering unpleasant reprisals against British citizens who support the Palestinians.
Swee’s de-platforming
In April 2025, Dr Swee Ang, co-founder of the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians, was due to give a keynote lecture to 300 medical student leaders, drawn from all the medical schools in UK under the auspices of the British Medical Association, the BMA. Two days before the date of the lecture, she received a letter from the BMA announcing that they had withdrawn the invitation. No explanation was made public, but CAMPAIN learned, through conversations with the BMA, that the cancellation was due to an item mentioned on her Wikipedia page, that eleven years earlier she had forwarded a link to a video by the US white supremacist and antisemite David Duke. CAMPAIN wrote the BMA an open letter, pointing out that at the time Swee did not know who Duke was and that there has never been a pattern of antisemitic statements or behaviour on her part. From the open letter:
The question the BMA must answer is whether it believes it is reasonable, in the light of these facts, to conclude that Dr Ang’s decades-long humanitarian work is merely a cover for a sinister antisemitic agenda. This is what those calling for Dr Swee’s cancellation are suggesting and your decision to disinvite her implies that you consider this a legitimate point of view. And yet it is absurd for any thinking and rational person to believe that her compassionate concern for Palestinians is not genuine, but rather a proxy for hatred of Jews.
The letter urged the BMA to recognise its mistake, and to commit to treating Swee with respect and fairness in the future. It garnered 3,600 signatures, among them many distinguished names.
AOHR UK to EU and UK Gov’t: Hold Israel accountable for its maritime piracy
On 2nd October 2025 Swee, together with CAMPAIN Secretary Jonathan Coulter and Chair Adam Waterhouse, delivered the letter to the BMA, and spoke with the BMA’s Director of Policy and Communications Greg Beales. Mr Beales made it clear that this decision was made by the temporary committee organis- ing the Medical Students Conference for 2025, and that the BMA had not banned Swee from speaking at BMA events. He said that the decision was likely made in order to not to distract attention from the wider issue of what was happening in Gaza, and the BMA’s own response to it.
The issue wasn’t simply the fact that forwarding Duke’s video was mentioned on her Wikipedia page but also that there didn’t appear to be any publicly published explanation or apology from Swee. He emphasised the importance of having a response on the public record. Unfortunately the lack of an apology in the public record has created a space within which smears and innuendos can continue to damage her reputation and hinder the work of MAP.
In fact this particular smear campaign had already resulted in withdrawal of dozens of invitations as speaker and participation in mainstream media interviews. The cancellation by BMA was preceded a month earlier by the cancellation of an invitation to speak at Harvard University. But the BMA cancellation was unique as Swee has been a member of the BMA for 49 years and some of the medical students were from her own NHS hospital, Barts (Saint Bartholomew’s). This article, based upon interviews with Swee, has been written to redress this, and to recount the background to the case and the ongoing consequences of Swee Ang’s 2014 misstep.
Swee’s background, from Singapore to the UK and the Middle East
Swee Ang is ethnically Chinese, but grew up in Singapore in the 1950s and 60s, and came to England in 1977 with her husband, the human rights lawyer Francis Khoo, when the political climate in Singapore became too threatening. She had trained as a doctor in Singapore; in London she completed her training as an orthopaedic surgeon, and in 1996 became the first woman consultant orthopedic surgeon at Barts Hospital in London.
Singapore, a tiny island state only twice the area of Greater London, is mainly ethnically Chinese, and its location in the midst of much larger Muslim states is something of an anomaly. Swee says this naturally inclined her towards sympathy for Israel, which she saw as David to the Arab Goliath. Her adoption of radical Christian belief in her teens accentuated her support for Israel. However this sympathy was severely tested when, in 1982, she answered an appeal from Christian Aid for doctors to help the injured in the Lebanese civil war. She left her job and travelled to work in the Gaza hospital in Beirut, situated in the Sabra Palestinian refugee camp.
Her initial sympathy for Israel became tinged with doubt when for the first time she met Palestinians, who up till then she had always thought of only as terrorists. And it turned into fierce criticism when she saw the results of Israeli military action against the Palestinians in Lebanon. Besides the systematic targeting of hospitals [1], she witnessed and also treated survivors of what was possibly the most dramatic and horrifying event of the war, when in 1982 Lebanese Christian militias were given the green light by Israel to enter the Palestinian refugee camps of Sabra and Shatila. They murdered somewhere between two and three thousand people, many of them the dependents of the PLO fighters who had just departed for Tripoli in Libya under an agreement with the UK- and US-backed Multinational Force in Lebanon. As became clear in the subsequent (Israeli) Kahan Commission of Enquiry, the Israeli army had opened the camps to the Christian militias, prevented their inhabitants from fleeing, and illuminated the scene with flares all night long, facilitating the massacre. The enquiry, at which Swee testified, concluded that Ariel Sharon should be removed from his post as Defence Minister. At the time, the report was celebrated as “a tribute to the vitality of Israeli democracy and to the country’s moral character” (the Washington Post), and as “giving the world a new lesson in democracy” (French Minister of the Interior Gaston Deferre) [2]. In fact in 2001 Sharon was elected Prime Minister of Israel, and held the position until disabled by a stroke in 2006.
Swee and her husband, together with Major Derek Cooper and his wife, founded the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians, MAP, in 1982, in the wake of the Sabra and Shatila massacre. From 2002 it has had special consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Today it is the principal UK-based charity providing medical aid to the Palestinians of Gaza, the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) of the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and Lebanon [3]. Its current president is the Conservative peer Baroness Morris of Bolton, who succeeded Chris Patten and Baroness Helena Kennedy.
Swee’s encounter with Duke’s video
In 2014, shortly after Israel had for the third time attacked Gaza’s largely unprotected inhabitants, using American weaponry to carry out an aerial bombardment and a ground invasion, Swee was sent, by a colleague, a link to a video which alleged that what Duke called “Zionist Jews” were in control of the United States government, banks and media. She was shocked but also intrigued. She shared the link with a colleague and with some family members in a private e-mail group, with a covering note that said “Dear Friends, This is shocking video please watch. This is not about Palestine – it is about all of us!”. The video, CNN Goldman Sachs and the Zio Matrix was by David Duke, one-time Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan, though in the video he is introduced (correctly) as a former member of the US congress, and there is no reference to the KKK [4]. Swee had never heard of him.
However, as will be shown below, this naive mistake was seized upon by people with an interest in pro- tecting Israel’s reputation (and defaming supporters of Palestinian rights), and it was this that later led to the BMA’s withdrawal of her invitation in 2025. The sequence of events is described below.
The July 2014 issue of the medical journal The Lancet had carried an open letter for the people of Gaza, written by Swee and four other doctors and medical scientists, denouncing the Israeli attacks on the population of Gaza and documenting some of its consequences, and calling on colleagues to join in condemning the Israeli actions. From the open letter:
We are appalled by the military onslaught on civilians in Gaza under the guise of punishing terrorists. This is the third large scale military assault on Gaza since 2008. Each time the death toll is borne mainly by innocent people in Gaza, especially women and children, under the unacceptable pretext of Israel eradicating political parties and resistance to the occupa- tion and siege they impose.[. . . ] Our condemnation and disgust are further compounded by the denial and prohibition for Gaza to receive external help and supplies to alleviate the dire circumstances.
In August of that year, Dr Gerald Steinberg, president of the Israeli pressure group NGO Monitor, wrote to Elsevier, the publishers of The Lancet, demanding that they withdraw the open letter, on the grounds that Swee and one of the other authors “traded in anti-semitic conspiracy theories”, though his letter does not dispute the letter’s description of the situation in Gaza. The Lancet held its ground, with the support of the publishers – the editor described Steinberg’s allegations as “a witch hunt, pure and simple” – and did not withdraw the open letter, which is still available on its website. Steinberg’s allegation that Swee “traded in anti-semitic conspiracy theories” can only be based on her having shared the link to Duke’s video with a small number of close contacts.
In September 2014, Jake Wallis-Simons, a Daily Telegraph journalist (and editor of the Jewish Chronicle from 2021 to 2025) interviewed Swee about the allegations from Gerald Steinberg. She explained what had happened, and expressed her regret that she had unwittingly forwarded a video by a white supremacist and antisemite, as she now understood David Duke to be. She wrote to him:
Following the conversation last evening with you, I thought about the situation and if it is not too late, please would you kindly include my regret for circulating Dr Duke’s lecture and my apology for the offence I have caused to many of my friends, both Jewish and non-Jewish in doing this. I have done this out of shock at the contents and my ignorance of the undercurrents, and will be more discerning in future about these kind of allegations.
Please let me know if there is time to include this.
Wallis-Simons did not include Swee’s apology in the article he wrote for the Telegraph, Lancet hijacked in anti-Israel campaign. His article began with a photo of Duke captioned “Two of the authors of the open letter, Dr Paola Manduca and Dr Swee Ang, have sympathies with the views of David Duke, pictured, a white supremacist and former Ku Klux Klan Grand Wizard”. By the time he wrote this, he had already spo- ken to Swee and knew her views on David Duke. He posted her apology instead on his Facebook page, where it attracted many abusive responses. Swee also publicly apologised at a meeting at University College London, about which she wrote to Aimée Shalan, Director of MAP:
Regarding the UCL meeting, I have ample witnesses including video evidence that when they attacked me, I explained that I was really sorry to have forwarded the video, and if I knew who Duke was I would have deleted it. But they continued shouting and would not accept my apology. I hope the same lot will not come to Parliament to harass you. Maybe you should warn the security and tell your host if they start to be uncivilise, they should be removed.
In June 2018, the pressure group UK Lawyers for Israel, UKLFI, filed a complaint against MAP to the Charity Commission, alleging that MAP spread political propaganda, promoted antisemitism, and had connections with organisations linked to the Palestinian terrorist organisation, the PFLP. Once again, the complaint of antisemitism was based on Swee’s having forwarded the link to the video of David Duke. The Charity Commission investigation exonerated MAP.
The various complaints against her have all been based on one leaked email sent to a private email group, which she immediately regretted deeply, as her apologies have made clear. The worst that can reasonably be said about Swee is that she was momentarily taken in by an antisemitic conspiracy theory. And her whole history speaks of unswerving devotion to the well-being of her fellow humans, whatever their religion or ethnic origin.
READ: Legal challenge launched against the IHRA definition of antisemitism in British court
The mysterious power of accusations of antisemitism
To be deemed antisemitic is to be placed in a special category, to which a singular stigma is attached, so powerful that it apparently outweighs the virtue of every good act, and prompts the cancellation of the person concerned. And the stigma is permanent: Swee’s single misstep in 2014 led to her cancellation in 2025. During the 2nd October 2025 meeting with Swee and CAMPAIN, the BMA’s Director of Policy and Communications, Greg Beales, made clear that they did not regard Swee as antisemitic, but simply that the committee had acted to avoid distraction and public controversy. He emphasised that the absence of any publicly available response from Swee to the original allegation had left a gap that would have made any decision to invite her hard to defend. In other words, she had not been found guilty of anything; she had been quietly set aside because a smear based on a mistake, left unanswered, had been allowed to do its work.
The BMA’s deplatforming of Swee, even if it was done without animus and merely to avoid controversy, contrasts sharply with its treatment of the Israeli Medical Association, the IMA. Until 2025 it maintained cordial relations with the IMA, some of whose members oversee the torture of Palestinian prisoners, and which has uttered no word of protest at the bombing of hospitals and the killing of Palestinian healthcare workers. A conference vote in 2025 obliged the BMA to sever relations with the IMA, but its long delay in doing this makes clear that it believed that it would damage its reputation more to invite Swee to give a talk than to maintain relations with a medical association that had acquiesced in the systematic destruction of healthcare facilities during a genocide [5]. The fact that they may well be right underlines the singular power of allegations of antisemitism.
The same disproportion may be seen in the international response to two events in January 2024. The first was the release of an interim ruling by the International Court of Justice on the case, launched by the government of South Africa, that Israel was committing genocide in Gaza. The interim ruling stated that the charge, which was supported by copious evidence, was indeed plausible. Under the UN genocide convention, this should have triggered the immediate suspension of all arms sales to Israel, as well as a range of other sanctions. None of this ensued.
The second event was the charge, made by Israel later the same day, that twelve (out of approximately 13,000) employees of UNWRA, the United Nations Works and Reconstruction Agency, had participated in the Hamas atrocity of October 7th 2023. Israel provided no evidence for this charge, and none has since emerged. Nevertheless, the UK government, along with the governments of the US, Germany, Canada and France, immediately suspended support for UNWRA, thereby allowing Israel to starve the people of Gaza.
To repeat: a copiously documented accusation of genocide, ruled plausible by the ICJ, had no conse- quence. An unsupported allegation that a tiny proportion of the workforce of UNWRA had participated in an attack on Israel led to the suspension of aid to the starving. That this double standard was apparently acceptable to the UK political class and commentariat shows once again the disproportionate power of accusations of antisemitism.
It is time to question the power and the purpose of allegations of antisemitism
Swee was momentarily deceived by a video whose deeply unreliable source she was not aware of, and immediately apologised when she was informed about who David Duke was. She has many Jewish friends and there is no record of her ever expressing dislike or prejudice against Jews. Nevertheless, in his Telegraph article Jake Wallis-Simons turned her into a supporter of David Duke who had “hi-jacked” The Lancet; and the hostile audience at the UCL meeting where Swee attempted to apologise, refused even to hear her apology. The unwillingness to receive or transmit an apology speaks to the purpose of the accusation: it is to discredit the accused in order to delegitimise their message.
Under these circumstances, accusations of antisemitism against critics of Israel must not be allowed immediately to cancel their criticism. The criticisms which prompted the accusations must be examined on their merits, just as must the accusation. Too often, the accusation becomes the focus, and the criticism is ignored. Statements are either true or false, not true, false or antisemitic.
In recent years such accusations have been deployed in the UK and the US to achieve political aims which have little to do with the welfare of Jews and much to do with defending Israel. And by shielding Israel from criticism, they have helped to generate a climate of impunity which has allowed its leaders to order atrocious acts and its citizens and supporters elsewhere to view them with approval.
In August 2025 the UK’s Public Interest Law Centre and the European Legal Support Center (ELSC) filed a complaint against UK Lawyers for Israel. Their 114-page report, which has been sent to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, says UKLFI is using the law improperly to threaten civil society groups and is operating as an unregulated legal firm. ELSC’s Monitor Officer in Britain warned:
UKLFI is actively suppressing solidarity with Palestine. Our research documents how UKLFI’s threatening letters to organisations have triggered concrete reprisals, including workers dis- ciplined or fired for Palestine solidarity, reputations smeared through coordinated campaigns, and events cancelled under pressure. This is a systematic strategy to criminalise solidarity with Palestine and shield genocide complicity. This complaint is a demand for accountability.
Swee Ang has devoted her life to the relief of suffering, and has done so at considerable personal cost. The attempt to characterise her as an antisemite rests on a single incident, more than a decade ago, in which she was briefly deceived and for which she promptly apologised. The fact that the mere existence of this smear was enough to prompt a BMA committee and others to disinvite her from speaking illustrates the importance of the work of CAMPAIN in addressing this type of politically motivated misrepresentation.
===
[1] See the policy paper from the Institute of Palestine Studies The Systematic Targeting of Healthcare In Palestine: From the British Mandate to the Siege of Gaza and the Harvard Health and Human Rights article Prescribing Death: Israel’s Regional War on Health
[2] See The Kahan Commission Report on the Beirut Massacre, by Richard Falk
[3] Since the start of this year, the Israeli government refuses MAP-affiliated doctors admission to the OPT. In common with Médecins Sans Frontières and 35 other aid organisations, its license to operate in Gaza and the OPT was revoked in January 2026, on the grounds that they had failed to provide the Israeli authorities with complete details of their staff. The aid organisations were unwilling to do so, as large numbers of aid workers and health workers (around 1750) have been killed by the Israelis in military action following the Hamas attack of October 2023, with evidence that many have been deliberately targeted.
[4] Although Duke’s video concludes with lurid allegations of Zionist control, what he said about Israeli treatment of the Pales- tinians was largely correct, and tallied with Swee’s experience. And there is a strong case that much of what he said about the influence of the Israeli lobby on US foreign policy is also true: the well known 2007 book The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy, by John Mearsheimer (Professor of Political Science at the University of Chicago) and Stephen Walt (Professor of Inter- national Relations at University of Harvard’s Kennedy School) makes persuasive arguments that US support for Israel has not been motivated by US interests but by the power of the Israel Lobby.
[5] This is documented in the paper of Derek Summerfield in the Journal of Medical Ethics.
This article was first published at the CAMPAIN on the 21st May 2026
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.
10 Comments
이 글은 <앙 박사 옹호문>입니다. 핵심은 2014년 David Duke 영상을 모르고 공유한 실수를 근거로, 2025년 BMA 강연 초청이 취소된 것은 과도한 “낙인찍기”라는 주장입니다.
제 평가는 이렇습니다.
<첫째, 앙 박사의 실수는 실제로 심각했습니다.>
David Duke는 명백한 백인우월주의·반유대주의 인물입니다. 그런 출처의 영상을 공유한 것은, 몰랐다고 해도 부주의했습니다.
<둘째, 그러나 그 실수 하나로 평생의 의료 인도주의 활동 전체를 반유대주의로 규정하는 것은 과도합니다.>
이 글도 바로 그 점을 주장합니다. 기사에 따르면 앙 박사는 곧 삭제하고 사과했지만, 그 사과가 원래 보도에 충분히 반영되지 않았고 이후 계속 따라다녔다고 합니다.
<셋째, 이 글 자체도 편향이 있습니다.>
Middle East Monitor와 글쓴이는 분명히 친팔레스타인 입장입니다. 그래서 “반유대주의 비판”을 지나치게 모두 친이스라엘 탄압으로 해석하는 경향이 있습니다. 실제 반유대주의 문제는 가볍게 볼 수 없습니다.
<넷째, 그래도 BMA의 대응은 비겁해 보입니다.>
정말 문제가 있다면 공개적으로 이유를 설명하고 반론 기회를 주었어야 합니다. 조용히 초청을 철회하는 방식은 논쟁을 해결하지 않고 회피한 것입니다.
결론적으로 말하면, 이 사건은 <반유대주의 비판의 필요성>과 <팔레스타인 연대 활동을 침묵시키는 정치적 낙인>이 충돌한 사례입니다. 앙 박사는 비판받을 지점이 있지만, “반유대주의자”로 단정해 배제할 정도의 사례로 보기는 어렵습니다.
세진님, 책 <베이루트에서 예루살렘까지>가 출간된 이후 친이스라엘 측이나 저자의 서사에 반대하는 진영에서 제기했던 주요 비판과 반론들입니다.
제공해 주신 아마존·굿리즈 독자 리뷰 데이터와 팟캐스트 인터뷰 내용을 바탕으로, 친이스라엘 측 및 비판적 시각을 가진 이들이 주로 지적했던 논점들을 하라체로 정리했습니다.
친이스라엘 측 및 비판 진영의 주요 비판 논점
1. 학살의 일차적 주체에 대한 책임 희석과 프레임 왜곡
친이스라엘 측 독자들과 역사적 맥락을 강조하는 비판자들은 사브라·샤틸라 학살의 직접적인 실행 주체가 이스라엘 군(IDF)이 아닌 레바논의 기독교 팔랑헤 민병대였다는 점을 강력히 지적한다
민병대의 보복 범죄성: 이 학살은 당시 레바논의 대통령으로 선출되었던 기독교계 지도자 바希르 제마옐(Bashir Gemayel)이 암살당한 것에 대한 레바논 기독교 민병대의 잔혹한 보복 작전이었다
. 이스라엘 책임론의 과잉: 비판 측은 앙 박사가 이스라엘 군의 방조나 협조를 넘어 이스라엘 자체를 학살의 직접적인 기획자나 주범으로 몰아세우는 이분법적 구도를 취하고 있으며, 이는 레바논 내전의 복잡한 종파적·정치적 역학 관계를 단순화하고 왜곡한 결과라고 주장한다
. 이스라엘 군이 사태를 파악했을 때는 이미 민병대의 폭주를 막기에 너무 늦은 시점이었다는 반론도 존재한다 .
2. 팔레스타인 해방기구(PLO) 및 하마스(Hamas)에 대한 편향성과 테러리즘 옹호
앙 박사가 팔레스타인 주민들과 맺은 정서적 유대로 인해, 그들의 정치·군사 조직이 저지른 폭력 행위에는 눈을 감았다는 비판이 제기된다
테러 서사의 미화: 이스라엘 지지자들은 PLO가 이스라엘 민간인을 대상으로 수많은 테러와 공격을 감행해 온 조직임에도 불구하고, 앙 박사가 이들을 단순한 <가족이 있는 평범한 홈랜드의 수호자>나 <피해자>로 미화하여 묘사했다고 비판한다
. 정치적 도구화: 앙 박사가 설립한 팔레스타인 의료 지원 회(MAP)가 공식적으로는 하마스 등 무장 단체와 선을 긋고 유일한 구호 기구인 유엔(UN)의 통계를 인용한다고 주장하지만
, 반대 진영에서는 이러한 의료 구호 활동과 저술 행위가 결과적으로 팔레스타인 무장 세력의 정치적 프로파간다에 정당성을 부여하는 도구로 쓰이고 있다고 비난한다 .
3. 출판 및 활동에 대한 조직적 반발과 <반유대주의> 낙인
책이 가진 강렬한 친팔레스타인 성향으로 인해 서구권 내 친이스라엘 로비 단체와 미디어의 거센 비판과 물리적 제재가 뒤따랐다
미국 내 출간 중단: 이 책은 1989년 영국에서 처음 출간된 이후 1996년 미국에서 발행되었으나, 친이스라엘 단체들의 격렬한 항의와 보이콧 프로테스트에 직면했다
. 이로 인해 미국 내 출판과 유통이 한동안 전면 중단되는 사태를 겪었다 . <자기 혐오적 유대인> 및 반유대주의 낙인: 앙 박사와 함께 이스라엘 카한 위원회에서 증언하고자 했던 미국인 유대인 간호사 엘런 시걸(Ellen Siegel) 등 연대자들을 향해 친이스라엘 진영은 <자기 혐오적 유대인(Self-hating Jew)>, <반시온주의자(Anti-Zionist)>, <반유대주의자(Anti-semitic)>라는 극단적인 언어적 공격을 퍼부으며 그들의 증언 가치를 깎아내리려 했다
. 기독교 내부에서의 파문과 비난: 독실한 기독교 신자였던 앙 박사를 향해 기존의 친이스라엘 성향 기독교 커뮤니티와 동료들은 성경 구절을 인용하며 "이스라엘을 저주하는 자는 신의 저주를 받을 것"이라는 종교적 경고와 함께 절교 선언을 하는 등 강한 심리적·사회적 압박을 가했다
.
4. 정보의 신뢰성과 감정적 선동에 대한 지적
이스라엘 지지 측은 앙 박사의 저술이 냉철한 객관성을 유지해야 하는 의사의 기록이라기보다, 감정 과잉과 선동적 서사로 가득 찬 정치적 팸플릿에 가깝다고 비판한다
앙 박사의 서사가 워낙 현장 목격에 기반한 강력한 힘을 지니고 있다 보니, 친이스라엘 측에서는 주로 역사적 거시 맥락의 부족함이나 테러 조직 옹호 프레임을 전면에 내세워 책의 신뢰성을 떨어뜨리려는 전략을 취해 왔음을 알 수 있습니다. 혹시 이 중 특정 논쟁이나 당시 이스라엘 내부 위원회의 조사 결과 등에 대해 더 알고 싶으신 부분이 있으신가요, 세진님?
Ang Swee Chai
Ang Swee Chai | |
|---|---|
洪瑞钗 | |
 Ang Swee Chai in the refugee camp in Beirut in 1985. | |
| Born | 1948 (age 77–78)[1] |
| Citizenship | British[2] |
| Alma mater | National University of Singapore |
| Spouse | Francis Khoo (m. 1977; died 2011) |
| Awards | Star of Palestine Singapore Women's Hall of Fame |
| Medical career | |
| Profession | Surgeon |
| Field | Orthopaedics |
| Institutions | Royal London Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry Bishop Auckland Hospital |
| Sub-specialties | Trauma medicine |
| Notable works | Medical Aid for Palestinians |
| Chinese name | |
| Simplified Chinese | 洪瑞钗 |
| Hanyu Pinyin | Hóng Ruì Chāi |
Ang Swee Chai (Chinese: 洪瑞钗) is an orthopedic surgeon and author. She is a co-founder of the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians.
Early life and education
Ang was born in Penang, Malaysia but raised in Singapore.[1] The family had also one son and two other daughters.[3] She attended Kwong Avenue Primary School, Raffles Girls' School, and the National University of Singapore where she studied medicine. She then received a master's degree in Occupational Medicine in 1976.[1]
Career
Medical career
After graduating from NUS, she worked in Singapore's public hospitals.[2] After joining her husband, Francis Khoo, in London, Ang trained to be an orthopaedic surgeon in Britain, where she obtained her FRCS (Eng) and completed her training in Newcastle. She later became the first female consultant orthopaedic surgeon at St Bartholomew's Hospital in London.[1]
Humanitarian missions
In August 1982, Ang responded to an appeal for medical personnel from Christian Aid to treat war casualties in Lebanon and went to work at the Gaza Hospital near the Sabra and Shatila refugee camp in Beirut.[4][5] The following month, she became witness to the Sabra-Shatila massacre during the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982.[6] She and two other hospital staff testified to Israeli Kahan Commission on the Sabra and Shatila massacre in September 1982.[7] Ang would also testify to the massacre in front of the Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Commission in 2013, during a hearing that eventually found the State of Israel guilty of genocide.[8]
With her husband, Francis Khoo, and some friends, Ang helped to form the British charity, Medical Aid for Palestinians, following the 1982 massacres.[5]
In 1988, Ang made her first trip to Gaza, where she worked as an orthopaedic surgeon at the Al Ahli Arab Hospital. During her time there, she also served as an ambulance driver amid ongoing conflict.[9][10]
In 2018, Ang joined the Just Future For Palestine Flotilla, which attempted to run the blockade of the Gaza Strip by Israel, to tend to the medical needs of Palestinians there. The boat that she was on was seized by Israeli forces before it could arrive at its intended destination. She was briefly detained before being deported back to United Kingdom.[11]
On 24 September 2014, The Telegraph reported that Ang had forwarded a video entitled "CNN Goldman Sachs & the Zio Matrix" featuring Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke.[12] Ang responded by saying "I am concerned that if there is any truth in the video, that Jews control the media, politics and banking, what on earth is going on? I was worried." [13]
In 2024, Ang returned to Lebanon to treat patients injured by what she described as "pager attacks" linked to Israeli operations. These explosive devices caused extensive trauma, including mutilated limbs, facial injuries, and brain damage. Reflecting on the spirit of her patients, she described a conversation with a man who had lost his hand but expressed no regret, saying it was the price he paid "for standing with humanity and justice in Gaza."[14]
As of 2025, Ang has worked nearly 50 years in the United Kingdom's National Health Service (NHS), and over 43 years in support of the Palestinian people through direct medical care, advocacy, and education.[14]
Personal life
In 1977, Ang married Singaporean human rights lawyer Francis Khoo. Two weeks after the marriage, she was briefly detained during a government crackdown on dissidents as the authority attempted to arrest her husband. She fled to London to be with her husband and they were granted asylum there.[15] Khoo died on 20 November 2011 in London of a suspected heart attack.[16]
Ang received her British passport in 1992, after applying for it in 1990 having had faced difficulties in her earlier travels to countries in Middle-East region to support or conduct humanitarian missions there as she was travelling on a refugee travel documentation. Singapore does not allow dual citizenship and would typically ask a dual-citizen to renounce one citizenship. However, she resisted renouncing her British citizenship as it would lose her her home and work in United Kingdom, and had also promised her husband that she would not give up on her Singaporean citizenship.[2][17] Her Singaporean citizenship was stripped after a committee of inquiry was held in Singapore in 2020.[2]
Awards and honours
In 1987, President Yasser Arafat awarded Ang the Star of Palestine, the highest award for service to the Palestinian people.[18]
In 2016, Ang was inducted into the Singapore Women's Hall of Fame.[19] She was not able to receive the award in person due to the issue over her dual-citizenship at that time.[2]
In 2024, Ang received the HCS Fellow Award from Harvard Club Of Singapore.[2][20]
Talks and public engagements
Ang has spoken publicly on numerous occasions about her experiences in war zones, the responsibilities of medical professionals in conflict, and the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Palestine. Her talks emphasize the power of compassion, justice, and small acts of resistance in the face of large-scale suffering.[citation needed]
On 6 December 2013, she delivered a TEDx talk at University College London (UCL), titled Making a Small Difference, during UCL's first-ever TEDxWomen event. In the talk, she drew from her work in hospitals and conflict zones, particularly Palestine and Lebanon, to illustrate how seemingly small actions can have a profound impact on people's lives. The talk received a standing ovation and was described as "refreshingly honest and incredibly moving."[21]
She has also participated in other speaking engagements, interviews, and humanitarian forums to raise awareness about medical ethics, refugee crises, and the Palestinian struggle.[citation needed]
Publications
- From Beirut to Jerusalem : a woman surgeon with the Palestinians. OCLC 123789315.
- 从贝鲁特到耶路撒冷 (in Chinese). Translated by 林康. ISBN 9789670960050. (Chinese translation)
- "War surgery: Field manual. H. Husum, Swee Chai Ang & E. Fosse. Penang: Third World Network, 1995. 764 pp. Price US$100 (softcover), US$ 140 (hardcover) plus postage. Available to 'Third World' countries at US$ 25 (softcover), US$ 35 (hardcover) plus postage. ISBN 983-9747-14-2". Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene. 91 (3): 368. May–June 1997. doi:10.1016/S0035-9203(97)90116-4.
References
- "Ang Swee Chai /Singapore Women's Hall of Fame". Singapore Women's Hall of Fame. 3 March 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- Wong, Kim Hoh (7 April 2024). "'Gaza makes me cry every day': Humanitarian Ang Swee Chai is devoted to helping Palestinians". The Straits Times. Singapore Press Holdings. Retrieved 7 April 2024. (Subscription required.)
- "Penang-born orthopaedic surgeon Dr Ang Swee Chai on lending a hand to the oppressed via Medical Aid for Palestinians". www.optionstheedge.com. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
- 苏颖欣 (14 December 2016). "流亡40年的新加坡人——访战地医生洪瑞钗". Malaysia Kini.
- Toh, Han Chong; Tambyah, Paul Ananth (10 October 2006). "Dr Ang Swee Chai - Surgeon With A Mission" (PDF). SMA News. 38 (10). Singapore: Singapore Medical Association.
- Syed Mohd Khair, Syed Ahmad Fathi (21 June 2019). "Ang Swee Chai – From Christian Zionist to Palestinian Activist – Book Review". theindependentinsight.com. Archived from the original on 21 June 2019. Retrieved 25 July 2019.
- Farrell, William E. (2 November 1982). "Doctors Testify About Massacre". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 25 July 2019.
- "Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Commission: Israel Guilty of Genocide". Scoop. 27 November 2013.
- "From Beirut to Jerusalem – Dr. Swee Chai Ang" (PDF). Freedom Flotilla Coalition. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
- "Agenda AWANI: IWD | A women surgeon with the Palestinians". YouTube. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
- Casandra, Wong (28 August 2018). "Singaporean doctor recounts harrowing boat mission to break Gaza blockade". Yahoo News. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
- "Lancet 'hijacked in anti-Israel campaign'". The Telegraph. 22 September 2014. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
- Bernstein, David (22 September 2014). "Leading British medical journal refuses to retract open letter on Gaza written by authors concerned that "Jews control the media, politics and banking"". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 3 April 2025.
- Ang, Swee Chai (5 March 2025). "Exile, Occupation, Apartheid, Ethnic Cleansing, Plausible Genocide: A Doctor's Perspective". Washington Report on Middle East Affairs.
- "38妇女节：舍身为教育、生命付出的奇女子！". JadeMag. 8 March 2019.
- "Lawyer who fled ISD in 1970s dies in London home". The Straits Times. 22 November 2011.
- Xu, Terry (16 March 2016). "Dr Ang Swee Chai, a self-imposed exile, faces issue with ICA over dual citizenship". The Online Citizen. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
- Bedi, Rashvinjeet S. (2 November 2016). "Palestinian plight not a religious issue but a humanitarian one, says social activist". The Star Online. Retrieved 25 July 2019.
- Terry Xu (16 March 2016). "Dr Ang Swee Chai, a self-imposed exile, faces issue with ICA over dual citizenship". The Online Citizen. Archived from the original on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 27 October 2019.
- "'You will know what to do': Ang Swee Chai's urgent message". Jom. 19 April 2024. Retrieved 24 August 2025.
- "Making a Small Difference". YouTube. TEDx Talks. 1 August 2014. Retrieved 29 March 2025.
External links
- From Beirut to Jerusalem, by Ang Swee Chai
From Beirut to Jerusalem: A Woman Surgeon with the Palestinians
 | |
| Author | Swee Chai Ang |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Genre | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | Grafton House |
Publication date | January 1, 1989 |
| Publication place | United Kingdom |
From Beirut to Jerusalem: A Woman Surgeon with the Palestinians is a book by Swee Chai Ang, an orthopaedic surgeon who worked with civilians during the Lebanese Civil War.[1][2] The book details her eye-witness account of the Sabra and Shatila massacre. Ang, a graduate of the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Britain, testified before the Kahan Commission. The commission was responsible for investigating the nature of the Israeli involvement in the massacre of perhaps 800 to 1000 Palestinians. Ang established a British charity following her first hand account of the massacres known as the Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) which she discusses in her work. The book was first published January 1, 1989. A 25th anniversary edition was published in 2007 with additional content, and a 40th anniversary edition was later published as well.[3]
Contents
• Part 1: Journey to Beirut
• Part 2: The Sabra-Shatila Massacre
• Part 3: From Jerusalem to Britain
• Part 4: Return to Beirut
• Part 5: From Beirut to Jerusalem[3]
References
- Swee Chai Ang. From Beirut to Jerusalem: A Woman Surgeon With the Palestinians. Grafton House. London 1989.
- Murray, Nancy (January 1, 1990). "Book reviews : From Beirut to Jerusalem By SWEE CHAI ANG (London, Grafton Books, 1989)". Race & Class. doi:10.1177/030639689003100307.
- "From Beirut to Jerusalem: 40th Anniversary Edition". Wardah Books. Retrieved 18 August 2024.
External links
- From Beirut to Jerusalem, by Ang Swee Chai
세진님, 요청하신 수이 차이 앙(Swee Chai Ang) 박사의 <베이루트에서 예루살렘까지: 팔레스타인 사람들과 함께한 여성 정형외과 의사의 기록>에 대한 요약과 평론입니다.
설정해 두신 원칙에 따라, 책 제목은 한국어로 번역하였으며 저에게 하시는 말씀 외에 본문(요약 및 평론)은 철저히 하라체(반말)로 작성했습니다. 또한 TTS 리더기의 작동을 방해하지 않도록 모든 강조 표시는 별표 대신 < > 기호를 사용했습니다.
<베이루트에서 예루살렘까지: 팔레스타인 사람들과 함께한 여성 정형외과 의사의 기록> 요약 및 평론
1. 서론: 편견에서 목격자로의 여정
<베이루트에서 예루살렘까지>는 싱가포르 태생의 정형외과 의사 수이 차이 앙이 1982년 레바논 전쟁 직후 베이루트의 팔레스타인 난민 캠프에서 의료 봉사를 하며 겪은 참상과 연대의 기록이다. 저자는 독실한 기독교인이자 한때 이스라엘의 건국 신화를 전적으로 지지하던 인물이었다. 미디어를 통해 팔레스타인 인들을 그저 <테러리스트>로만 인식했던 저자는 레바논 전쟁의 참상을 목격한 후, 영국의 기독교 의료 구호 단체의 부름에 응하여 베이루트로 향한다. 이 책은 한 의사가 가졌던 개인적 편견이 무너지고, 역사의 가장 어두운 구석에서 고통받는 이들의 생생한 목격자이자 대변인으로 거듭나는 과정을 담은 내밀한 고백록이다.
2. 본론 1: 요약 — 사브라와 샤틸라, 그리고 인간성이라는 전장
저자의 여정은 1982년 8월, 이스라엘의 레바논 침공으로 폐허가 된 베이루트에 도착하면서 본격적으로 시작된다. 저자가 배치된 곳은 가자 병원(Gaza Hospital)이었으며, 이곳은 사브라와 샤틸라 난민 캠프 주민들의 생명선이었다. 저자는 난민들의 비참한 현실 속에서도 그들이 보여주는 따뜻한 인간성과 존엄성에 깊은 감명을 받는다. 그들은 단순한 난민이나 테러리스트가 아니라, 조국을 잃고 유랑하는 평범한 어머니, 아버지, 아이들이었다.
그러나 이 짧은 교감은 인류 역사상 가장 잔혹한 학살 중 하나로 꼽히는 <사브라·샤틸라 학살 사건>으로 인해 피로 물든다. 1982년 9월, 이스라엘 군의 비호 아래 레바논 우익 기독교 팔랑헤 민병대가 캠프를 봉쇄하고 사흘 동안 무차별 학살을 감행했다. 병원 안에서 밀려드는 부상자들을 치료하기 위해 잠도 자지 않고 수술을 집도하던 저자는 창문 너머로 자행되는 학살의 공포를 실시간으로 겪는다. 임산부, 노인, 어린이 할 것 없이 수천 명의 민간인이 처참하게 목숨을 잃었다.
이스라엘 군에 의해 병원에서 쫓겨난 저자는 학살이 끝난 캠프의 처참한 풍경을 목격한다. 잔해 속에 나뒹굴던 시신들과 악취, 그리고 살아남은 자들의 절규는 저자의 영혼에 깊은 낙인을 남겼다. 저자는 이 사건의 국제적 목격자가 되어 카한 위원회(Kahan Commission) 등에서 학살의 전말을 증언했다. 이후 저자는 영국으로 돌아갔으나 팔레스타인 사람들을 잊지 못하고, 뜻을 함께하는 동료들과 <팔레스타인 Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP)>를 설립하여 의료 구호 활동을 지속한다. 책의 후반부는 베이루트를 넘어 가자 지구와 서안 지구(예루살렘)로 확장되는 저자의 의료 연대와, 1980년대 후반 팔레스타인 민중 봉기인 인티파다(Intifada)를 거치며 겪은 억압과 저항의 역사를 다룬다.
3. 본론 2: 평론 — 인도주의의 한계와 정치적 목격의 힘
역사적·정치적 가치: 왜곡된 서사에 대항하는 생생한 기록
이 책의 가장 큰 문학적, 역사적 성취는 거대 권력과 미디어가 왜곡해 온 팔레스타인 잔혹사에 대해 매우 구체적이고 사적인 반론을 제기한다는 점에 있다. 저자는 거창한 정치적 이데올로기를 앞세우지 않는다. 대신 자신이 집도한 수술, 자신이 만난 환자들의 이름, 아이들의 웃음소리를 통해 거대한 역사적 비극을 철저히 인간의 얼굴로 환원시킨다. 사브라·샤틸라 학살이라는 중대한 역사적 사건을 내부자의 시선으로 묘사함으로써, 이 책은 단순한 회고록을 넘어 국제 정치적 범죄를 고발하는 강력한 법정 증언대의 역할을 수행한다.
윤리적 가치: 중립이라는 환상과 연대의 의무
수이 차이 앙의 태도는 소위 <기계적 중립>을 지키는 일반적인 국제 구호 단체의 접근법과 궤를 달리한다. 저자는 고통받는 이들 편에 서는 것이 의사로서의 윤리적 의무라고 확언한다. 가해자와 피해자가 명확한 구조 속에서 중립을 지키는 것은 가해자의 폭력에 묵인하는 것과 다름없음을 온몸으로 보여준다. 싱가포르 출신의 기독교인 여성 정형외과 의사라는 이방인으로서의 정체성은, 오히려 국가나 민족, 종교라는 장벽을 뛰어넘어 오직 <인간의 고통>에만 반응하는 보편적 인류애의 가능성을 증명한다. 애국심이나 특정 국가에 대한 충성심이 아닌, 고통받는 타인에 대한 책임감이 어떻게 한 인간을 역사의 중심부로 이끄는가에 대한 훌륭한 예시이다.
문학적·내러티브적 한계: 감정적 과잉과 구조적 단순성
비록 이 책이 가진 진정성과 고발의 가치는 압도적이지만, 문학적인 관점에서는 몇 가지 아쉬움이 존재한다. 저자가 겪은 감정적 충격이 워낙 컸던 탓에, 텍스트 전반에 걸쳐 감정적 서술과 종교적 심상이 다소 과도하게 반복되는 경향이 있다. 이는 독자에게 상황의 참혹함을 전달하는 데는 효과적일지 모르나, 때로는 냉철한 상황 분석이나 비판적 거리를 유지하는 데 방해가 되기도 한다. 또한, 팔레스타인 사회 내부의 복잡한 정치적 역학 관계나 레바논 내전의 다층적인 원인 분석보다는, 저자가 직접 목격한 선과 악의 이분법적 구도에 서사가 집중되어 있어 거시적인 정치학적 통찰을 기대하는 독자에게는 다소 평면적으로 느껴질 수 있다.
4. 결론: 인간 존엄성을 향한 끝없는 이정표
결론적으로 <베이루트에서 예루살렘까지>는 전쟁의 참상 속에서 피어난 가장 아름다운 연대의 기록이다. 저자는 베이루트의 피비린내 나는 학살터에서 시작하여 예루살렘이라는 평화의 상징적 공간을 향해 나아가며, 폭력이 지배하는 세상에서 의학이, 그리고 인간성이 어떻게 저항의 수단이 될 수 있는지를 웅변한다. 이 책은 국가라는 울타리를 넘어 세계인으로서 타인의 고통에 응답하고자 하는 모든 이들에게 깊은 울림을 주는 인간 존엄성의 이정표이다.
추가적으로 이 책이 다루는 시대적 배경이나, 사브라·샤틸라 학살 사건에 대한 이스라엘 내부의 반응 등 더 깊이 알고 싶으신 부분이 있다면 언제든 말씀해 주세요, 세진님.
Medical Aid for Palestinians
 | |
| Established | 1982 (44 years ago) |
|---|---|
| Founders | Derek Cooper, Pamela Cooper, Ang Swee Chai |
| Headquarters | London |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Chairpersons | Patricia Morris, Baroness Morris of Bolton |
Medical Aid for Palestinians (MAP) is a British charity[1] that offers medical services in the West Bank, Gaza and Lebanon, and advocates for Palestinians' rights to health and dignity.[2] It is in special consultative status with ECOSOC since 2002.[3]
Aim and history
Medical Aid for Palestinians' stated aim is to meet the humanitarian needs of the Palestinian people. The organization and its programmes have been supported by the British public, the UK Government (DfID), the European Union and international aid organizations. They deliver basic health and medical care to Palestinian refugees and they strive to establish permanent medical infrastructure in Palestinian communities by training health care practitioners, teaching medical vocational skills and addressing the requirements of particularly vulnerable groups such as people with disabilities.
MAP was founded in 1982 by Dr Ang Swee Chai, Major Derek Cooper, and his wife, Mrs Pamela Cooper,[4] in the wake of the 1982 Sabra and Shatila massacre in Lebanon.[5] Its president is Baroness Morris of Bolton who succeeded Chris Patten and Helena Kennedy, Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws.
In July 2023, due to a reported increase in "attacks on healthcare workers and ambulances by Israeli forces and settlers", MAP diverted from its usual strategy of providing healthcare to supplying bulletproof vests and helmets for the protection of Palestinian health workers.[6] Later that year, in response to the Gaza war, the organisation launched an emergency appeal to provide essential healthcare and medical aid in Gaza.[7] The appeal was supported by London mayor Sadiq Khan.[8][9]
In 2024, an auction, Cinema for Gaza, was organised for MAP, raising over $52,000 on the first day.[10] It included donations from Tilda Swinton, Brian Cox, Ken Loach, Joanna Hogg, Mike Leigh, Ramy Youssef, Maxine Peake, Frankie Boyle, Aisling Bea, Aimee Lou Wood, Peter Capaldi, Karen Gillan and more.[11] The auction, which started on April 2, would end on April 12.[12]
Programmes
Direct aid
Medical Aid for Palestinians works with local non-governmental organizations and the Palestinian Health Service or provide practical medical support to Palestinians living under occupation or as refugees. Its programs cover the five priority areas in the occupied Palestinian territory and Palestinian refugee communities in Lebanon:[13]
- Essential primary and public healthcare
- Women and children's health
- Emergency preparedness and response
- Mental health and psycho-social support
- Disability
Advocacy and campaigns
MAP actively campaigns in the UK to raise awareness about violations of the Palestinian right to health,[14] which is threatened by ongoing conflict, prolonged occupation and displacement. Working in coalition with other NGOs, the scope of MAP's advocacy programme ranges from raising public awareness to advocating on salient issues with governments and policy makers.
References
- "MEDICAL AID FOR PALESTINIANS - Charity 1045315". register-of-charities charitycommission government United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 2021-11-20. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
- "What We Do". map-united Kingdom. Archived from the original on 13 February 2021. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
- "United Nations Civil Society Participation – Apply for Consultative Status". esango United Nations. Archived from the original on 2021-11-20. Retrieved 2021-11-20.
- "Derek Cooper Archive". mapping asia. Archived from the original on 2007-07-14. Retrieved 2007-08-07.
- "Medical Aid for Palestinians - Who We Are". map United Kingdom. Archived from the original on 2023-05-11. Retrieved 2019-06-05.
- McKernan, Bethan (20 July 2023). "West Bank medics given bulletproof vests after 'rise in attacks by Israeli forces'". The Guardian. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- "How to Help Victims of the Israel-Gaza War". Time. 13 October 2023. Archived from the original on 13 October 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- "Humanitarian aid in the Middle East". London government United Kingdom. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- "Sadiq Khan visits 'Medical Aid for Palestinians' charity". Yahoo News. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- "Cinema For Gaza Raises $50,000 In First Day". The Republic Reporter. 3 April 2024. Archived from the original on 3 April 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
- Shoard, Catherine (2024-03-27). "Tilda Swinton bedtime story among Cinema for Gaza auction lots". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- "Cinema for Gaza | Powered by Givergy". Cinema for Gaza. Retrieved 2024-03-28.
- "Medical Aid for Palestinians submission to the UN Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights ahead of visit to Lebanon" (PDF). OHCHR. 8 October 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
- "DevelopmentAid". DevelopmentAid. Archived from the original on 13 June 2025. Retrieved 13 June 2025.
External links
<베이루트에서 예루살렘까지> 독자 리뷰 요약 및 평론
1. 도입: 세계 독자들이 마주한 목격의 기록
수이 차이 앙(Swee Chai Ang) 박사의 <베이루트에서 예루살렘까지>는 출간 이후 수십 년 동안 전 세계 독자들에게 강렬한 감정적 충격과 윤리적 각성을 안겨주었다
2. 리뷰 내용 요약: 독자들이 찾아낸 핵심 서사와 감정
가. 변화와 각성의 여정: <근본주의 기독교인>에서 <행동하는 의사>로
많은 독자는 저자의 극적인 사상적 변화에 깊은 인상과 매력을 느꼈다
나. 사브라·샤틸라 학살의 끔찍한 현장성
리뷰어들은 책에 묘사된 1982년 9월의 학살 사건을 읽으며 큰 정신적 충격과 슬픔을 토로했다
다. 팔레스타인 민중의 품격과 일상적 용기
독자들은 비극 속에서도 빛나는 팔레스타인 인들의 존엄성과 환대 문화에 주목했다
라. 동남아시아(인도네시아·말레이시아) 독자들의 연대감
리뷰의 상당수를 차지하는 인도네시아 및 말레이시아 독자들은 저자의 배경에 강한 유대감을 느꼈다
3. 독자 리뷰에 기반한 평론: 기억의 투쟁과 지속되는 비극
가. <비선점된 목격자>가 가지는 서사의 힘
이 책이 전 세계 독자들에게 수십 년간 생명력을 유지하는 비결은 저자의 <탈정치적 시작점>에 있다
나. 과거의 기록과 현재의 거울: 2020년대 독자들의 현재적 공명
리뷰 중에서 특히 주목할 점은 2023년에서 2026년에 이르는 최근 독자들의 반응이다
다. 비판적 시각: 서사의 주관성과 편집의 한계
드물게 나타나는 부정적 의견이나 한계점 역시 존재한다
라. 동남아시아 수용 맥락의 다층성
인도네시아와 말레이시아 독자들이 보인 폭발적인 공감은 종교적 연대감(움마, Ummah)과 식민지 경험이라는 두 가지 층위에서 이해할 수 있다
4. 결론: 침묵을 깨는 목격의 영속성
<베이루트에서 예루살렘까지>의 독자 리뷰들은 이 책이 단순한 종이 위의 기록이 아니라, 독자의 마음속에서 끊임없이 재해석되는 하나의 <살아있는 유기체>임을 보여준다
리뷰 원문을 분석해 보니, 세진님께서 말씀하신 대로 인도네시아나 말레이시아 독자분들이 남긴 감동적인 개인적 소회와 종교·민족을 초월한 연대의 메시지가 아주 뚜렷하게 드러나 있었습니다
『From Beirut to Jerusalem』 독자서평 자료 요약+평론
자료: Amazon/Goodreads 리뷰 모음
이 리뷰 모음의 특징은 분명합니다. Amazon 리뷰는 주로 영어권 독자들이 “전쟁 현장 의료 증언”으로 이 책을 평가하는 반면, Goodreads 리뷰는 말레이시아·인도네시아 독자가 많아 보이며, 그들은 이 책을 더 강하게 <팔레스타인 연대의 증언>, <무슬림 세계의 상처>, <식민주의와 전쟁폭력의 기억>으로 읽습니다.
내용 요약
리뷰들이 공통적으로 강조하는 책의 핵심은 세 가지입니다.
첫째, 스위 차이 앙은 원래 팔레스타인 문제에 깊이 관여한 사람이 아니었다. 싱가포르/말레이시아계 기독교인 여성 의사로서, 처음에는 서방 언론과 기독교권 담론의 영향을 받아 이스라엘 쪽에 더 호의적이었다고 여러 리뷰가 설명한다. 그러나 1982년 레바논 전쟁과 베이루트, 사브라·샤틸라 난민촌 경험이 그녀의 세계관을 바꾸었다.
둘째, 책의 중심은 사브라·샤틸라 학살이다. 여러 리뷰는 이 책을 “목격 증언”, “가슴 찢어지는 기록”, “팔레스타인 고통의 생생한 현장 보고”라고 부른다. 특히 독자들은 어린이, 여성, 노인, 부상자, 병원, 시신, 난민촌의 장면을 가장 강하게 기억한다. 이 책은 전쟁을 전략이나 외교의 언어가 아니라 부상당한 몸과 죽은 민간인의 얼굴로 보여준다.
셋째, 책은 단순한 비극 기록이 아니라 저자의 변화 이야기다. Goodreads의 말레이/인도네시아어 리뷰들은 특히 이 점을 강하게 읽는다. “나는 아랍인도 무슬림도 아니지만 팔레스타인을 지지하는 것은 정치가 아니라 인간적 책임”이라는 저자의 태도가 반복적으로 인용된다. 독자들은 이 책을 읽고 “팔레스타인을 새롭게 보게 되었다”, “눈물이 났다”, “침묵할 수 없게 되었다”고 말한다.
리뷰들의 특징
Amazon 리뷰는 비교적 차분합니다. “훌륭한 증언”, “강력한 책”, “추천한다”, “의료인의 용기” 같은 표현이 많습니다. 일부는 책의 편집 상태나 OCR 오류 같은 실무적 문제도 지적합니다.
Goodreads 리뷰는 훨씬 감정적이고 정치적입니다. 특히 말레이시아·인도네시아 독자들은 이 책을 단순한 회고록이 아니라 <팔레스타인 고난을 세계 무슬림/제3세계 독자가 받아들이는 통로>로 읽습니다. 여기에는 종교적 공감, 반식민주의 감각, 이스라엘 군사행동에 대한 분노, 서방 언론에 대한 불신이 함께 들어 있습니다.
흥미로운 점은, 이 독자들이 스위 차이 앙이 무슬림도 아랍인도 아니라는 사실을 오히려 중요하게 본다는 점입니다. 즉, 팔레스타인 연대가 “무슬림 편들기”가 아니라 보편적 인간 양심의 문제라는 증거로 읽는 것입니다.
평론
이 리뷰 자료를 통해 보면, 『From Beirut to Jerusalem』은 일반적인 중동 정치 입문서가 아닙니다. 이 책의 힘은 균형 잡힌 외교 분석이 아니라 <목격자의 윤리>에 있습니다. 한 외과의사가 죽어가는 사람들 곁에서 본 것을 기록했고, 독자들은 바로 그 직접성 때문에 책을 신뢰합니다.
그러나 동시에 이 책은 강한 편향성을 가진 증언문학입니다. 이스라엘 사회 내부의 공포, 레바논 내전의 복잡성, 팔레스타인 내부 정치의 문제는 상대적으로 적게 보입니다. 한 Goodreads 독자는 이런 점을 비판하며 “역사를 말하면서 정치적 관점이 너무 강하다”고 지적합니다. 이 비판은 무시할 수 없습니다.
하지만 증언문학을 평가할 때 “중립성 부족”만을 기준으로 삼으면 핵심을 놓칩니다. 사브라·샤틸라 같은 사건 앞에서 증언자는 완전한 중립자가 되기 어렵습니다. 오히려 이 책은 “전쟁의 피해자가 누구인가”라는 질문에 집중합니다. 그 점에서 이 책은 역사학보다 구술사, 정치학보다 인권문학에 가깝습니다.
인도네시아·말레이시아 독자들의 열렬한 반응은 이 책의 수용사를 보여줍니다. 팔레스타인 문제는 그들에게 먼 중동 문제가 아니라, 식민주의·종교·정의·서방 권력에 대한 기억과 연결된 세계적 도덕 문제입니다. 그래서 이 책은 영어권에서는 “훌륭한 전쟁 의료 회고록”으로, 동남아 무슬림권 독자들에게는 “팔레스타인 양심의 증언서”로 읽히는 차이가 생깁니다.
결론적으로 이 리뷰 모음은 책 자체만큼이나 중요합니다. 그것은 한 책이 서로 다른 독자 공동체에서 어떻게 다르게 살아나는지를 보여줍니다.
<한 줄 평가>
<이 책은 팔레스타인 문제를 설명하는 책이라기보다, 팔레스타인 사람들의 고통을 외면할 수 없게 만드는 증언의 책이다.>
No comments:
Post a Comment