There seems to be a growing trend recently towards accusing people dissenting against a particular regime of harbouring more general grudges against entire nations or races. This has been evident in relation to several issues.

For example, criticism of the Bush regime is depicted by its supporters at every possible opportunity of reflecting a generalised 'anti-Americanism' on the part of the critics. There may be a large cross-over between people who oppose of this governernment and those who are against American corporate imperialism, but to extend this to hatred of an entire country is ridiculous, and the tarring of dissenters with this brush is not only unfair, it is dishonest.

The second example I have noticed with increasing regularity is allegations that criticism of Israeli policy is anti-Semitic (or Judaeophobic to coin a new buzzword). This is more claptrap. There is of course a full spectrum of political points of view among Jews, including an admirable liberal tradition going back for centuries. Even Israel itself has been a cause celebre for the left in the aftermath of the Second World War. It is only the subsequent aggressive Israeli policy vis-a-vis its neighbours which led so many question whether Israel is going too far. Whether one supports the robust militarist policies of the Sharon regime is entirely independent of any wider racist agenda, and all allegations to the contrary should be treated with the disdain they deserve.

Finally, this week's Commonwealth meeting provides another case of this particularly unsavoury rhetoric. The support of Robert Mugabe by other African leaders at the conference is defended on the grounds of racism on the part of the 'white' Commonwealth countries, and the fact that such countries could not possibly understand the African way. They also accuse these countries of being anti-Mugabe purely because of the fate of white farmers in Zimbabwe. They unforgivably ignore the plight of millions of starving Zimbabweans who are seeing their country ravaged by a man who is in power because of elctoral fraud, and who violently stifles all political dissent. In order to spite a 'white man's club', they have created a club of their own, a clique of African leaders committed to support each other before they think of their populations who suffer for their actions.

This type of jibe, whichever side of the political fence it comes from, needs to be dismissed at every opportunity in order to encourage debate on the issues, and not on demonised, polarised positions created by those eager to deflect attention away from subjects they would rather avoid discussing in any depth.