Israel/Palestine
In reply to the discussion: For Palestinian Kids in Hebron, Little Joy on Back-to-School Day [View all]Shaktimaan
(5,397 posts)apartheid hinges on the concept of segregation. In this expanded sense, it seems to be more centered around the concept of enforcing different rules for different groups, regardless of the presence of segregation, correct? And while traditional apartheid referred to the policy of segregation specifically between different races, this newer definition seems to include any of the categories that discrimination is frequently applied to, like citizenship, ethnicity, religion, etc., instead of just race, right? (As you said, "2 groups living under the jurisdiction with different laws governing them according to..."
So here's my problem with this definition of apartheid. According to it, a great deal of nations and institutions clearly qualify as practitioners of apartheid! To start, every Arab state. Jordan has different "levels" of citizenship, Lebanon treats Palestinian refugees very differently, the Saudis practice sexism, etc. Also Iran for similar reasons, both sexist and religious. Palestine, obviously, with their regulations against selling land to Israelis.
Beyond those obvious ones, America is next, for its distinct rules regarding citizens versus greencard holders versus illegals. Not to mention the legal discrimination faced by the LGBT community. Within America there are institutions like the universities who determine entrance credentials via a system that weights them differently depending on things like race and legacies. Once accepted, different groups pay different amounts depending on where they are from. In state tuition is far lower than out of state. Not to mention insurance agencies which discriminate according to criteria such as gender and age.
Lastly is the UN itself which discriminates against certain states based on political considerations. Israel, for example, is the only state denied the opportunity to sit on the UN security council based on a combination of politics and (far moreso) religious persecution. If Israel were not a Jewish state, but instead a Muslim one, there is no question it would be admitted to its regional group and eventually allowed to sit on the UNSC.
Now, when the UN can not even rid itself of apartheid, then doesn't the term begin to lose much of its significance? If everyone and everything practices apartheid, is it even really bad anymore?