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The Forum > Article Comments > Does the CPACS boycott of Israel pass the 'racism' test? > Comments

Does the CPACS boycott of Israel pass the 'racism' test? : Comments

By Daniel Meyerowitz-Katz, published 31/1/2013

Is there a hidden reason for the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies' selective targeting of Israel?

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Does Zionism and its treatment of Palestinians pass the racism test? No, hence BDS. No doubt others who regard Israel's treatment of Palestinians as apartheid, like Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu, the Council of South African Trade Unions, (all of whom know a thing or two about apartheid) are racists too. This article is fantasy stuff seeking refuge in slurs to defend the inherent racism of Zionism and its apartheid practices against Palestinians.

Were we wrong to campaign against South African apartheid (with which, I note, Israel had close links) and implement the equivalent of BDS then? Were we racist in doing that? Of course not, just as we are not today in pointing out the apartheid state that is Israel.
Posted by Passy, Thursday, 31 January 2013 12:30:08 PM
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"the Nazis or the Spanish Inquisition. These analogies merely illustrate the age-old anti-Jewish imagery employed by the BDS movement in general and CPACS in particular"

I couldn't see anything in the article to justify this statement. The nearest I could find related to alleged statements by Jake Lynch, CPACS director. And the link in the article, which looked as though it would be a link to further details of what he had said, was a link to an article about what he was alleged to have said, with no direct quotes or further links.

What is is with OLO contributors? Are you writing only for readers stupid enough that you can be sure they don't want further particulars, verification, etc, of what you say? Or do you seriously not want readers to follow up on such details? As it is, I've no real idea what Lynch said.

The point about Morocco and the Spanish Sahara is worth making. Personally I am much more horrified about Israel's conduct than that of Morocco because
(1) I don't know why the Spanish Sahara gets so much less publicity than Palestine, but possibly the reasons also mean it is genuinely less to be horrified about
(2) The fact that our own Government (and even more so, our allies in the west generally) so strongly support Israel makes it more topical for us here than the situation of Morocco
(3) There's certainly no suggestion that the Moroccan government is carving up the Spanish Sahara into chunks and excluding the local people from large parts of it, as is happening in Palestine.

None of which has anything to do with racism. In fact, if racism (as n distinguishing between Jews and non-Jews) is an issue, it's even more of a reason for focussing on Israel - exclusion of Palestinians because they are not Jews is pretty much the reason for my strong opposition to Israel and its policies.
Posted by jeremy, Thursday, 31 January 2013 1:16:08 PM
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just a note Daniel. The Jews did hand the Christ over to be murdered and called for his blood to be upon them. They are however no more guilty than any other sinners like you and me. He (Christ) could of escaped the cross anytime He chose. Instead He offered His life as a sacrifice.
Posted by runner, Thursday, 31 January 2013 1:55:38 PM
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Passy
All Israeli citizens, Jewish and non-Jewish, are entitled to vote in elections. There have been Arabs in every Knesset since Israel was established. That’s quite a big difference from apartheid South Africa.

Using anti-zionism as a cover for anti-Jewish racism is an old ploy, and one used as much by the left as the right:

http://www.standpointmag.co.uk/node/4363/full

My main objection to the BDS movement is that it has only one main target. Israel has a lot to answer for, but its human rights record is not the worst in the world, or indeed the Middle East. The accusation of anti-Jewish racism will carry weight until BDS advocates can explain why Israel is deserves such treatment while North Korea, Syria, Libya, Sudan, China, Saudi Arabia, Burma, Uzbekistan, Eritrea etc. do not
Posted by Rhian, Thursday, 31 January 2013 3:04:00 PM
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In answer to Passy ...part 1

I really suggest that you look up what apartheid is and South African Apartheid if you think there is any comparison.

Khaled Abu Toameh, who is an Israeli Arab journalist will tell you no such condition exists in Israel. He says he lives in Jerusalem in a Jewish neighbourhood, his children attend a school with Jewish children, he works for an Israeli publication. He gets treatment in hospital and more. And that is not apartheid.

In SA the black people were not even permitted to drink out of the same water bubbler as a white person. They certainly couldn't attend a higher institute of learning. they had no rights, they didn't have the vote and were beaten for no reason when the whites felt like it.

In Israel. Arabs have the vote. There have been Arabs in the Knesset - parliament, since the very first one in 1949.

There are Arab Judges, Arab Foreign Ambassadors, Arabs in every occupation imaginable. In fact two days ago an Arab was 2nd in Master Chef in Israel.
I was at Tel Aviv University last year and was amazed at the high number of Arab students. I sat in McDonald's on Tel Aviv beach and chatted. On a number of occasions I had Arab taxi drivers. My nephew had a Arab do the painting in his house.

That is not apartheid.
Posted by SF, Thursday, 31 January 2013 4:53:18 PM
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In answer to Passy part 2

Arabs as citizens can buy houses wherever they please (there are Arab minorities in the predominately Jewish cities of Acre, Ramle, Jaffa, Carmiel, Safed and Netanya but there is not one Jew living in any Arab town or village in the entire country!

Believe it or not! The reason is simple. Any Jew moving into an Arab town is assured that his house will be set alight the very same night. This is the fate of several Jews who bought houses in the Druze village of Peki’in. Their houses were destroyed, they barely survived, a riot ensured, the locals kidnapped a policewoman for several hours until calm was finally returned to the village.

This in a village famous for its hospitality to Jews -- as long as they remain guests and not residents. That is the apartheid in Israel!

Anyone visiting Israel knows this is true. It’s also true that in Judea and Samaria, the heart of ancient Israel , the local Arabs decided in 1967 to be called “Palestinians”.

That no one saw them as a separate people before 1967 is irrelevant. That they have no unique national history, religion or customs is also irrelevant. That only two countries ever recognised the territory as belonging to Jordan or to any other Arab state is also irrelevant.

The new “Palestinian” dogma became: the Jews conquered the land, so we, the new Palestinians want it back (but you never had it in the first place!)
Posted by SF, Thursday, 31 January 2013 5:03:47 PM
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