The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Campaign against Israel is ... working!
March 10, 2009 - 2:26pm
"The growing protest against the atrocities committed by the Israeli military in the Gaza Strip has begun to change something in the Israeli political discourse, and the first indication of this can already be seen in the Israeli economic media. Although the Israeli economic media doesn't concern itself with the moral dimension of the attacks on Gaza, the economic dimension of recent events has created a rising level of concern. "
The Marker, an Israeli magazine for economic news, outlines a number of successes by the BDS campaign.
http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/hever090309.html
Alternative Information Centre: http://www.alternativenews.org/
AIPAC is becoming concerned
Related thread
I will never stop drinking Starbucks!!
I have never drank Starbucks! :D
And my dog loves Purina
U apparently do not love your dog! ;)
As much as I love my nokia cell phone
Never had one of them either.
And you probably never watched a Disney or Touchstone movie
Jaku, get on topic or get out. Seriously. You're trolling.
The Jerusalem Light Rail project, an illegal project that aims at connecting Israeli colonies built on occupied Palestinian territory to the city of Jerusalem, is one of the first major victims of the BDS campaign:
Veolia has had to contend not only with the delays and difficulties in building the light rail project itself, but with political pressure at home as well. Two months ago a French court heard a lawsuit by a pro-Palestinian group, demanding that the light rail project be halted.
The organization based itself on an article in French law that allows the court to void business agreements, signed by French companies, that violate international law.
The political pressure on Veolia has been mounting in another direction. According to various reports abroad, the French firm had been losing major projects in Europe because of its involvement in the Jerusalem job. Observers claim that's the real reason Veolia opted out.
Update Sept. 19, 2009
I am not sure in the days of parts being built in so many different places if we will ever know 100% that no parts used or technology come from either Israel or an Israeli scientist.
As far as touchstone goes. I thought that their was an Israeli business person who was a minority owner of touchstone -- i thought it was the same person who used to own carnival cruise or maybe still does. and since carnival is the largest cruise line in the world (owning something like 10 other lines)
does that mean that almost all cruises would be verboten?
Courageous Canadian film maker John Greyson pulls his film from the Toronto International Film Festival to protest their "spotlight on Tel Aviv".
Let's be clear: my protest isn't against the films or filmmakers you've chosen. I've seen brilliant works of Israeli and Palestinian cinema at past TIFFs, and will again in coming years. My protest is against the Spotlight itself, and the smug business-as-usual aura it promotes of a "vibrant metropolis [and] dynamic young city... commemorating its centennial", seemingly untroubled by other anniversaries, such as the 42nd anniversary of the occupation. Isn't such an uncritical celebration of Tel Aviv right now akin to celebrating Montgomery buses in 1963, California grapes in 1969, Chilean wines in 1973, Nestles infant formula in 1984, or South African fruit in 1991?
Funny a film maker has more moral fortitude than the entire United Church of Canada. Go figure ...
ETA: A very powerful film.
Why Uri Avnery is wrong on the Israel boycott question
"Uri Avnery opposes the brutality inflicted on Palestinians. He campaigns for peace with Palestinians. But he also has a Zionist past. He is European born and fought for the terrorist Irgun in perpetration of a holocaust (Nakba) against Palestinans. He later renounced Irgun's tactics. He is antiwar, but he is not anti-the fruits of war. He approves of a two state solution. In other words, Israeli Jews will keep the fruits of their dispossessing others - this while continuing to press for the return of what they were dispossessed."
All Hail the Israeli..hoch...ptui.
TIFF: Celebrating Israeli Colonialism, Ethnic Cleansing and Apartheid
http://www.pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=1085
City to City Spotlight on Tel Aviv at the Toronto International Film Festival is disgusting and obscene
Bravo to John Greyson, who has pulled his film from TIFF to protest their tribute to Tel Aviv.
(Full text of his letter included.)
Dear Piers, Cameron and Noah
I've come to a very difficult decision --I'm withdrawing my film Covered from TIFF, in protest against your inaugural City-to-City Spotlight on Tel Aviv.
In the Canadian Jewish News, Israeli Consul General Amir Gissin described how this Spotlight is the culmination of his year-long Brand Israel campaign, which includes bus/radio/TV ads, the ROM's notorious Dead Sea Scrolls exhibit, and "a major Israeli presence at next year¹s Toronto International Film Festival, with numerous Israeli, Hollywood and Canadian entertainment luminaries on hand." Gissen said Toronto was chosen as a test-city for Brand Israel by Israel's Foreign Ministry, and thanked Astral, MIJO and Canwest for donating the million-dollar budget. (Astral is of course a long-time TIFF sponsor, and Canwest owners' Asper Foundation donated $500,000 to TIFF). "We've got a real product to sell to Canadians... The lessons learned from Toronto will inform the worldwide launch of Brand Israel in the coming years, Gissin said."
This past year has also seen: the devastating Gaza massacre of eight months ago, resulting in over 1000 civilian deaths; the election of a Prime Minister accused of war crimes; the aggressive extension of illegal Israeli settlements on Palestinian lands; the accelerated destruction of Palestinian homes and orchards; the viral growth of the totalitarian security wall, and the further enshrining of the check-point system. Such state policies have led diverse figures such as John Berger, Jimmy Carter, and Bishop Desmond Tutu to characterize this 'brand' as apartheid. Your TIFF program book may describe Tel Aviv as a "vibrant young city... of beaches, cafes and cultural ferment... that celebrates its diversity," but it's also been called "a kind of alter-Gaza, the smiling face of Israeli apartheid" (Naomi Klein) and "the only city in the west without Arab residents" (Tel Aviv filmmaker Udi Aloni).
To my mind, this isn't the right year to celebrate Brand Israel, or to demonstrate an ostrich-like indifference to the realities (cinematic and otherwise) of the region, or to pointedly ignore the international economic boycott campaign against Israel.
Oh, whoops, I didn't notice that M. Spector posted this already above. :)
BDS: Norweigan Pension Fund Divests from Israel's Elbit Ltd.
http://www.bdsmovement.net/?q=node/533
"The Ministry of Finance has excluded the Israeli company Elbit Systems Ltd. from the Government Pension Fund GLobal on the basis of the Council of Ethics recommendation: "we do not wish to fund companies that so directly contribute to violations of International Humanitarian law," says Finance Minister.."
Wednesday, September 2, 2009
The Toronto Declaration: No Celebration of Occupation
An Open Letter to the Toronto International Film Festival
As members of the Canadian and international film, culture and media arts communities, we are deeply disturbed by the Toronto International Film Festival's decision to host a celebratory spotlight on Tel Aviv. We protest that TIFF, whether intentionally or not, has become complicit in the Israeli propaganda machine.
In 2008, the Israeli government and Canadian partners Sidney Greenberg of Astral Media, David Asper of Canwest Global Communications and Joel Reitman of MIJO Corporation launched "Brand Israel," a million dollar media and advertising campaign aimed at changing Canadian perceptions of Israel. Brand Israel would take the focus off Israel's treatment of Palestinians and its aggressive wars, and refocus it on achievements in medicine, science and culture. An article in Canadian Jewish News quotes Israeli consul general Amir Gissin as saying that Toronto would be the test city for a promotion that could then be deployed around the world. According to Gissin, the culmination of the campaign would be a major Israeli presence at the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. (Andy Levy-Alzenkopf, "Brand Israel set to launch in GTA," Canadian Jewish News, August 28, 2008.)
In 2009, TIFF announced that it would inaugurate its new City to City program with a focus on Tel Aviv. According to program notes by Festival co-director and City to City programmer Cameron Bailey, "The ten films in this year's City to City programme will showcase the complex currents running through today's Tel Aviv. Celebrating its 100th birthday in 2009, Tel Aviv is a young, dynamic city that, like Toronto, celebrates its diversity."
The emphasis on 'diversity' in City to City is empty given the absence of Palestinian filmmakers in the program. Furthermore, what this description does not say is that Tel Aviv is built on destroyed Palestinian villages, and that the city of Jaffa, Palestine's main cultural hub until 1948, was annexed to Tel Aviv after the mass exiling of the Palestinian population. This program ignores the suffering of thousands of former residents and descendants of the Tel Aviv/Jaffa area who currently live in refugee camps in the Occupied Territories or who have been dispersed to other countries, including Canada. Looking at modern, sophisticated Tel Aviv without also considering the city's past and the realities of Israeli occupation of the West Bank and the Gaza strip, would be like rhapsodizing about the beauty and elegant lifestyles in white-only Cape Town or Johannesburg during apartheid without acknowledging the corresponding black townships of Khayelitsha and Soweto.
We do not protest the individual Israeli filmmakers included in City to City, nor do we in any way suggest that Israeli films should be unwelcome at TIFF. However, especially in the wake of this year's brutal assault on Gaza, we object to the use of such an important international festival in staging a propaganda campaign on behalf of what South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu, former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, and UN General Assembly President Miguel d'Escoto Brockmann have all characterized as an apartheid regime.
This letter was drafted by the following ad hoc committee:
Udi Aloni, filmmaker, Israel; Elle Flanders, filmmaker, Canada; Richard Fung, video artist, Canada; John Greyson, filmmaker, Canada; Naomi Klein, writer and filmmaker, Canada; Kathy Wazana, filmmaker, Canada; Cynthia Wright, writer and academic, Canada; b h Yael, film and video artist, Canada
Endorsed by:
Ahmad Abdalla, Filmmaker, Egypt
Hany Abu-Assad, Filmmaker, Palestine
Mark Achbar, Filmmaker, Canada
Zackie Achmat, AIDS activist, South Africa
Ra'anan Alexandrowicz, Filmmaker, Jerusalem
Anthony Arnove, Publisher and Producer, USA
Ruba Atiyeh, Documentary Director, Lebanon
Joslyn Barnes, Writer and Producer, USA
John Berger, Author, France
Dionne Brand, Poet/Writer, Canada
David Byrne, Musician, USA
Guy Davidi Director, Israel
Na-iem Dollie, Journalist/Writer, South Africa
Igor Drljaca, Filmmaker, Canada
Eve Ensler, Playwright, Author, USA
Eyal Eithcowich, Director, Israel
Sophie Fiennes, Filmmaker, UK
Peter Fitting, Professor, Canada
Jane Fonda, Actor and Author, USA
Danny Glover, Filmmaker and Actor, USA
Noam Gonick, Director, Canada
Malcolm Guy, Filmmaker, Canada
Mike Hoolboom, Filmmaker, Canada
Annemarie Jacir, Filmmaker, Palestine
Fredric Jameson, Literary Critic, USA
Juliano Mer Khamis, Filmmaker, Jenin/Haifa
Bonnie Sherr Klein Filmmaker, Canada
Paul Laverty, Producer, UK
Min Sook Lee, Filmmaker, Canada
Paul Lee, Filmmaker, Canada
Yael Lerer, publisher, Tel Aviv
Jack Lewis, Filmmaker, South Africa
Ken Loach, Filmmaker, UK
Arab Lotfi, Filmmaker, Egypt/Lebanon
Kyo Maclear, Author, Toronto
Mahmood Mamdani, Professor, USA
Fatima Mawas, Filmmaker, Australia
Tessa McWatt, Author, Canada and UK
Cornelius Moore, Film Distributor, USA
Yousry Nasrallah, Director, Egypt
Rebecca O'Brien, Producer, UK
Pratibha Parmar, Producer/Director, UK
Jeremy Pikser, Screenwriter, USA
John Pilger, Filmmaker, UK
Shai Carmeli Pollak, Filmmaker, Israel
Ian Iqbal Rashid, Filmmaker, Canada
Judy Rebick, Professor, Canada
David Reeb, Artist, Tel Aviv
B. Ruby Rich, Critic and Professor, USA
Wallace Shawn, Playwright, Actor, USA
Eyal Sivan, Filmmaker and Scholar, Paris/London/Sderot
Elia Suleiman, Fimmlaker, Nazareth/Paris/New York
Eran Torbiner, Filmmaker, Israel
Alice Walker, Writer, USA
Thomas Waugh, Professor, Canada
Howard Zinn, Writer, USA
Slavoj Zizek, Professor, Slovenia
To add your name to this letter, please send your name, occupation and country to tiff.letter[at]gmail.com. We will accept signatures until September 8, 2009
Ilan Pappe says: A big thank you!
... to the Norwegian minister of finance, Kristin Halvorsen, for personally making the announcement that the Norwegian government would withdraw its investments in the Israeli hi-tech company Elbit, because of its role in the construction of the illegal apartheid Wall:
[Latter quote is from NDPP's link upthread.]
Pappe concludes:
Why we back the boycott call
Ken Loach, Rebecca O'Brien and Paul Laverty
The Electronic Intifada, 7 September 2009
This decision was taken by three filmmakers, (director, producer, writer) not in some private abstract bubble, but after a long discussion and in response to a call for a cultural boycott from a wide spectrum of Palestinian civil society, including writers, filmmakers, cultural workers, human rights groups, journalists, trade unions, women's groups and student organizations. As Moore should know by now the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI) was launched in Ramallah in April 2004, and its aims, reasons and constituent parts are widely available on the net. PACBI is part of a much wider international movement for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against the Israeli state....
At a recent BDS event in the West Bank town of Ramallah, author Naomi Klein made a very good point when she argued that there is no exact equivalency between Israel and South Africa. She said, "The question is not 'Is Israel the same as South Africa?' It is, 'do Israel's actions meet the international definition of what apartheid is?' And if you look at those conditions which includes the transfer of people, multiple tiers of law, official state segregation, then you see that, yes, it does meet that definition -- which is different than saying it is South Africa. No two states are the same. It's not the question, it's a distraction." Not long after the Gaza invasion we spoke to the head of a human rights organization there who told us that the Israelis were refusing enough chemicals to adequately treat the civilian water supply; a clear example of vindictive collective punishment delivered to one half of the population.
Side thought: If I express any criticism of the Israeli educational system, would I be considered anti-Semitic. Would I need to criticize the educational systems of other countries so that I would not be deemed anti-Semitic?
Israel's Arab Citizens Call for General Strike
http://dissidentvoice.org/2009/09/israel's-arab-citizens-call-general-strike/
"The increasingly harsh political climate in Israel under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right wing government has prompted the leadership of the country's 1.5 million Arab citizens to call the first general strike in several years.."
Follow-up on the Toronto Declaration:
Toronto Declaration Unstoppable
Despite a week of attacks, artists from around the world rush to sign the
declaration
TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Sept. 10, 2009) - The organizers of the
Toronto Declaration - No Celebration of Occupation are pleased to announce
that more than 1000 people from around the world-including many
Israelis-have signed on in protest of TIFF's City-to-City Spotlight on Tel
Aviv. New signatories include music and cinematic legends Harry Belafonte
and Julie Christie. Actor Viggo Mortensen, who will be attending this year's
festival, just added his name. Leading intellectual figures Noam Chomsky,
Judith Butler and Anne McClintock have also recently endorsed the
declaration, along with prominent Canadian writers Rawi Hage, Joy Kogawa,
Dionne Brand, and Kerri Sakamoto. Celebrated local filmmakers Velcro Ripper,
Min Sook Lee and Lynne Fernie have also signed the letter.
International support for the declaration continues to grow despite
denunciations, unfounded personal attacks on earlier signatories Jane Fonda
and Danny Glover, and despite an aggressive campaign of misinformation
regarding the letter's content.
The organizers want to make it clear that the letter does not call for a
boycott of TIFF. Several of the signatories have much anticipated films in
this year's festival and many others plan to attend. Nor is it a protest
against Israeli filmmakers, many of whom signed the letter. It is a
statement of principled opposition to TIFF's highly political decision to
honor the city of Tel-Aviv with a celebratory "spotlight" this year.
Such a celebration, especially in light of the recent Israeli attacks on
Gaza, not only ignores Palestinian suffering, but also helps to whitewash
Israel's continued violations of international law. According to Naomi
Klein, one declaration's co-authors, "Publicly opposing TIFF's decision is
not an act of censorship, but its opposite: the use of cherished rights of
freedom of speech and opinion."
In an effort to promote ongoing critical debate about Tel Aviv, Israel and
Palestine, organizers will be holding a public forum featuring key
signatories on Monday, September 14, 2009. There will be an opportunity for
press to talk to spokespeople prior to the event, beginning at 5pm. Location
and further details to follow.
The full text of the letter, including new signatories is available at:
http://torontodeclaration.blogspot.com/
To add your name to this letter, please send your name, occupation and country to tiff.letter@gmail.com They will accept signatures until September 14, 2009
For further reading on this issue:
Letter by Canadian filmmaker John Greyson on withdrawing his film from the Toronto International Film Festival in protest against City to City:
http://tiny.cc/tiff_open_letter
Response by TIFF co-director Cameron Bailey to Greyson's withdrawal and this petition:
http://www.tiff.net/livefromthefestival/openlettercitytocity
Report in Israeli daily Haaretz:
http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1110750.htmlspages/1110750.html
Report in Guardian newspaper, UK:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/libertycentral/2009/sep/01/israel-palestine-boycott-film
Statement by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel
http://www.pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=1085etemplate.php?id=1085
So if they support sanctions and boycott of Israel, they must really be wild about boycotting the larger source of the problem, the USA? Or is it the general plan to continue boycotting whichever frontline state the US decides to prop up? How many countries and decades later will it be before it all ends?
Naomi Klein: We don't feel like celebrating with Israel this year.
Big step forward for the U.S. BDS campaign
This weekend at the eighth annual US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation national organizers' conference held in Chicago, delegates from the approximately 300 member groups that make up the US Campaign voted in favor of an academic and cultural boycott of Israel. The vote came on the heels of a presentation by Omar Barghouti and myself on behalf of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel and the US Campaign for an Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel.
The proposal that "the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation should endorse the principle of cultural and academic boycotts" passed by a landslide with one abstention and not a single objection. The quasi-unanimous vote, and the deep collective breath of relief that followed, will go down in history as the moment US-based Palestine solidarity activists overcame tactical differences that had long hindered us, to finally come together to confront Israeli apartheid.
Brazilian Parliament recommends freezing out Israelis from third largest export market
This decision is an explicit act of pressure on the Israeli government to comply with international law, and a rejection of years of incessant Israeli lobbying, pressuring for a vote to ratify the agreement....
This decision is an enormous blow for Israel's economy and foreign relations. It poses a massive stumbling block for the enactment of the agreement, which since its signing in 2007 has been stalled due to a lack of ratification by Mercosur member countries. The Mercosur is one of the world's most quickly expanding markets and the fifth largest economy in the world. Israeli exports to the Mercosur amounted nearly 600 million dollars in 2006.
Hugh Lanning, chair of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, said: ‘This motion is the culmination of a wave of motions passed at union conferences this year, following outrage at Israel's brutal war on Gaza, and reflects the massive growth in support for Palestinian rights. We will be working with the TUC to develop a mass campaign to boycott Israeli goods, especially agricultural products that have been produced in illegal Israeli settlements in the Palestinian West Bank.'
The Palestine Telegraph: Britain's Trade Unions Go For a Mass Boycott Against Israel
Unfortunately, the linked article in the last post is a bit one-sided, and the headline is overly enthusiastic (and misleading). Wish it weren't so, but there you go. In fact, the boycott, which is still historic and an enormous step forward, is only related to goods produced in the illegal settlements, as well as a call for a ban on arms sales to Israel. From an AFP release:
In a statement approved by delegates at its annual meeting, the umbrella group of labour unions also condemned the blockade of Gaza and the Israeli offensive on the Palestinian territory at the end of last year. [...]
TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber stressed, however, that the TUC is not calling for a wider boycott of Israel.
"We believe that targeted action, aimed at goods from the illegal settlements and at companies involved in the occupation and the wall is the right way forward," he said.
"This is not a call for a general boycott of Israeli goods and services which would hit ordinary Palestinian and Israeli workers, but targeted, consumer-led sanctions directed at businesses based in, and sustaining, the illegal settlements."
Source.
Notwithstanding that some of the stronger resolutions weren't adopted, the above step is huge. As a statement of condemnation of Israel and a call to actual mass action, it deserves to be praised and widely publicized.
Brazilian Parliament Recommends Freezing out Israelis from Third Largest Export Market
http://www.bdsmovement.net/?q=node/543
"The Brazilian Parliamentary Commission on Foreign Relations and National Defense has recommended that the parliament should not ratify the Free Trade Agreement between Mercosur and the State of Israel until Israel accepts the creation of a Palestinian state [based] on the 1967 barders...'This decision is an enormous blow for Israel's economy and foreign relations says Jawal Juma of the Stop the Wall Campaign..'"
And speaking of sanctions...
Several Israeli officials have been threatened with legal action in Britain under laws allowing heinous crimes to be prosecuted outside the country they were committed.
Last week lawyers for a Palestinian group tried to secure an arrest warrant for defence minister Ehud Barak, who was in Britain, over allegations he committed war crimes by directing the recent offensive in Gaza.
Now, an Israeli vice prime-minister, Moshe Yaalon, has cancelled his own trip after lawyers suggested he could face charges over the assassination of a Hamas leader in 2002.
Source
More pressure:
The Brazilian Parliamentary Commission on Foreign Relations and National Defense has recommended that the parliament should not ratify the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between Mercosur and the State of Israel until "Israel accepts the creation of the Palestinian state on the 1967 borders". This decision is an explicit act of pressure on Israel to comply with international law, and a rejection of years of incessant Israeli lobbying, pressuring for a vote to ratify the agreement.
This decision is an enormous blow for Israel's economy and foreign relations. It poses a massive stumbling block for the enactment of the agreement, which since its signing in 2007, has been stalled due to a lack of ratification by Mercosur member countries. The Mercosur is one of the world's most quickly expanding markets and the fifth largest economy in the world. Israeli exports to the Mercosur amounted nearly 600 million dollars in 2006.
Source
Israel Arresting BDS Leaders
http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=319511...
Israel has extended the detention of a West Bank campaigner said by activist groups to be the first Palestinian to be imprisoned solely for advocacy of international boycotts against Israel.."
From the Guardian:
Irish Artists Announce Cultural Boycott of Israel
http://alethonews.wordpress.com/2010/08/14/irish-artists-announce-cultur...
"According to IPSC Cultural Boycott officer Raymond Deane, 'These artists are aware of the Israeli Foreign Ministry's statement in 2005 that 'We [Israel} see culture as a propaganda tool of the first rank, and do not differentiate between propaganda and culture.."
Shame on Canadian artists like Egoyan and Atwood for breaking this boycott
Atwood may find out, the hard way, just how effective a boycott can be. ha ha
Harvard University divests entire Israeli portfolio – over $38 million
Hi M.S
well...sort of...
Harvard Says Its Not Ditching Israel
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=139012§ionid=351020202
"Harvard spokesman John Longbrake said 'the university has not divested from Israel'.."
Speaking of the Irish ...
6,000 Irish shoppers demand supermarket stops stocking Israeli goods: http://bdsmovement.net/?q=node/762
As an activist, this is an aspect of the BDS campaign I've always found challenging - it's difficult (in Canada, anyway) to find consumer goods to organize around. The Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign doesn't seem to have that problem, though: http://www.ipsc.ie/campaigns_consumer_boycott.php
I'm going to post this here, too: http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/video/israeli-ships-not-welcome-vancouver/...
Dozens of activists set up an information picket at Deltaport this morning, designed to slow the transport of containers belonging to the Israeli shipping company Zim. Demonstrators gave truckers and passers-by information about the growing refusal by workers to unload and transport cargo from Israel or shipped by Israeli companies. Vancouver Media Co-op correspondents filed this report.
Photos and stories:
http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/photo/anti-israeli-apartheid-protest-delta...
http://vancouver.mediacoop.ca/photo/zim-ships-not-welcome/4508
BDS 2010: A Two Edged Sword - by Eric Walberg
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22527
"Politically, BDS has coaxed more and more governments to legitimise Palestine, even going so far as to delegitimise an apartheid Israel.."
Remember this rabble TV item from 2009:
Boycott of AHAVA cosmetics launched in Montreal
More good news:
The Bay drops controversial AHAVA products
AHAVA is economically linked to Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories. Nearly 45 percent of AHAVA is owned by Mitzpe Shalem and Kalia, two illegal Israeli colonies established near the Dead Sea shorelines of the West Bank. Since AHAVA is partially owned by these colonies, its profits directly benefit the colonies and their residents. Another 18 percent of AHAVA is owned by Shamrock Holdings, a large holding firm not only further entangled in other illegal Israeli colonies but one that also invests in the construction of the illegal wall Israel is building.
BDS 2010: A Two Edged Sword - by Eric Walberg
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=22527
"Politically, BDS has coaxed more and more governments to legitimise Palestine, even going so far as to delegitimise an apartheid Israel.."
But the biggest impact on Israel, ironically, has come from the beleaguered Palestinians themselves. The Palestinian Authority (PA) has made it illegal for anything produced in settlements to be sold in Palestinian stores. The West Bank market is worth around $200 million a year to Israeli businesses, with some settlement factories selling up to 30 per cent of their output to the Palestinian market. Seventeen factories in Mishor Adumim, a large industrial estate between East Jerusalem and Jericho, closed as a direct result of the PA boycott.
As 22,000 Palestinians are employed by settlement businesses, the PA has established a $50 million fund to both discourage Palestinians from working in the settlements and help those who lose their jobs due to BDS successes.
Starving international investment was, I believe, what brought down the apartheid regime in S. Africa. But I think the world was less financialized and globalized then. People around the world have to start asking their pension and savings managers where their money is going.
Remember this rabble TV item from 2009:
Boycott of AHAVA cosmetics launched in Montreal
More good news:
The Bay drops controversial AHAVA products
AHAVA is economically linked to Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories. Nearly 45 percent of AHAVA is owned by Mitzpe Shalem and Kalia, two illegal Israeli colonies established near the Dead Sea shorelines of the West Bank. Since AHAVA is partially owned by these colonies, its profits directly benefit the colonies and their residents. Another 18 percent of AHAVA is owned by Shamrock Holdings, a large holding firm not only further entangled in other illegal Israeli colonies but one that also invests in the construction of the illegal wall Israel is building.
I actually have an email from the CEO of The Bay denying this claim.
Apparently, the Ahava company is undergoing a restructuring and rebranding and will be relaunching shortly. The Bay will be carrying the new Ahava products. The CEO of The Bay says they did not give in to boycott demands.
I did notice something else today, however.
One of the companies being targetted in this campaign is Sabra, which makes hummus and various dips and salads. It's American-made but the company is partly owned by an israel food company. At my local Sobey's at lunchtime, there was not a single tub on the shelf.
Now, it could be they were out of stock. I don't want to jump to conclusions. I am now, however, eating a vastly inferior tub of hummus and not so happy about it.
I actually have an email from the CEO of The Bay denying this claim.
What claim?
Did she deny that they have stopped stocking AHAVA products? I don't believe you.
Did she deny that it was because of declining sales over recent years? I don't believe you.
Did CJMPE make any claim other than that? Did they say The Bay has yielded to political pressure and decided to take to the streets in support of justice for Palestinians?
Of course not.
So you, the Canada-Israel Committee, the Canadian Jewish Congress, and B'nai Brith can carry on with your damage control. If and when The Bay resumes its sales from this dirty outlaw outfit, we will resume our campaign.
I actually have an email from the CEO of The Bay denying this claim.
It was just a flesh wound.
And who the bleep buys hommous? Make your own!
Here is the email I received:
Toronto, January 13, 2011
Last week, after a regularly-scheduled review of the products it offers, the Hudson's Bay Company (HBC) discontinued sales of AHAVA beauty products, primarily because of sales results which had been declining for several years.
Although this decision was made by HBC solely for commercial reasons, it occurred at the same time as an aggressive campaign by several groups advocating a boycott of AHAVA products. At no point did political considerations enter into the exercise of HBC's business judgment. HBC has made it clear that it has not "bowed to political pressure" in the past, has not done so now and will not do so in the future. HBC neither subscribes to nor endorses politically-motivated boycotts of merchandise from countries with whom Canada has open and established trading relationships, including Israel.
AHAVA products will soon be reformulated and redesigned as a totally changed brand. The new AHAVA products will be ready by mid-spring and is planned to be re-launched at HBC stores across Canada. We encourage consumers across Canada to purchase those products as soon as they are available.
Bonnie Brooks, Chief Adventurer & CEO, Hudson’s Bay Company
And who the bleep buys hommous? Make your own!
I frequently do make my own, actually but my fresh stuff doesn't keep so well so if I haven't made it in a while, I'm out of luck and I'm on a strict diet with very few foods I can eat that can be purchased near my office. Besides, Sabra makes this extra spicy one that's hard to resist.
Thanks, Dodger. As you can see, Ms. CEO didn't deny a single claim made by the CJPME.
The point is that this wasn't some "victory" for the movement (if they didn't believe it to be, why issue a press release?).
A company is rebranding and is temporarily gone and will be back on the shelves by spring for those who wish to purchase it.
Why is AHAVA rebranding, I wonder?
CodePink (www.codepink4peace.org) has worked on its Stolen Beauty campaign for years.
Why is AHAVA rebranding, I wonder?
Why did Pepsi just do a big rebrand? Why did Tropicana? Why did Gatorade? Why did the Gap?
Companies and products rebrand all the time in order to freshen up their image, reconnect with consumers, appeal to new audiences, etc.
Often, it's because a new marketing executive takes over or because they hire a new advertising agency and want to shake things up.
I'm a graphic designer and work on package, retail and logo designs. If companies didn't undergo rebranding initiatives on a near constant basis, we'd allbe out of work.
Why did Pepsi just do a big rebrand? Why did Tropicana? Why did Gatorade? Why did the Gap?
Low self-esteem?
I thought it was quite shrewd on CJPME's part. They want BDS on the agenda. Once people are talking about it, honest people will ask questions and eventually do the right thing. That's what helped defeat South African apartheid. Then, too, there were a handful of accomplices who held out to the end.
Here's an example of the kind of pressure being exerted on the Bay to break the boycott, from B'nai Brith Canada.
And more from BUYcott Israel
HBC Stand Firm Against Israeli Boycott
http://www.cjnews.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=20673&It...
"The Bay's reaction is a significant defeat for Israel's enemies. Stephen Cummings, chair of the Canadian Council for Israel and Jewish Advocacy (CCIJA) added:
'For Canada's flagship retailer to publicly dismiss the boycott serves as an important benchmark for responsible corporate practice. For those organizations engaged in an obsessive campaign to isolate Israel, it represents a resounding, indeed embarrassing - defeat."
Boycott The Bay - Boycott Israel!
CJPME Boycott Israel Centre
http://cjpme.org/
Palestinians Protest Canada's Ties with Jewish National Fund (JNF)
http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article11831.shtml
"Palestinians held a vigil outside the Canadian representative offices in Ramallah on Monday, 21 February, protesting Canada's ongoing relationship with the Jewish National Fund (JNF). The protesters urged the Canadian government to break ties with the Israeli land institution which has been a driving force behind the continued expulsion of Palestinians from their land since 1948.
In a memorandum to the Canadian ambassador to Israel, which was received by the representative office in Ramallah, Palestinian families originally from Latrun demanded Canadian officials meet with them and that the country divest from the JNF's preferred tax status. Uri Davis told Ma'an news that a court case in Canada against the JNF will soon follow..."
Paul Hunt Ambassador, Canadian Embassy in Israel
taviv@dfait-maeci.gc.ca
Folk music legend Pete Seeger endorses BDS...
Choke on it bigots.
Excellent news! I now forgive Seeger for all his political misdemeanours!
And Theodore Bikel!!
Edinburgh University students vote overwhelmingly for boycott of Israeli goods
Despite the meeting requiring over 300 students to attend for it to be quorate and for decisions taken to be binding, the huge level of student support for the motion means that EUSA will be under severe student pressure to adopt it as official policy.
Proposed by students from Edinburgh University Students for Justice in Palestine, the motion noted that Israel is an apartheid state and resolved to affiliate EUSA to the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, to boycott Israeli goods in EUSA supply chains and shops, and to mandate the EUSA executive to lobby the University to do the same.
Huge? The quorum at EU is 300, or approximately 1% of the student population. Should we pop over to one of the electoral reform threads and ask whether less than one percent of the electorate constitutes "huge" support?
There was a football match on, Snert.
I know it's a bit late, and this will probably not be the straw that breaks the back of Israeli apartheid and aggression, but the 2010 convention of the Prince Edward Island Federation of Labour concurred in the following resolution proposed by the Canadian Union of Postal Workers:
2010 - Palestine
Submitted by Canadian Union of Postal Workers
Because there can be no lasting peace in Israel and Palestine without the
implementation of international law and respect for human rights; and
Because the so-called Israel Security Wall has been determined illegal by the World
Court; and
Because over 150 Palestinian civil society organizations, including the Palestinian
General Federation of Trade Unions have called for a campaign of boycott, divestment
and sanctions; and
Because Israel’s Operation Lead Cast in Gaza destroyed further infrastructure and in
2010 the Harper Government cut off funding to the UN Relief and Works Agency
(UNRWA); therefore
The PEI Federation of Labour will:
1. Demand that the so-called security wall be dismantled;
2. Demand that Israel immediately withdraw from the occupied territories in
accordance with UN resolutions;
3. Demand that the Canadian government increase humanitarian aid to
Palestinians; and
4. Support the international campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions.
Committee Recommendation:
Concurrence X Non-concurrence __
Convention Decision X
An excellent example for other feds to follow!
In fact, the motion did not pass quorum. It was ten short or so. I know you must have attended these motions at a University before, Snert. Getting more than 300 people out to a student union town hall is indeed pretty big support (the quorum for the University of Fraser Valley, for example, is three). Certainly the trend in UK universities of supporting BDS cannot be easily discarded.
I dunno, Catchfire, 300 is more people than decided on behalf of 34 million Canadians to continue the occupation of Afghanistan. And we're pretty sure we know how Canadians would vote if a referendum were held on the matter. I wonder how Snert feels about a handful of rhetoric-spewing self-serving political opportunists making decisions on his behalf, without even asking him? But, as he says, that's more an issue for the electoral reform threads.
I'm just looking at the trend over the years, and decades. Israel is going down. We just need to keep pushing.
Snert just reminds me of this contarian named Magoo over EnMasse. They could be twins, Unionist.
Re. Getting quorums. They were always difficult when I was involved with the TA union at Carleton. Only large meetings we ever hand what during contract negotiations and a strike looked iminent.
I don't know the numbers, but UBC just had a general referendum to lower the town hall quorum (I think from 1000 to 500). The measure didn't pass because it failed to meet quorum.
Snert just reminds me of this contarian named Magoo over EnMasse. They could be twins, Unionist.
I was just thinking the same thing when I read his post. I even used the word contrarian in my head. But I was thinking that it's good to always have someone like that on babble, just to keep everyone's assumptions from getting too complacent.
Shit, I thought that was my job...
Chuckle.
My assumptions aren't too complacent. They're just complacent enough.
There's enough shit here to warrant more than one disturber. Your employment is secure.
Now, what happened to our thread topic??
In other news, the Registered Nurses Association of Ontario (RNAO) has decided that 2012 is the year that they should "co-host" an international nursing conference in Jerusalem. The conference title, "Caring to Know, Knowing to Care" makes their description of Jerusalem most ironic:
"The special setting of the conference is Jerusalem, which is ranked as one of the ten most beautiful cities in the world; home to the three major religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. It is a city rich in history and culture dating back over two thousand years. This unique city is a most appropriate venue to host this conference. On behalf of the Organizing Committee we are pleased to welcome you to take part in this meeting. We are expecting it to be an exciting professional as well as a social and personal experience."
They obviously don't care to know about the illegal settlements in the city, nor do they know to care about the fact that Palestinian nurses will be unable to attend their conference.
Those Ontario Nurses' commercials on AM640 make a lot of sense now.
This nurses' association are guilty of some pretty scummy behaviour.
If you follow their link, "About Israel", it takes you straight to some government of Israel tourist site and invites you to choose one of three links:
- General Interest
- Christian Interest
- Jewish Interest
So much for the nurses' association's hypocritical bullshit about beautiful Jerusalem, home of three religions.
Someone should really advise them to go fuck themselves, in my very humble opinion.
I sent a nice GFY email to RNAO back in January, three short month later they replied with this:
Thank you for the email that you sent to RNAO back in January about the conference being hosted in Jerusalem June 2012.
I want to assure you that the partnership that RNAO has built with Hadassah University; School of Nursing to facilitate this international conference is in no way a deliberate message to exclude Palestinians from RNAO's professional development opportunities including our conferences. As a background, RNAO builds relationships with many international partners in order to promote the nursing profession, inform nursing evidence based practice globally and to assist nurses in finding their voice in all nations. In 2008 we co-hosted a conference in Beijing China with the Nightingale Organization and this commenced our strategy of co-hosting an international conference (outside of Canada) every 3 - 4years.
Sincerely,
Karen
Karen Ellis-Scharfenberg RN BScN MBA
Associate Director, RNAO Centre for Professional Nursing Excellence
158 Pearl Street Toronto, Ontario M5H 1L3
416-408-5633 or 1-800-268-7199
kellis@rnao.org
Haddassah Univesity is founded by the Women's Zionist Organization of America. Their hospital, with whom RNAO has partnered, is located in the "depopulated" town of Ein Kerem. WZOA also has ties to JNF projects in the West Bank. I would appreciate any more info that people have. Also, does anyone have links to OFL/CUPE or other labour org BDS policies? Most nurses in Ontario are members of Ontario Nurses Association (member of OFL) or CUPE.
Don't be surprised of a Mossad asassination team shows up on babble in the near future.
IDF officers say special department has been created to monitor left-wing groups that the army sees as aiming to delegitimize Israel; department will work closely with government ministries."The enemy changes, as does the nature of the struggle, and we have to boost activity in this sphere," an MI official said. "Work on this topic proceeds on the basis of a clear distinction between legitimate criticism of the State of Israel on the one hand, and efforts to harm it and undermine its right to exist on the other."
The new MI unit will monitor Western groups involved in boycotting Israel, divesting from it or imposing sanctions on it. The unit will also collect information about groups that attempt to bring war crime or other charges against high-ranking Israeli officials, and examine possible links between such organizations and terror groups.
France Tries 4 Over Israeli Boycott
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/170584.html
"Four French pro-Palestinian activists have stood trial over their call for a boycott of all Israeli products manufactured in the occupied Palestinian territories. The trials are the latest measures taken against those who dare criticize Israel, including members of teh long running Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign against Israel...
The four defendants are facing the charge of inciting anti-Semitism...
'We have some sympathizers and we have to be proud. We have to continue to boycott,' Maha Ahmed, a co-defendant, told Press TV"
boycott French and Israeli goods:
webmaster@ambafrance-ca.org
www.ambafrance-ca.org
The four defendants are facing the charge of inciting anti-Semitism...
I'm curious what they might have said in promoting the boycott. Surely it can't be illegal in France to choose how to spend your money.
Of course, Snert. Because there isn't an active campaign to paint all criticism of Israel as anti-semitism or anything.
I wouldn't suggest there isn't. But that doesn't mean people can't actually be anti-Semitic at the same time. Maybe they used a term like "Israeli Apartheid" and that got conflated into "anti-Semitism". Or maybe they said something worse.
This isn't an accusation -- I really am just curious. Because the third possibility -- that France charges people with hate crimes for simply boycotting products -- doesn't seem that realistic to me.
You want realism in the realm of politics, especially where Zionism is concerned? If so, I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you; it used to be owned by a settler in the West Bank.
The four defendants are facing the charge of inciting anti-Semitism...
I'm curious what they might have said in promoting the boycott. Surely it can't be illegal in France to choose how to spend your money.
It seems similar to Canadian human rights cases in that all that's needed is a complaint filed by anyone who feels offended and that's it - there's no need for any other secret unreported real crime - Anti-semitism is being incited if someone says it is, apparently.
In France, BDS or anti-Zionism is now a crime. Here's another, earlier version of this persecution masquerading as prosecution. Make no mistake, they're working hard to criminalize BDS here too:
http://jewssansfrontieres.blogspot.com/2010/09/france-persecutes-bds.htm...
"On 29th October, representatives of CAPJPO Europalestine, a French BDS group, are to appear in a French court in Paris, to answer charges that publishing the above video of a BDS action that took place in July 2009 at a Carrefour Supermarket in Avey, constituted an
'offence of incitement to discrimination, hatred or violence against a group of people on account of their belonging to the Israeli nation."
The plaintiff, the 'National Bureau of Vigilance Against Anti-Semitism (because naturally, according to anti-semites and fake 'vigilantes against antisemitism' alike, to speak against Israel is to attack Jews for being Jewish), is looking for opportunities to promote repression of Palestine solidarity activism, and the French state is happy to oblige.
Please take action to protest this type of attempt."
This was after UJ’s Senate rejected a last ditch motion by pro-Israeli lobbyists to have two separate bilateral agreements - one with a Palestinian University and another with an Israeli University. UJ chose instead to uphold its previous Senate Resolution that required taking leadership from Palestinian universities. Palestinian universities unanimously rejected any collaboration with BGU (in any form) and have come out in full support of the the academic boycott of Israel. UJ chose to respect this.
UJ is the first institution to officially sever relations with an Israeli university - a landmark moment in the growing Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) of Israel campaign. Throughout the campaign, academics and international human rights activists have been anticipating this decision. This boycott decision, coming from a South African institution, is of particular significance. This has set a precedent and must start a domino boycott effect!
http://www.ujpetition.com/2011/03/boycott-of-israel-victory.html
Military Intelligence Monitoring Foreign Left-Wing Organizations
http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/military-intelligence-monitori...
"Military Intelligence is collecting information about left wing organizations abroad that the army sees as aiming to delegitimize Israel, according to senior Israeli officials and IDF officers. The new MI unit will monitor Western groups involved in boycotting Israel, divesting from it or imposing sanctions on it. The unit will also collect information about groups that attempt to bring war crimes or other charges against high-ranking Israeli officials.."
And because Canada has a comprehensive Security Agreement with Israel, Canadian authorities will assist them to do it. This is a major announcement that should be sending alarm bells across the networks of BDS and anti-zionist activists. The only consolation is that 'Military Intelligence' is most definitely an oxymoron and with zionists especially the latter..
Thank-you, Freedom 55, for momentarily returning this thread to the topic of the successes of the International BDS campaign.
Others should note that we already have other threads devoted to discussion and news about the efforts of the Zionists to demonize criticism of Israel.
Since it targets BDS'ers I put it here but the linked thread is better thanks, I'll put it there.
Boycotting Israel...From Within
"The person who came to release me [from interrogation] was an intelligence officer who said that he is in charge of monitoring political activity in the Tel Aviv area," Rothschild says. It was this officer who had requested the search warrant.
Since Operation Cast Lead, Israeli activists have reported increasing pressure from the police as well as General Security Services - known by their Hebrew acronym, Shabak.
The latter's mandate includes, among other things, the goal of maintaining Israel as a Jewish state, making those who advocate for democracy a target.
House raids, such as the one Rothschild was subjected to, are not uncommon, nor are phone calls from the Shabak.
"Obviously [the pressure] is nothing compared to what Palestinians are going through," Rothschild says. "But I think we're touching a nerve."
When asked about the proposed Boycott Law, Rothschild comments: "If the bill goes through, it will peel off, a little more, Israel's mask of democracy."
BDS Flash mob in New York City's Grand Central Station on March 26th, Palestinian Land Day and the Global BDS Day of Action.
clap clap. Isn't solidarity grand?
BDS: Breaking New Barriers - by Eric Walberg
http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=va&aid=24530
"The upcoming flotilla to break the Gaza siege is gathering steam from a flood of innovative BDS activities around the world..."
Largest Student Union in Europe Joins Boycott of Israel
http://endisraeliapartheid.blogspot.com/2011/05/largest-student-union-in...
"..The University of London Union has voted 10-1 to institute and campaign for BDS in support of Palestine. ULU is the largest students' union in Europe with over 120,000 members..'
South African students endorse nationwide boycott against Israel
Submitted by nora on Fri, 08/05/2011 - 18:19
Representatives of South Africa’s oldest and largest student bodies in Johannesburg hosted a press conference on Thursday in which they denounced the upcoming visit by a delegation of Israeli officials and propagandists to South African college campuses.
In the past five years, Israeli public relations professionals and governmental officials have traveled across the world in order to promote a “positive image” of Israel through its multi-million-dollar “Brand Israel” hasbara (propaganda) campaign, and this upcoming visit includes some 150 Israelis meted out to 5 colleges in order to “create some doubt in their [South African students’] minds” — most likely because of recent actions in support of the Palestinian-led boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) call.....
http://electronicintifada.net/blog/nora/south-african-students-endorse-n...
Borrowed from a friend on Facebook: Uncovered: Israel’s role in planned US lawsuit to fight BDS
excerpt (of a much longer article):
A group of pro-Israel activists, backed by StandWithUs, a national US pro-Israel US organization, is planning to take legal action to force the Olympia Food Co-op to rescind its historic decision to boycott Israeli products.
The Electronic Intifada has obtained a copy of a 31 May 2011 letter sent to the Board of Directors of the Olympia Food Co-op in Olympia, Washington, threatening "expensive" legal action if the pro-Israel activists' "demands" to end the boycott of Israeli products are not met.
Other documents, supported by interviews, confirm that the Israeli government has taken part in discussions about, and been given advance knowledge of, the planned lawsuit and another planned action against Evergreen State College in Olympia in response to Palestine solidarity activism by students.
Evergreen State is noted for being the school attended by Rachel Corrie, who was killed by an Israeli occupation soldier operating a bulldozer in the Gaza Strip in March 2003.
These developments indicate new, even more aggressive tactics by pro-Israel organizations to suppress, deter and malign any form of Palestine-related dissent, protest or solidarity action.
BDS Flash mob in New York City's Grand Central Station on March 26th, Palestinian Land Day and the Global BDS Day of Action.
Hopefully, another link to that clip can be found.
The copyright claim was made by agents of the rock band Journey, whose music was heard in the video.
Perhaps it's time to add Journey to the list of performers to be boycotted.
Rage in Israel as BNP Paribas pressured to pull out
Bank of Israel Governor Stanley Fischer, Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, Banks Supervisor David Zaken and their top officials believe the bank's board of directors caved to pressure groups, contrary to its claims.
This is the first case in years of a foreign bank leaving Israel.
BDS: A Peaceful Blitzkrieg and Israeli Counterattacks - by Eric Walberg
http://www.counterpunch.org/2012/02/01/the-bds-m/
"..A boycott bombshell in January was dropped by an 11th grade American Jewish teenager, Jesse Lieberfeld, who was Dietrich College's 2012 Martin Luther King Jr Writing Award for his essay about his moral awakening when he realized his American Jewish culture was unavoidably identified with supporting Israel.."
University of Regina Students Union joins the global movement of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions!
BDS victory: Cat Power cancels show in Tel Aviv
Carleton Grad Students Vote in Favour of Divestment from Israeli Occupation
Thanks for the link F55.
Closing for length.