Boycotts aren't the answer - Haaretz

Subscribe to Print Edition

Sun., January 20, 2008 Shvat 13, 5768

Israel Time: 08:14 (EST+7)

web haaretz.com

Back to Homepage

Rosner's Domain

Diplomacy

Defense

Jewish World

Opinion

National

Print Edition

Advertising

Books

Arts & Leisure

Business

Real Estate

Easy Start

Travel

Week's End

Anglo File

Last update - 03:44 18/01/2008

Boycotts aren't the answer

By Shalom Dichter

Tags: discrimination, Israeli Arabs

Last week the Umm al-Fahm municipality did its best to host the study group of overseas Jews organized by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Israeli-Arab Issues. However, as a result of an Arab organization's call for a boycott, the visitors had to skip the planned visit to a health clinic, which is located on the ground floor of the town's central mosque and belongs to the Islamic Movement ("Israeli Arab Leaders Slam Community's Boycott of Visiting Jewish Donors," Haaretz English Edition, January 8, 2008). This change did not really hurt the visit, as the guests toured the city and, as planned, visited its contemporary art gallery. The rest of the tour also went as planned, with no significant changes. It would be ill-advised, however, to ignore the attempt to impose a boycott on the entire visit, even if it failed.

In recent years, fascinating lines of communication have been developing between both sides of the ocean. Leaders of Jewish organizations in the United States have realized that they are being called upon, at a historic moment, to evince special interest in the inherent conflict that exists between Israel's Jewish majority and its native Arab minority - the two tectonic plates that constitute the country's citizenry. Diaspora Jews are attempting to learn about the issue in depth, and Arab leaders in Israel, for their part, are frankly setting forth the difficulties they face as a minority in a state defined as Jewish.

Not to be taken lightly is the fact that one of the nodes of controversy in Arab society in Israel is its attitude toward the Jewish establishment overseas. Does Diaspora Jewry have a legitimate say in Israel's internal matters? Is their involvement in a domestic issue expressive of world Jewry's "ownership" of the state? If that were to be accepted by the leaders of the Arabs in Israel, they would have to acknowledge that Diaspora Jewry has a stake in Israel, and that, because it is a Jewish state, they have even more rights than Arab citizens who were born here, and this would be intolerable. Over the years, Diaspora Jewry has abetted, perhaps unwittingly, discrimination against Arab citizens by the government of Israel, by means of the Jewish Agency, the Jewish National Fund, and other institutions. These facts do not make matters easy for the Arab partner in the internal Jewish-Arab dialogue going on here. In this context, it is possible to understand their reluctance, and even objections by some of them, to the interest international Jewish organizations demonstrate in domestic Israeli issues.

	Advertisement

However, precisely because of its special understanding of the concepts of democracy and equal citizenship, world Jewry can help influence Israel to develop democratic and inclusive citizenship. Therefore, in the internal Israeli campaign to eliminate discrimination against its Arab citizens, it would not be wise to dispense with this powerful tool. This may be the reason why the heads of the Supreme Monitoring Council, the most broadly representative umbrella organization of the Arabs of Israel, directors of Arab non-profit organizations and the joint associations of Arabs and Jews did not accede to the boycott calls, despite the pressure they were under to do just that.

At the very least, it is possible to say that constructive communication is developing here, and legitimization of the interlocutor is a basic condition for this. It is true that on both sides, there are elements that are opposed to this and that use their attempts to delegitimize the other side as a weapon. Thus, for example, even Sikkuy, the joint Jewish and Arab organization I help co-direct, was dis-invited two years ago from a scheduled appearance in one of the large Jewish communities in the United States, as the result of heavy pressure from elements in that community who did not want to hear what we had to say. Conversely, two weeks ago, it was an element among the Arabs of Israel that tried to dictate a boycott of the American Jewish group that had come to listen.

Boycotts and de-legitimization will not help make Israel more democratic, inclusive or stable. The country's Jewish and Arab citizens must enter the circle of dialogue and action in order to resolve the inherent conflict between them, and the action that enjoys widespread agreement on both sides is the elimination of discrimination against Arabs and the adoption of full and total equality for all of Israel's citizens. In order to advance this joint interest, it is essential to meet and to talk with any individual and institution that is interested, whether from Israel or from abroad.

Shalom (Shuli) Dichter is co-director of Sikkuy, the Association for the Advancement of Civic Equality.

Bookmark to del.icio.us


	Flip-flop on torture
	Responding to pressure, Canada takes U.S., Israel off a torture watchlist.


	Impending crisis
	UN warns of humanitarian crisis as Israel seals Gaza Strip crossings.




1.	why you say israli-arab ? why you want to own them ?	10:38	\|	atilla karagözoğlu	18/01/08

2.	This is a really hypocritical statement	11:20	\|	Rowan Berkeley	18/01/08

3.	Doing nothing is certainly not the answer either	11:55	\|	Jens	18/01/08

4.	Democracy in Israel is not the purpose of a boycott	12:20	\|	John	18/01/08

5.	OK...BUT	12:42	\|	Simon	18/01/08

6.	Roughly translated	12:58	\|	Paul Wood	18/01/08

7.	Atilla what are they?	13:17	\|	Margie in Tel Aviv	18/01/08

8.	Mistaking integration failure for discrimination. Ethiopians...	13:36	\|	Alain	18/01/08

9.	boycotts	14:02	\|	j10	18/01/08

10.	Sikkuy Is To Be Commended For Their Work	14:51	\|	Yaakov Sullivan	18/01/08

11.	ATILLA...hello	15:05	\|	Lynn	18/01/08

12.	Democracy does NOT fit in in the ME!	15:15	\|	AliciaYasmeen	18/01/08

13.	Paul`s wooden head	15:41	\|	Iz Ray Leigh	18/01/08

14.	Historic moments	15:53	\|	F. Teich	18/01/08

15.	Dichter and lebaonon war	16:07	\|	marcel	18/01/08

16.	The boycott of Israel is effective	16:23	\|	Stephen Murray	18/01/08

17.	We are not boycotting Israel to make it more democratic	17:08	\|	Raed Kami	18/01/08

18.	"World luminaries...	17:53	\|	bat yam	18/01/08

19.	#10 kami and his karma are miles apart	17:56	\|	v hardman	18/01/08

20.	#1 Atilla	18:37	\|	Chris Linthwaite	18/01/08

21.	#12, Murray, do you support 850,000 Jewish refugees?	18:42	\|	David	18/01/08

22.	Cancel Palestine, Create Peace	18:44	\|	David	18/01/08

23.	to 12 marcel - this is not Avi Dichter - but Shuli Dichtetr	18:54	\|	moishe	18/01/08

24.	# 17 Raed Kami....we all see how well	19:27	\|	Lynn	18/01/08

25.	# 4 John of the Netherlands....	19:34	\|	Lynn	18/01/08

26.	Re: #1 "1948 Palestinians"	19:41	\|	Aphemia	18/01/08

27.	Isreal is the MOST Democratic Country in the World	21:35	\|	Tod Zuckerman	18/01/08

28.	Are people still believing the Myth of Israel being a democracy?	00:38	\|	POP	19/01/08

29.	Jewish Left	01:59	\|	Paul Fingerhut	19/01/08

30.	palestinian jew would be more apt than	02:32	\|	bozhidar balkas	19/01/08

31.	#28, POP...	08:03	\|	Silvienne	19/01/08

32.	#31 silvienne is the usa a democracy	08:25	\|	v hardman	19/01/08

33.	a little thing called "trust" must first be addressed(2nd try)	10:43	\|	eric	19/01/08

34.	Zuckerman, #27	12:26	\|	Maki	19/01/08

35.	# 3 Jens OK should Israel use her bombs?	14:12	\|	Petra	19/01/08

36.	# 22 Sounds good to me.	14:15	\|	Petra	19/01/08

37.	# 33 Maki Israel lives among terrorist savages for 60 years plus.	14:19	\|	Petra	19/01/08

38.	# 30 No worries the Wandering Jew is home!!!	14:26	\|	Petra	19/01/08

39.	POP&SILVIENNE much more democratic than those you shout slogans 4	15:10	\|	PETER SM	19/01/08

40.	Reply to #34 ( Maki)	18:48	\|	Tod Zuckerman	19/01/08

41.	rowan lord haw haw the ignorant	20:53	\|	larry from maine	19/01/08

42.	#32, V.Harman...coming from you, I`ll consider it a compliment..	02:19	\|	Silvienne	20/01/08

43.	#39, Peter SM...	02:22	\|	Silvienne	20/01/08

44.	Boycotts, sanctions and divestment...	03:10	\|	Maryam	20/01/08

45.	# 32 holy smokes, victor!	07:54	\|	eric	20/01/08

Today Online


	IDF kills two Gaza militants; Qassam strikes Sderot
	Responses: 582


	Hamas policy: Escalation to force Gaza cease fire
	Responses: 279


	Nasrallah: Hezbollah has the body parts of IDF soldiers
	Responses: 259


	Benvenisti: Bush, Olmert, Abbas, the three stooges
	Responses: 86


	Kaffiyeh-wearing protesters greet new Israeli envoy to U.K.
	Responses: 302

Rosner's Domain

Blog: Why did Nevada's Jews vote for Hillary Clinton?

Blog & Poll: Can Joe Lieberman convince Jews in Florida to vote for McCain?

Difference between Ahmadinejad and Khamenei (WTR)

The Israel Factor: Bloomberg good only without Hagel

Rosner's Mailbox: Brzezinski against 'right of return' because of Poland

More Headlines
07:31 Sources: Hezbollah has body parts of IDF soldiers


07:34 Government to review '07 IDF assassinations in Gaza, W. Bank


07:41 Egyptian troops kill African man trying to cross border to Israel


06:46 Why is Nevada's Jewish community supporting Clinton?


07:43 Ukraine rejects more T.A. flights, despite Bratslav demands


02:09 Assad: Damascus is the capital of culture and resistance


03:48 Organ donations from stroke victim save four lives


07:26 Paranormalist Uri Geller works his magic on German TV show


07:52 Top scientist to address global warming at Herziya conference