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15th June 2008 |
This newsletter contains the following items: 1. FFIPP-International: Conference at Al Quds University, Jerusalem, 2-3 July - The Predicament of Gaza and Palestine: US/Israel policies and the role of academia 1. FFIPP-International: Conference at Al Quds University, Jerusalem, 2-3 July - The Predicament of Gaza and Palestine: US/Israel policies and the role of academia Preamble It has been almost two years since the last FFIPP conference in Ramallah. Since then, the situation in the Occupied Territories has deteriorated with the rapidly worsening conditions in Gaza, the continued construction of the Wall and the settlements, continued violence— mainly against the Palestinians- and the lack of any progress in the ‘negotiations’. The tensions between Hamas and Fatah continued as well and the isolation of Hamas contributed to the general deterioration. The Annapolis conference has failed to produce any positive change in the region and the occupation of Iraq is now threatening to escalate into, potentially, a major confrontation with Iran. The Program — a preliminary outline First Day Second Day 4. Academic involvement and the agenda for ending the occupation. [Workshops] Speakers For further details and how to register, contact Uri Hadar at uri-h@freud.tau.ac.il 2. Norman Finkelstein barred entry to Israel - some more comments (a) Who's Afraid of Finkelstein, Ha'aretz editorial, 27 May 2008 It is difficult to sympathize with Finkelstein's opinions and preferences, especially since he decided to support Hezbollah, meet with its fighters and visit the graves of some of its slain operatives. But that does not mean he should be banned from entering Israel, since meetings with Hezbollah operatives do not in themselves constitute a security risk. True, the right to enter Israel is not guaranteed to noncitizens, but the right of Israeli citizens to hear unusual views is one that should be fought for. It is not for the government to decide which views should be heard here and which ones should not. http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/987465.html (b) Let Finkelstein enter Israel, by Oded Feller,Ynetnews, 3 June 2008 China’s authorities often argue that those who criticize the occupation of Tibet insult the Chinese people’s feelings – and those who insult the Chinese people, cannot enter China. Yet recently we learned that it is not only the Chinese who must not be insulted. Oded Feller is a member of ACRI Full opinion piece at http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3550887,00.html 3. Israel relents under pressure and allows Fulbright scholars to travel, apparently after Condoleeza Rice herself intervened Ma’an News Agency, 2 June 2008 Story at http://www.maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=29669 See also, The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights " Narratives under Siege", no 14 'Gaza's 700 Stranded Students' which focuses on the Fulbright cases at http://www.pchrgaza.org/files/campaigns/english/gaza_closure/Narratives_14.html 4. Students trapped in Gaza: "Held Back: Students Trapped in Gaza" - latest Gisha report, 6 June 2008 on the Fulbright and other cases Dear Friends, 5. Opposition to UCU motion no 25 Those who opposed the UCU Motion 25 have reacted to it being passed in a number of different ways. Some key critical pieces are reproduced here so that all FFIPP-UK contacts, whatever their position on the issues at stake, can have easy access to such contributions to the debate. It is worth remembering that the key proponents and opponents of academic boycott or of motion 25 (not in the union's view a boycott motion) are all on record as opposing the occupation. (a) Norman Geras posted a response on Normblog under the heading "A tainted organization" http://normblog.typepad.com/normblog/2008/06/a-tainted-organization.html (b) Robert Fine's "Esprit d’escalier: reminiscences of a silent observer of the UCU conference" is at http://www.engageonline.org.uk/blog/article.php?id=1929 (c) Another "contribution" is that from solicitor Anthony Julius, acting for 'certain groups of UCU members' who has sent a long letter to Sally Hunt, General Secretary of UCU. It is an extraordinary document, which is hard to construe as anything but intimidatory, despite its statement that: "The purpose of this letter, however, is not to threaten legal proceedings." Any resort to the law to prevent the UCU debating issues of concern to its members is one which most academics are likely to find in general bizarre and inappropriate. Time will tell whether the Union is pushed into a protracted legal battle on this issue. Julius letter at http://www.engageonline.org.uk/blog/article.php?id=1935 (d) Lorna Fitzsimons (chief executive of the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre, joint head of the Stop the Boycott campaign, and former Labour MP for Rochdale) has an article 'The UCU is wasting time and money' in the Independent on Sunday, 5 June at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/lorna-fitzsimons-the-ucu-is-wasting-time-and-money-840166.html Replies by Mike Cushman, Tom Hickey, Kammel Hawwash, John Chalcraft and Peter Crisp were published the following week at http://www.independent.co.uk/news/education/higher/education-letters-ucus-palestine-stance-844805.html 6. Jerry Haber on questions of the Academic boycott - MagnesZionist blog On October 17, 2007 the MagnesZionist Blogspot carried Jerry Haber's thoughtful and lovely piece "On the Academic Boycott of Israel and the Current Georgetown Brouhaha'. Here's an extract: 'It is difficult to get many academics, even strong critics of Israel, to support the boycott, both for reasons of principle (academic freedom, fear that it constitutes collective punishment) and of tactics (the ineffectiveness of the boycotts, which usually are canceled after prominent intellectuals and groups weigh in on the other side.) By stressing analogies with academic boycotts of South Africa, the boycotters invite two objections: first, that the situation in Israel is not sufficiently comparable to apartheid of South Africa, and second, that the academic boycott of South Africa was not really effective in helping to end apartheid. The response to this is that the situation in Israel-Palestine is as bad as or worse than it was in South Africa, and that academics as a guild should focus on academia, especially since Israeli universities are implicated in the machinery of the Occupation. I do not support the academic boycott of Israel, mostly because I think it is a counterproductive tactic. I believe strongly in academic freedom, but I am not an absolutist; there are times when academic freedom can and should be restricted, if it will help stop the restriction of even more fundamental freedoms. Under certain circumstances, an academic boycott, like sanctions of all sorts, can be justified – the question is what circumstances, and whether the time is ripe. And my feeling is that the time is not ripe for an effective boycott. Perhaps it never will be. Franz Rosenzweig, the Jewish philosopher, was once asked if he put on tefillin (“phylacteries”). His reply was, “Not yet.” That is the answer I give to people when they ask me whether I support the academic boycott. On the other hand, I will not condemn supporters of the boycott or deny that they have done some good. They have drawn attention to Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians, and they have done so in the name of principles that I accept. I do not question their motives or the intentions, only the practical wisdom of what they are doing. I will, if necessary, express my objections to the boycott, but I will not vilify the boycotters. This contribution is at http://themagneszionist.blogspot.com/2008/06/academic-boycotts-anyone.html Haber has now followed it up with a posting, 'Academic Boycotts, Anyone?', 1st june 2008 Interestingly, he points out, both Natan Sharansky, and Rabbi Melchior of the religious left-leaning Meimad party, have come out agaisnt the intereferece with Gazan students' right to study, ,while Yuval Steinitz was quoted as saying "We are fighting the regime in Gaza that does its utmost to kill our citizens and destroy our schools and our colleges. So I don’t think we should allow students from Gaza to go anywhere." Haber asks: 'Does this mean that I am on the side of (shudder!) Yuval Steinitz and the boycotters, who obviously are not absolutists on academic freedom? The answer is yes and no. Yes, I am not an absolutist; no, I still think are mistaken when they defend the curtailment of academic freedoms. I have written about how the academic boycott against Israel has not yet worked; it has backfired precisely because it provokes the absolutist response. I am waiting to see how the boycott tactic will development. My hunch is that we shall return to the boycott at a later date and that, ultimately, it will be implemented with the approval of many. Till then, I will write nothing against it. He adds: 'I should also mention that here is a big difference between a call for a limited boycott from a voluntary association, and a military curtailment of civil rights, including the right to education.' See his blog at http://themagneszionist.blogspot.com/2007/10/on-academic-boycott-of-israel-and.html 7. Mearsheimer & Walt, authors of "The Israel Lobby", visit Israel and speak at the Hebrew university Invited to Israel by Gush Shalom (the Israeli Peace Bloc), they 'were 'were cordially received in Israel and aroused a lively debate'. Report at http://zope.gush-shalom.org/home/en/events/1213528325 8. Checkpoints - lest we forget A daily exercise in humiliation "HAWARA CHECKPOINT, WEST BANK — Under the supervision of an Israeli soldier clutching an M-16 assault rifle, Qassem Saleh begins his daily disrobing. First, he lifts his bright orange shirt so the soldier can see there's no bomb strapped to his torso. Then, after passing through a metal floor-to-ceiling turnstile, he undoes his belt and hands it over for examination to a second soldier, along with his wallet, mobile phone and cigarettes. The second soldier peruses his documents and asks his reason for travel. The answer is a simple one: Mr. Saleh goes through all this, not to board a plane or visit a prison, but so that he can go home to his family after a day's studies at An-Najah University in Nablus. It's a process Israel says is necessary for security, but one that hundreds of thousands of Palestinians consider their daily humiliation." http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20071218.wcheckpoint18/BNStory/International/?page=rss&id=RTGAM.20071218.wcheckpoint18 This report was actually published on 18 december 2007. It could have been yesterday - or five years ago. Most checkpoints have nothing to do with Israel's security - they are overwhelmingly located within, and control movement within, the Occupied West Bank. On this see OCHA (the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs)'s map of the Fragmentation of the West Bank, updated a year ago (7th May 2007) at http://www.reliefweb.int/rw/fullMaps_Sa.nsf/luFullMap/2E4FB73CC49B3CD9C12572F30041476A/$File/ocha_ACC_opt070507.pdf?OpenElement See also the website of MachsomWatch (Checkpoint Watch), with its four hundred women volunteers who monitor the checkpoints on a daily basis, intervening where they can, to alleviate humiliation and suffering, at http://www.machsomwatch.org/en
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