Background material from

Links:
British Campaign for Universities in Palestine
Engage Online Forum
Palestine Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel

The Academic boycott debate in the UK, April-May 2005

In the last fortnight of April there was a flurry of activity around the resolutions on the call for an academic boycott of Israel at the AUT (Association of University Teachers) conference. Two resolutions were adopted, calling for boycotts of Bar Ilan and Haifa Universities. Many members of the AUT threatened to resign and a move was rapidly successful to get anough signatories to call for a Special Council meeting before the end of May. There was a continuing discussion around the issue right up that special council and beyond. At it, the decisions to boycott were revoked, though there was an affirmation of the need to ‘base its policy on providing practical solidarity to Palestinian and Israeli trade unionists and academics’. A couple of days later the other British trade union in the field, the Association of Teachers in Further and Higher Education (Natfhe) had its AGM. (The evolution of its position can be found in the final section of FFIPP-UK mailing no 6.)

The Guardian carried a lot of material in the build-up to the AUT Conference - news reports, editorial and op ed pieces and, on 19th April, three letters each signed by a large number of academics, including one from Faculty for Israeli Palestinian Peace (FFIPP-UK) which was signed by many JfJfP signatories. Some signatories signed an alternative letter (Alan Carling and others) published on the same day with yet a third letter signed by a range of other academics. Some of those involved with the second letter, who are against the occupation and against an academic boycott on principle, set up a website, ENGAGE to campaign for the rescinding of the boycott resolutions. There is much relevant material on this site.

For futher correspondence in the Guardian see 20 April, 21 April, 23 April, 25 April. The continued discussion in May is less well documented here but is covered in the FFIPP-UK mailouts listed below. For a summary of the situation after the dust had settled see the Guardian report on 31 May 2005.

Facultry for Israeli-Palestinian Peace - UK has circulated relevant materials to interested parties. Rather than list all the articles these mailings have included separately, you can see the original mailings at:

FFIPP-UK mailing 1 - 26 April
FFIPP-UK mailing 2 - 27 April
FFIPP-UK mailing 3 - 29 April
FFIPP-UK mailing 4 - 10 May
FFIPP-UK mailing 5 - 19 May
FFIPP-UK mailing 6 - 6 June

For specific articles on the topic dating from April see:
Blunt boycott, Guardian editorial, 20 April
To boldly go, Ilan Pappe, 20 April
The sins of the few, Etgar Keret, 20 April
Ignoring the log in your own eye, Frances Raday, 20 April
Plus (not in the Guardian)
The Meaning of Academic Boycott, Baruch Kimmerling

See also the large selection of articles for May included in the FFIPP-UK Mailings above.