Boycott Israeli goods!
The growing revulsion at Israeli repression of Palestinian rights has led to the launch of a new boycott campaign against Israeli goods and leisure tourism, in response to demands from Palestinian activists.
At the launch meeting in the House of Commons, Labour MP Lynn Jones described a boycott as "a non-violent way to raise public awareness".
Israeli academic Dr Moshe Machover said: "People ask whether the Palestinian economy will be damaged by a boycott. Such worries do not apply in this case. The Palestinian economy has been throttled by Israel."
Other initial supporters of the call include MPs John Austin, Bill Etherington and Neil Gerrard; activists Tony Benn, Christine Blower, Ken Coates, Liz Davies, and Christine Shawcroft; writers and performers including Caryl Churchill, Harold Pinter, Michael Rosen, Leon Rosselson, Alexei Sayle, Emma Thompson and Benjamin Zephania; and dozens of others.
Socialist Outlook did not support an earlier campaign, which called for a boycott of Marks and Spencer. M&S does indeed sell Israeli-made goods, though no more than many other high street shops; there was a strong suspicion that it was targeted as Britain’s best-known "Jewish-owned" company.
The new campaign, which targets the goods rather than the traders, overcomes this problem.
Israel’s most famous export is citrus fruit, and it is planned to symbolise this with a "Blood Oranges" campaign. However, oranges are not the country’s major export. In cash terms, Israel’s most important exports are arms and diamonds.
Fruit & veg
Since these items are unlikely to be on the weekly shopping list of Socialist Outlook readers, it will not be difficult to avoid buying them. As well as oranges, agricultural exports include potatoes, avocados and fresh herbs.
Many organic vegetables come from the illegal Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip and Jordan valley. These are labelled as "Israeli produce" and imported through EU preferential trade agreements with Israel. The European Commission has recently insisted that Israel cease such passing off , and threatened that unless goods from the occupied territories are clearly identified and distinguished from Israeli produce, the entire trade agreement with Israel is at risk.
Health foods
Because of Jewish dietary laws, many meat substitutes produced in Israel and the occupied territories are also available in Britain. Indeed, wholefood and health food shops appear to stock a range of Israeli goods, and may be more open to persuasion than high street chains.
Israel also exports large quantities of flowers. Because these are not normally labelled with country of origin, it may be difficult to avoid buying them, but customers can always ask where flowers come from.
Other Israeli goods commonly available in Britain include plastic goods (tool boxes, for instance), clothes, electronic goods, and toys (especially children’s musical instruments).
British business figures investing in Israel include former Tesco boss Shirley Porter, now a fugitive from British justice in her Tel-Aviv apartment, and former Ladbroke boss Cyril Stein, a major donor to the Gush Emunim settlers’ movement. Former Haagen Dazs owner Ruben Mattus was a strong supporter of Israeli fascist leader Rabbi Meir Kahane.
Culture
At present, there is no call for a cultural and academic boycott of Israel, though some activists have suggested that Israeli academics attending conferences abroad be quizzed on their positions on Palestinian rights. There have also been objections to staging international conferences in Israel.
Soprano Emma Kirkby recently attracted headlines in Israel when she refused to perform there until the repression of Palestinians ceased, and novelist Nadime Gordimer refused to accept an Israeli literary award, likening Israel to the apartheid she had spent most of her life fighting.
The boycott campaign will continue, and will draw wide support. Further pressure can be expected on Israeli institutions and individuals to take a stand against the repression and in support of Palestinian rights.
Socialist Outlook urges readers to support this campaign, as part of our work in support of the Palestinian struggle for liberation.