Boycott (again)

From "Lecturers vote for boycott of Israeli universities", The Guardian, Thursday May 31, 2007, by James Meikle, education correspondent ...

....Delegates at the first conference of the new University and College Union in Bournemouth voted by 158 to 99 for "a comprehensive and consistent boycott" of all Israeli academic institutions, as called for by Palestinian trade unions in response to Israel's "40-year occupation" of Palestinian land. The union's leadership must now circulate calls from Palestinians for a boycott of Israeli universities to all branches throughout the country.

Tom Hickey, a Brighton University academic and union executive member ... led the move...

...Sally Hunt, the general secretary of the union, said: "I do not believe a boycott is supported by a majority of [120,000] UCU members, nor do I believe that members see it as a priority for the union."

The boycott was also opposed by the education minister, Bill Rammell. He said: "The UK government fully supports academic freedom and is firmly against any academic boycotts of Israel or Israeli academics. Whilst I appreciate the independence of the UCU, I am very disappointed that the union has decided to pass a motion which encourages its members to consider boycotting Israeli academics and education institutions. I profoundly believe this does nothing to promote the Middle East peace process." ...

...Ofir Frankel, spokesman for the Advisory Board for Academic Freedom, said: "We see it as discriminatory and counterproductive. It will make British academia look a little less serious."
Jon Benjamin, chief executive of the board of Deputies of British Jews, said: "Now is the time to strengthen the kinds of relationships that will bring all sides of the Israeli/Palestinian conflict together and, in this country, create a better understanding of the complex issues through that engagement. We call upon the union's leadership and all members who are rightly outraged by the decision to work towards a reversal of this policy."


From The Conference of Presidents of major Jewish Organisations the central coordinating body representing 50 (USA) national Jewish organizationson "Resolutions are obscene and acts of bigotry,” 30/5/07 ...

New York, May 30, 2007… Conference of Presidents leaders condemned the British University and College Union resolutions passed today that support campaigns to boycott Israeli academic institutions and to provide unconditional financial aid to the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority.

Harold Tanner, Chairman, and Malcolm Hoenlein, Executive Vice Chairman of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, said, “These obscene resolutions have all the faults that academics normally deplore in their profession: a superficial and flawed understanding of the subject, clear bias, and antagonism to the open exchange of ideas. Their call for unconditional financial support for the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority, which continues to terrorize Israeli civilians and calls for Israel’s destruction, demonstrates that the sympathies of the majority of the union’s representatives lie with a terrorist group rather than the victims of terror. They launch this baseless assault on a democracy with true academic freedom and support those who would deny this and other freedoms and rights.”

The UCU resolution calls for “the restoration of all international aid to the PA” without requiring any of the Quartet’s three conditions for international support: an end to violence, recognition of Israel, and acceptance of prior agreements.

“The resolution asserts that boycotting Israeli academic institutions is not anti-Semitic, but singling out, demonizing, and delegitimizing the Jewish state, as the resolution does, is by definition just that. No amount of obfuscation will change that.”

“We call on the entire membership of the University and College Union to reverse this reprehensible and unjustifiable act of bigotry and discrimination by their representatives.”