BDS in peril

The BDS (Boycott, divest, sanctions) movement against Israel is under threat from a Tory government determined to offer aid and comfort to its friend, the Apartheid state of Israel. Soon it will be illegal to boycott Israeli goods on political grounds, which to my mind is one of the most wicked incursions of freedom we have seen here in a long time. Now it seems, we are not allowed to disapprove of another country to the point of refusing to buy its produce or discouraging its apologists from coming to our shores to justify its own brand of injustice.

In America a very well funded group of Zionists does nothing else but disrupt and attempt to ban any exhibitions of Palestinian art, music or literature. I am told they are highly successful in gagging the voice of the Palestinian opposition to Israeli hegemony. I don't know if such a group exists in Britain, but the Israeli lobby is certainly very strong; strong enough to have persuaded their friends in the Tory administration to pass this new law. Speaking of America, I hear Beyonce is to throw a concert in Tel Aviv in the Summer. This is a woman who caused controversy when she appeared to support the Black Panther movement during her half-time show at the Superbowl. So she believes in defending the rights of one minority, the blacks of America, but she doesn't seem to care much about the problems of another minority, the Palestinian Arabs. Sounds like it's green power she cares about most, not black power. Shame on her.

In the 1980s, the boycott of South African exports was one of the factors which contributed to the fall of Apartheid. The ban on sporting links likewise hurt that fascist regime badly. Today we have full sporting links with Israel, they are in the Olympics, they are part of UEFA, and Israel is allowed and even encouraged to sell goods here that are produced on the illegal Israeli settlements on the West Bank. Yet, incredibly, we are not allowed to organise boycotts against them. This is a disgrace, and a stain on our character as a nation.