Hundreds of British Academics Sign Letter Vowing to Boycott Israel
In a full-page ad due to be published in the Guardian newspaper on Tuesday, the academics accuse Israel of illegal occupation, human rights violations and resisting a settlement.
Haaretz Oct 26, 2015 8:55 PM
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A
letter in support of the Palestinian cause signed by 343 British
academics is due to be published as a full page advert in the Guardian
newspaper on Tuesday.
Reporting
on the letter, the Jewish Chronicle said that the signatories come from
72 institutions, including the prestigious Oxford and Cambridge
universities.
"As
scholars associated with British universities, we are deeply disturbed
by Israel's illegal occupation of Palestinian land, the intolerable
human rights violations that it inflicts on all sections of the
Palestinian people and its apparent determination to resist any feasible
settlement," the academics write in the letter.
The
signatories of the letter undertake to reject invitations to visit
Israeli academic institutions, to refuse to act as academic referees and
to stay away from all conferences "funded, organized or sponsored" by
Israeli institutions.
However, they say that they will continue to work with their Israeli colleagues "in their individual capacities."
The
letter follows the launch last week of a pro-Israel initiative backed
by 150 writers, artists and musicians, including Harry Potter author JK
Rowling. That initiative opposes boycotts of Israel.
The
Jewish Chronicle quoted Professor Jane Hardy of the University of
Hertfordshire as saying: “This is an opportunity for academics to add
their voices to the growing international movement to hold Israel
accountable for its human rights abuses and specifically the deprivation
of opportunity for our Palestinian colleagues to participate in the
global academic community.
“The
commitment does not call for the termination of links with individual
colleagues nor the end of dialogue, rather it is a boycott of
institutions directly or indirectly complicit in the systematic and
illegal occupation of Palestine."
Dr
Rachel Cohen of London's City University is quoted as saying that "it
is the responsibility of those of us who have the freedom to act to
exercise that freedom in support of our colleagues in Palestinian
universities who do not have such freedom."
While
Israel presents itself as an enlightened funder of academic pursuits,
Cohen said, it " systematically denies Palestinian academics and
students their basic freedoms, such as the freedom of movement necessary
to attend international academic conferences, or simply to get to
lectures on time."
read more: http://www.haaretz.com/jewish/
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