Crimes of Solidarity

The Criminalization of Palestinian Solidarity Activism by the US, Israel
By: Kevin Gosztola Friday July 15, 2011 5:50 pm

Earlier in the week, it was reported that Israel passed a law punishing people who advocate for a boycott of the settlements. The law is definitely not only a blow to freedom of speech in Israel but also another act of repression against Palestinian solidarity activism in Israel.

Also, this week the Committee to Stop FBI Repression put out a statement in solidarity with activists who have engaged in flotillas to Gaza. The group of antiwar and international solidarity activists, who have each been subpoenaed by the FBI to appear before a grand jury over the past months, all for exercising their civil liberties, condemned the State Department for seeking to make delivering humanitarian aid to Palestinians a crime. They called out the State Department for “threatening arrests, trials, and lengthy prison sentences for Americans on board the solidarity boat named, “The Audacity of Hope.”

I spoke with Maureen Murphy, a journalist and Palestinian solidarity activist who has done work for Electronic Intifada. You can follow her on Twitter @maureen_70. First Part of Interview with Maureen Murphy

KEVIN GOSZTOLA: Israel has passed a law to punish those who are boycotting the settlements. I was wondering if you could provide some background and reactions to this development and what you think this means for people seeking to engage in Palestinian solidarity activism in Israel.

MAUREEN MURPHY: It’s worth putting this piece of legislation into the general context of the series of really draconian and politically motivated legislation that has been passed by the Knesset or is under consideration. Earlier this year, the Nakba law was passed, which basically penalized groups that observe a day of mourning regarding the establishment of the state of Israel, and that’s a direct attack on the Palestinian community.

There’s a bill that I think is still under consideration called the loyalty oath bill that will require civil society groups and individuals wishing to gain Israeli citizenship to pledge allegiance to the Jewish and democratic state. And then, there’s been a number of laws that are intended to dictate the curriculum that are used in Palestinian schools in Israel. So there’s a heightened and escalated number of laws that are being used to, one, attack the Palestinian community in Israel and, two, to penalize Israeli civil society, especially human rights groups which assisted with the UN fact-finding mission (better known as “The Goldstone Report”).

There’s been a number of these kinds of laws and, instead of allowing civil society to operate, with this new law, the boycott law, it’s effectively preventing civil society from holding the government accountable to international law. And it provides protection for the whole settlement project in the occupied West Bank by preventing people from being able to speak out about it and by muzzling and critics and human rights groups that document the settlement project in the West Bank.

I think it’s also worth noting that Israel has actively prevented or tried to prevent ties of direct solidarity between Israeli activists and Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip by making it illegal for Israeli citizen to enter certain parts of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. And, it’s also for years turned away and deported international solidarity activists or even people working for international development agencies or civil society groups, to prevent them from accessing and build relationships with Palestinians and outside observers from witnessing what’s happening on the ground. …more