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Title Foreign Correspondent: Israel
Published Australia : ABC, 2011
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Description 1 online resource (streaming video file) (26 min. 53 sec.) ; 162303842 bytes
Summary What would happen if people around the world who are concerned about the plight of Palestinians all stopped buying Israeli products and ceased using Israeli services and urged many more to do the same? Would their actions alter the course of events, change an intractable stand-off, succeed where so many peace proposals, special envoys, intense diplomacy and of course armed conflict have persistently failed? We go behind the global grassroots campaign railing against Israel with boycotts.Residents of a funky inner-city Sydney suburb strolling down their ethnically-diverse main street last weekend might have been surprised to see the Arab-Israeli conflict playing out - shrill and strident - just outside a popular chocolate shop. A furious protest was in full flight with the two camps hurling abuse at one another. On the one side were supporters of BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) the controversial movement rallying against businesses based in or linked to Israel. On the other side were equally passionate defenders of businesses who think targeting shops in Australia is inflammatory, provocative and wrong-headed. Sounds like both sides are as entrenched and divided as those at the centre of the bitter territorial dispute that continues to defeat some of the most powerful persuaders and diplomatic forces the world can muster. The promoters of BDS are utterly convinced of the merits of their campaign, opponents are conversely convinced of its unfairness. Reporter Eric Campbell travels to the heart of the dispute to assess the impact of the global campaign and discovers - like so much about the Arab/Israeli issue - it's complicated. While some Israeli businesses are being stung by the boycotts there are some unintended consequences. For example, there are many Palestinians employed by Israeli companies who could find themselves out of work if the worldwide boycott succeeds. "I think it's from ignorance or hatred of Israel. It's not from love of the Palestinian people because I'm the one who loves the Palestinian people, I'm taking care of them". Daniel Birnbaum, Israeli businessmanStill there are many Palestinians supporting the BDS who say the only way to change the stalemate in the stalled peace process is to hit Israelis where it hurts - their hip pockets. They point to the dramatic effects of anti-apartheid boycotts on South Africa and say boycotts can also work to change Israel's position."It comes down to the dollar at the end of the day, it really does." Cairo Arafat, Palestinian resident of the West Bank.Since Israel wrested the West Bank from Jordan, successive Israeli governments have supported the development of a series of Jewish settlements in the territory to the protest and outrage of Palestinians. With peace talks going nowhere, Palestinians say they've lost patience in the process and they want to try a new, non-violent tactic to force Israel off their land.To complicate matters, the Israeli parliament has recently passed a law making it illegal to call for a boycott. Some Israelis oppose this on grounds of civil liberties and are defying their government. A well known Israeli actor says he's boycotting settlements in the West Bank, and he's proud of it."It's a stupid law. I would be proud to be prosecuted on this law". Rami Heuberger, actor
Event Broadcast 2011-09-20 at 20:00:00
Notes Classification: NC
Subject Arab-Israeli conflict.
Boycotts -- Law and legislation.
Israeli West Bank Barrier.
Israelis -- Politics and government.
Organizational effectiveness.
Israel.
Form Streaming video
Author Arafat, Cairo, contributor
Birnbaum, Daniel, contributor
Campbell, Eric, reporter
Corcoran, Mark, host
Heuberger, Rami, contributor
Tibi, Ahmad, contributor