Campaign Update 8
3rd of August 2007
Thank you for being part of the Stop the Boycott campaign.
Cambridge University Rejects Israeli Academic Boycott
- The Council of the University of Cambridge has unanimously rejected calls for a boycott of Israeli academic institutions.
- At its Council meeting on 23 July 2007 the Council of the University of Cambridge unanimously endorsed the statement issued by Universities UK. This statement read:
- "UCU members are free to debate the pros and cons of an institutional boycott of Israeli universities. Universities UK, however, would oppose any such boycott as this would be inimical to academic freedom, including the freedom of academics to collaborate with other academics, regardless of nationality or location."
- Lorna Fitzsimons, Chief Executive of BICOM speaking for Stop the Boycott said:
"The unanimous rejection of a boycott of Israeli academic institutions by the council of a world-class university sends a clear message. It clearly demonstrates how out of touch boycott supporters are with the wider academic community. We fully support the decision of the Council of the University of Cambridge as a boycott would not only severely damage the reputation of British academia but would be disastrous for peace in the Middle East."
________________________________________________________
Ten Thousand Academics Declare Themselves 'Honorary Israelis'
- 10,000 academics internationally have declared themselves honorary Israeli academics in response to the proposed academic boycott of Israel.
- Among them are 53 US University Presidents and 32 Nobel Laureates.
- The statement they have signed says:
"We are academics, scholars, researchers and professionals of differing religious and political perspectives. We all agree that singling out Israelis for an academic boycott is wrong. To show our solidarity with our Israeli academics in this matter, we, the undersigned, hereby declare ourselves to be Israeli academics for purposes of any academic boycott. We will regard ourselves as Israeli academics and decline to participate in any activity from which Israeli academics are excluded." - The statement was the initiative of US based Scholars for Peace in the Middle East (SPME), and drafted by Alan Dershowitz, Steven Weinberg and Ed Beck. You can see all the signatories on the SPME website here: http://spme.net/cgi-bin/display_petitions.cgi?ID=9&Action=View
- Responding in the Chronicle of Higher Education, UCU official Matt Waddup said the Scholars for Peace in the Middle East petition will have "no bearing" on how the union proceeds. "We are a trade union," he said. "We are used to international pressure".
Jeremy Newmark, the Chief Executive of The Jewish Leadership Council, on behalf of the Stop The Boycott Campaign, welcomed the statement, saying: "We welcome this statement. It is a significant and serious development which proves that there are consequences to an academic boycott of Israel. It is clear evidence of the damage that the UCU vote has done and continues to do to the reputation of British Academia. We have brought the petition to the attention of the British government."
________________________________________________________
More on Gert Weisskirchen's Visit
- Following the recent visit by Professor Gert Weisskirchen, OSCE representative on antisemitism, a letter appeared in this week's Times Higher Education Supplement.
- The letter, organised by Engage and signed by 36 UCU members, notes that the UCU leadership have so far not fixed a time to meet Prof. Weisskirchen and calls on them to do so.
- You can read the full letter on the Engage website, here: http://www.engageonline.org.uk/blog/article.php?id=1315
________________________________________________________
Israeli and Palestinian Transport Unions Sign New Deal
- Trade Unions for Israeli and Palestinian transportation workers recently met in a special summit in Cyprus to sign a cooperation accord.
- The two unions established a joint liaison committee to deal with practical problems faced by transport workers in the region and to help build trust between unions.
The deal was brokered by the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF). - This deal comes despite the decision in early July by Britain's biggest transport Union, the TGWU, to boycott Israeli goods.
- You can read the agreement here (PDF): http://www.itfglobal.org/files/seealsodocs/4960/JointStatementSignatures.pdf
- Or watch a video of the signing here: http://www.itfglobal.org/news-online/signingvideo.cfm
________________________________________________________
Past Events
- Hendon United Synagogue held an event last week to encourage more political activism in the Jewish Community, with particular reference to the developing boycott movement.
- The meeting was addressed by Douglas Murray, Director of the Centre for Social Cohesion and by Jeremy Newmark of the Jewish Leadership Council.
- There was also a stall run by the Stop the Boycott campaign.
- More than 100 people attended.
If you are having any local events, please let us know on support@stoptheboycott.org
