Thursday, October 14, 2010

(BLOG) South African Anti-Boycott Of Israel Petition

"In the wake of a decision by University of Johannesburg's faculty Senate to 'sever a longstanding relationship with an Israeli university unless certain conditions are met,' South African university students and others are pushing back against what they call the 'double standard ... used as a weapon to demonize a state and her people.'

The Coalition for Clean Water, a student initiative, is circulating a petition strongly condemning the singling out of Israel, which it says harms South African society and deprives the country of much-needed technological innovations.

You can read and sign that petition below." (source)



Petition Letter

"Dear signatory, please when signing the petition sign your full name. If you hold a position of any importance such as a lecturer, rabbi, pastor etc. or belong to an organisation, please put this in the column entitled 'title'.

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To: South African Universities

We the undersigned, strongly oppose any boycotts divestment and sanctions targeting the state of Israel and her people. We believe that in order to achieve peace dialogue must be enhanced and not curtailed. In a conflict of the complexity of that of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, it is not the place of the international community to unilaterally punish and condemn a single party to the conflict, nor is it our duty to impose a solution upon them.

Furthermore, we unequivocally condemn the unjust singling out of Israel. While any unjust act should be condemned, including Israel’s, it seems that our institutions are intent on perpetuating a double standard, which is being used as a weapon to demonize a state and her people.

We believe that isolation will impede dialogue, reducing the incentives of the parties to engage peacefully. Boycotts promote an atmosphere of pessimism – predicated on the failure of dialogue.

Nor are we willing to tolerate the irreparable damage boycotts have on South African society. Thousands of South Africans stand to benefit from the technological advancements of Israel, these benefits will be denied to them by those few responsible for a decision to boycott Israel.

We therefore call on our institutions to continue and expand their ties with Israeli and Palestinian institutions and promote a message of peace and unity.
Sincerely,

The Undersigned" (source)

Click Here to sign the petition.

Click Here to view current signatures.










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