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Israeli apartheid

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Template:POV-title Israeli apartheid (or the terming of Israel an apartheid state) is a political epithet used by some Palestinian-rights activists, and some anti-Zionists . The term is cricitized for its depiction of Israel's policies by its negative associations. The phrase seeks to draw an analogy between the policies of the Israeli government towards Palestinians to those of the apartheid-era South African government towards its Black and mixed-race populations, despite the substantial differences between the two countries' policies.

Origins

The analogy was used as early as 1987 by Uri Davis, an Israeli-born academic and Jewish member of the Palestine Liberation Organization, in his book Israel: An Apartheid State (ISBN 0862323177) which provided a detailed comparison of Israel and South Africa. The highly controversial World Conference against Racism in Durban, South Africa adopted resolutions describing Israel as an "apartheid state" . Nobel Peace Prize winner and South African anti-apartheid activist Desmond Tutu wrote in some articles that the situation in Israel reminded him about Apartheid.

Analogy

Proponents of this term argue that while Israel grants some rights to Arabs living in Israel within its pre-1967 borders, it routinely discriminates against Palestinians living in the Israeli-occupied territories. Proponents argue a number of reasons for this.

  • Palestinians who live in Israeli-occupied territories do not have Israeli citizenship do not have voting rights in Israel as do citizens of Israel (Israeli Arabs including), but they are under Israeli occupation and subject to the laws and policies of the Israeli government and its military. (Ibid)
  • Israel has constructed settlements in the West Bank, which preclude resources such as arable land and water from Palestinian use. (Ibid)
  • Amnesty estimates that tens of thousands of Palestinians have been left homeless by Israeli home demolitions. These demolitions are "linked to Israeli intentions to take over West Bank and Gaza land" and are "war crimes". Proponenets argue this policy is an example of apartheid.

Proponents of this term often claim discrimination against Israeli Arabs.

  • Jews can easily enter Israel, under the Law of Return, yet Palestinians who fled or were driven out, may not have the Right of return.
  • Arab municipalities receive less than one fifth the funding that is given to their Jewish counterparts.
  • The Government of Israel often refuses to grant permits to build or repair homes, and fails to provide electricity, water, health services, education, roads, or any other infrastructure. One of the consequences is that 70% of Negev Desert Bedouin (Arab) infants are not fully immunized and one third are hospitalized within their first year of life.

Usage

The term "Israeli apartheid" has been used by groups protesting the Israeli government, particularly student groups in Britain, the United States and Canada, where "Israeli apartheid week" is held on many campuses. While the term would appear to have a non-subjective, even legal, basis, it is often appropriated by those attempting to advance political goals, such as sanctions against Israel or disinvestment in Israel. It is meant to establish a link between political anti-Israel campaigns, on the one hand, and human-rights campaigns against apartheid-era South Africa, on the other.

Criticism

Supporters of Israel argue that calling the country an "apartheid state" or referring to "Israeli apartheid" is incorrect for a number of reasons.

  • The Israeli Arab minority have full and equal voting rights and are represented in the Knesset (Israel's legislature) whilst in apartheid South Africa, Blacks could not vote and had no representation in the South African parliament.
  • Israeli law is identical to that of most countries in the world, regarding the rights of Palestinians who live outside Israel and are not Israeli citizens. International law does not reqire an occupying power to grant citizen rights to people living on occupied territory, and this is seldom, if ever, done in practice.
  • Israel's security situation has forced it to impose restrictions on Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza. However, these conditions are not imposed on Israeli Arabs (that is, Palestinians who are residents of Israel living within the state's pre-1967 borders).
  • The features of legal petty apartheid do not exist in Israel. Jews and Arabs use the same hospitals, Jewish and Arab babies are born in the same delivery room, Jews and Arabs eat in the same restaurants, and Jews and Arabs travel in the same buses, trains and taxis without being segregated..
  • Apartheid South Africa strictly denied Blacks their legal rights, in contrast to Israeli law, which upholds Israeli Arabs' rights. Israeli courts have ruled against practices that exclude Israeli Arabs from leasing property. Arabs are being hired in increasing (though still disproprtionately low) numbers in the civil service and government owned agencies. Israeli Arabs also serve as judges in Israeli courts. .
  • Bantustans were created as resevoirs for Black labour to be utilised by South Africa whilst providing a legal means to strip Blacks of their South African citizenship. Israel's policy towards the West Bank and Gaza are quite different, to keep Palestinian residents of these territories out of Israel and exclude as many as possible from working within Israel.
  • Jews constitute a majority of the Israeli population while the situation in South Africa was one of minority rule.

See also

External links

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