150 Irish artists and performers pledge cultural boycott of Israel
By Yehonathan Tommer
DUBLIN – Some 150 Irish artists have pledged a cultural boycott of Israel saying they would “not perform or exhibit in Israel” until Israel ended its abuse of Palestinian human rights.
“We pledge not to avail of any invitation to perform or exhibit in Israel, nor to accept any funding from any institution linked to the government of Israel, until such time as Israel complies with international law and universal principles of human rights,” the signatories declared over the weekend at a lunch time concert launch of the boycott at Meeting House Square in Dublin.
The academic and cultural boycott was initiated by the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign “in response to a call from Palestinian civil society”.
Among the artists supporting the boycott were musicians Damien Dempsey, Donnal Lunny and Kila’s uilleann piper Eoin Dillon, artists Robert Ballagh and Felim Egan, playwright Jimmy Murphy and Actress Neilil Conroy.
Jazz guitarist Sami Moukaddem premiered his song honouring Rachel Corrie, the 23 year old American peace activist who was crushed to death by an Israeli bulldozer during a demonstration in the Gaza Strip in 2003.
“Culture cannot stand aloof from politics,” Boycott coordinator Raymond Deane said in a statement. “Whether or not art is ‘above politics’, its presentation and representation in the real world can all too easily be hijacked by oppressive states. With this pledge, Irish artists have an opportunity to distance themselves from such exploitation, and to take a non-violent stand on behalf of the oppressed Palestinian people.”
They will be followed by thousands of artists around the world, “who refuse to allow themselves to be used as propaganda tools by the Israeli apartheid state,” Deane said.
The Irish boycott in opposition to Israeli policies in the West Bank follows on the heels of a growing number of international artists who have canceled scheduled performances in Israel.
Elvis Costello, The Pixies, Jill Scott Heron, the Klaxons and the Gorillaz Sound System all cancelled their shows in what appeared to be a response to Israel’s raid on the Turkish Gaza bound flotilla in May.
British electronica duo Leftfield are the most recent performers to shun Israel. They were due to appear on August 31, but cancelled their tour because of “unforeseen production problems.”
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Posted by Yehonathan Tommer
on Aug 16 2010. Filed under More News, More News.
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I’d like to sit down and chat with Raymond Deane, the coordinator of the Irish artists boycotting Israel. While I commend him for his zeal, he is obviously misinformed.
First, I’d tell him that Israel is not an apartheid state. If Deane won’t take it from me, perhaps he’d be more likely to listen to such current and former heads of state as Prime Minister Stephen Harper, President Barack Obama, or President F.W. de Klerk who played a key role together with Nelson Mandela in ending apartheid in South Africa. All of these leaders have publicly declared that Israel is not an apartheid state. Or Deane may be more likely to take it from Jimmy Carter himself, the man who effectively coined the term “apartheid” as it applies to Israel and who later apologized publicly for using it.
Second, while no one denies that Palestinians are suffering hardship, I’d tell Deane that he is incorrect in pinning the blame on Israel. It is important to remember that the West Bank is governed by what is recognized by many states, including our own, as a radical terrorist organization. The World Bank has gone on record about systemic corruption within the Palestinian Authority, noting that he billions of dollars of aid are not getting to those who need it. It appears that the “oppressive state” exploiting Palestinians might actually be their own.
Deane and his band of Irish artists would do better to get informed and direct their zeal elsewhere. Perhaps then they may be of some real help the Palestinians they profess to care so deeply about.
Cecily Bos
Hamilton, Ontario
Oh, we Irish well know the difference between defense and sffense. The Palestinians too know the difference, having been defending themselves from Israel’s offense for quite some time.
Facts are irrelevant. Truth is pliable. History is moldable to one’s agenda.
Allah Akbar to you in Ireland.
OMG there are 150 of them born every minute. You can give away Ireland as you have but please, you have no right to insist that others commit suicide. Poor dupes, read some history and learn the difference between offense and defense.