“Judaization” Term Promotes Racially-based Exclusion and Is Immoral

JERUSALEM – In response to the use of an antisemitic slur by Raquel Rolnik, the UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing, Jerusalem-based NGO Monitor today demanded her immediate resignation. Rolnik utilized the term “Judaization” to describe Israeli government housing policy in the Negev, Jerusalem, and the West Bank. NGO Monitor notes that the term originated with Arab rejectionists and has been promoted by fringe non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that falsely claim the mantle of human rights.

“‘Judaization’ is an anti-Jewish racist term which suggests that the presence of Jews is alien and unacceptable,” says Anne Herzberg, legal advisor for NGO Monitor. “This immoral rhetoric is part of the broader delegitimization campaign that is counterproductive to fostering peace in the region. As with the false ‘apartheid’ analogy, it is invoked with the same goal to demonize. It is the latest manifestation of the 1975 UN ‘Zionism is racism’ resolution and the 2001 Durban Conference NGO Forum declaration.”

NGO Monitor notes that Article 4 of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination “condemn[s] all propaganda and all organizations which are based on ideas or theories of superiority of one race or group of persons of one colour or ethnic origin, or which attempt to justify or promote racial hatred and discrimination in any form…”

NGO Monitor also notes that it is immoral for human rights organizations and UN officials to use phrases such as “Judaization,” which explicitly endorses ethnically-based exclusion.

“The term Judaization is immoral and employed for antisemitic goals; we expect that it would not be invoked by a UN Special Rapporteur claiming to operate with a human rights framework,” Herzberg adds. “Raquel Rolnik’s use of it makes peace more difficult to achieve, and in light of this she should resign immediately.”