The Origins of the BDS War
Gerald Steinberg describes the history of BDS, from its inception at the 2001 Durban Conference to current efforts to advance BDS through the EU's product labeling requirements.
Publications: | Reports, Books, Academic Publications, Submissions, Resource Pages |
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Other Content Types: | Press Releases, In The Media, Presentations, Posts, , Key Issues |
NGOs: | Palestinian NGO Network (PNGO) |
Start date: | 1 Jan 1988 |
End date: | 18 Jun 2019 |
Gerald Steinberg describes the history of BDS, from its inception at the 2001 Durban Conference to current efforts to advance BDS through the EU's product labeling requirements.
The French government provides millions of euros to French, Palestinian, and Israeli NGOs that engage in activities that demonize and delegitimize Israel.
In sharp contrast to Dutch government policy, direct and indirect funding supports NGOs that are active in BDS campaigns. In their response to this report, the Dutch Foreign Minister and State-Secretary of Foreign Affairs indicated that failure to end these activities may result in a cessation of funding.
The NGO Development Center (NDC - Ramallah) has distributed $6 million to 25 NGOs on behalf of Switzerland, Sweden, Netherlands, and Denmark. The NGO grantees include some of the most radical groups operating in Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Many of the recipients employ apartheid rhetoric and promote war crimes cases against Israeli officials, and some are active members in the Palestinian BDS movement. NDC facilitated and funded the Palestinian NGO Code of Conduct which demands that Palestinian groups reject any normalization activities with the occupier.
[UPDATED] Following the pattern in previous conflicts, a number of NGOs immediately issued condemnations of Israel following the IDF response to increasing deadly rocket attacks from Gaza. Many of these statements reflect bias and double standards, and ignore or give little attention to Israeli human rights and casualties. NGOs exploit legal terminology, including terms such as "war crimes," "collective punishment," and "indiscriminate attacks." Some use the fighting in Gaza to repeat calls for boycotts and sanctions as part of the Durban strategy, and accuse Israel of perpetrating a "massacre."
Christian Aid, a major British NGO and NGO-funder, endorses a highly biased approach to the Arab-Israeli conflict. It dismisses the impact of Palestinian terrorism and focuses disproportionately on alleged Israeli "violations." Christian Aids partners are among the most radical NGOs in the region -- including Sabeel, ICAHD, and the AIC -- which actively promote BDS campaigns. Christian Aid receives substantial funding from the British and Irish governments.