Click here to read full article.

[EXCERPTS]

A report by NGO Monitor, exclusively provided to The Jerusalem Post, argues that Adalah – The Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, inaccurately lists laws in its “Discriminatory Laws” database in an effort to vilify Israel.

“Adalah’s legal database promotes the false and demonizing allegation that Zionism is racism, and labels all references to the Jewish connection to Israel, including use of the Hebrew calendar or menorah symbol, as racist,” Bar- Ilan University Prof. Gerald Steinberg, head of the Jerusalem- based NGO Monitor, told the Post on Tuesday.

“Adalah also strips away the comparative context, treating Israel’s status as the nation-state of the Jewish people as if it were unique among democratic societies,” said Steinberg.

“Furthermore, almost half of these so-called ‘racist laws’ are actually fringe legislative proposals that were not approved by the Knesset,” he said. “Misleading readers by presenting draft proposals as approved legislation is not only dishonest but also totally distorts Israel’s vibrant democratic process.”

The report, titled “Adalah’s Database of Laws: Imagining Racism to Demonize Israel,” takes aim at the database, launched in March 2013 on the Adalah’s website and promoted by it on Facebook with the more provocative name “Racist Laws.”

NGO Monitor said one of the reasons it analyzed the database is that it spreads false information that has been used by various pro-Palestinian activists and cited in leading publications such as The New York Times.

“Adalah does not define its selection methodology or describe systematically how each law is considered discriminatory,” stated the report.

“In addition, although the database is in English, Adalah does not provide English translations of the laws. Instead it offers descriptions that are occasionally inaccurate or misquote the law.”

In addition, Adalah “ignores the language in some laws that specifically promotes or protects ethnic minority groups in Israel.”

The database often uses the word “Zionist” with no explanation as to why it is associated with racism or discrimination.