Gerald Steinberg 2 (2)Click here to read full article.

[EXCERPTS]

For years, the EU has been providing millions of euros to radical political advocacy non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that, as repeatedly demonstrated, promote the images of Palestinian victimization and Israeli oppression. In many cases, the reports and lobbying efforts of these NGO are central to EU policy formation, forming a closed circle in which biased anti-Israel narratives are reinforced.

Although claiming to support moral causes such as human rights, democracy and peace, these EU funding policies actively promote boycott and isolation of Israel.

The EU’s European Instrument for Human Rights and Democracy (EIDHR) is a major vehicle for this form of political pressure. For the years 2007-2010, (the last available data), EIDHR channeled more money into Israeli-Palestinian issues than to any other country or part of the world – over €11 million. It would appear that for EIDHR, human rights violations in Syria and around the world are of relatively little importance.

Although EIDHR is supposed to promote human rights around the world, some people have more rights than others, and Israelis are entirely excluded, as reflected in the funding practices and the resulting policy pronouncements.

A brief and partial examination of the NGOs and activities that EIDHR funds illustrates the EU’s central role. In 2011, EIDHR provided an Israeli NGO, the Coalition of Women for Peace, with €247,668. CWP is a leader in the campaigns to demonize Israel, including boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) and sponsoring “Nakba Day” activities that repeat Palestinian narratives. CWP officials have participated in events in which they carried flags of the PFLP terrorist organization.