Tuesday, May 9, 2006
I have always been somewhat skeptical of boycott efforts, particularly for Jewish causes -- it's a dangerous game for monority and often vulnerable communities to play...and Palestinian Arabs have been finding out of late.
Malcolm Lowe addresses several issues in this essay, including the machinations of the powers-that-be within the Presbyterian Church (USA), divestment and Sabeel -- Divestment Rebounds On Palestinians:
Like other self-styled "mainline" Protestant churches that followed its lead, the PCUSA did not merely speak of divestment from doing business with Israel. Its resolution also added a pro forma call for divestment from organizations that profit from Palestinian terrorism. This was done, presumably, as an insignificant gesture toward "evenhandedness."
What the PCUSA leadership did not foresee was that the Palestinians would elect to power a terrorist organization openly devoted to the destruction of the State of Israel. Israel quickly cut off funds to the Palestinian Authority and called upon other governments to do the same. The USA, Canada and the European Union responded to Israel's appeal.
The Palestinians look to lose up to $2 billion a year and there could be no better moral justification for it than the PCUSA resolution...
