#BDS Heeding boycott call, Irish band Dervish pulls out of Israel concerts

The Irish band Dervish announced today that it has pulled out of a series of Irish music concerts in Israel this June, so as not to violate calls for the cultural boycott of Israel.
“At the time we agreed to these performances we were unaware there was a cultural boycott in place. We now feel that we do not wish to break this boycott,” the group said in a statement on its Facebook, adding, “Our decision to withdraw from the concerts reflects our wish to neither endorse nor criticise anyone’s political views in this situation.”
Composer and writer Raymond Deane, hailed the decision, commenting, “I salute you for this courageous and morally correct decision. You will now be subject to massive defamation from Zionists and their fellow-travellers - you should see this as proof that you have made the correct decision, because it will reveal to you the viciousness and mendacity of Israel’s apologists.”
Deane has been a leading Irish campaigner for the cultural boycott of Israel and a signatory along with 150 other Irish artists of an August 2010 pledge to boycott Israel. Since the pledge’s launch, the number of signatories has reached more than 200.  Read more here.

#BDS Apolitical band to boycott Israel

News just in from David Landy in Ireland:

This is good news. Dervish is a decent Irish traditional band from Sligo - although they did a fairly underwhelming  Eurovision entry a few years agohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeoSXqOh6ZY&feature=related   (Not their choice of song though). A much better song, with the great Kate Rusby, is here (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8671ZVYrKLw&feature=related)  Anyway, they were scheduled to play Israel, and after people started asking them not to (and really it was a very short campaign), they issued a statement saying they wouldn’t break the boycott.

I’m probably not alone in being disappointed by the statements that are issued by bands that boycott Israel. I want them to say ‘We are not playing Apartheid Israel. Victory to the Palestinian struggle!’ And of course, they usually come out with more milk-and water stuff – we don’t want to aggravate the situation, there are extremists on all sides but maybe in such a tense situation we shouldn’t go etc.

This disappointment was my initial reaction when reading Dervish’s statement from their facebook page below. But thinking more, it’s a good thing that a band says that their decisions are ‘completely non-political’ AND at the same time ‘we do not wish to break the boycott’. It shows how normal the boycott is getting, that breaking it is starting to be seen as a political act – whereas not going to Israel is seen as apolitical – that is, ordinary. Israel is gradually being placed outside the ordinary – another victory for the anti-normalisation campaign.

And well done to Dervish!

‘Dervish wish to announce they will not be taking part in the Irish music concert series in Israel this June.

Our original decision to participate in the concerts was, like all our tours and appearances, completely non-political.

The organiser of the shows is a musician and friend of the band for many years. He has worked to bridge divides between people through music for much of his life. These concerts were organised in this same spirit.

At the time we agreed to these performances we were unaware there was a cultural boycott in place.

We now feel that we do not wish to break this boycott.

Our decision to withdraw from the concerts reflects our wish to neither endorse nor criticise anyone's political views in this situation.

Dervish are a grouping of like musical minds, we are not a political party.

Our motivation as a band has always been and will continue to be our love of music’  Source

#BDS: #UK's largest Co-op boycotts exports from #Israel's West Bank settlements

"The Co-operative Group has become the first major European supermarket group to end trade with companies that export produce from illegal Israeli settlements.

The UK's fifth biggest food retailer and its largest mutual business, the Co-op took the step as an extension of its existing policy which had been not to source produce from illegal settlements that have been built on Palestinian territories in the West bank."

Read more and write the co-op at customer.relations@co-op.co.uk to show your support. 

#BDS Twitter Alert: Tell the Harlem Globetrotters to cancel their trip to #Israel

"Will you tell the Harlem Globetrotters to cancel their trip to Israel?

http://wp.me/p1SPK5-2qQ

We are asking BDS supporters to get the word out and tell the Harlem Globetrotters to cancel their May 1 & 3 games in Israel! See the letter urging them to respect Palestinian rights and not cross the international picket line: http://bit.ly/IkFvat

Tweet the BDS message or post it to their facebook page,http://www.facebook.com/HarlemGlobetrotters or send them a message through their online contact form,  http://www.harlemglobetrotters.com/contact."

Read more

#BDS in #Turkey #Boycott #Israel

I have recently moved to Istanbul, Turkey and would like to get in touch with pro-Palestine and BDS supporters/advocates/groups. Kindly contact me at youth.agnst.normalization@gmail.com.


Farah

#BDS: The Eleven that Have the Great Opportunity to Stand for Justice

"These groups/artists who plan to play for the Israeli government-sponsored Tel Aviv White City musician roundup (see http://www.tlv-music.com/en/Artists) all have the amazing opportunity to stand up for justice.  By choosing to refrain from playing in Israel, they can be part of the solution to the problem of racism, inequality, and denial of human rights that Palestinians face daily.  Even if an artists does not agree with the goals of BDS, they can still stand up for justice by refusing to take part in a festival that is being partially paid for by the government of Israel, and that supports injustice.  As the renowned French philosopher and political theorist Jacques Rancière said just last January:

"I accepted the invitation to contribute to the debate on the image, of a research group whose work on photography is closely related to the exposure of violations of the rights of the Palestinian people since the birth of the State of Israel."

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#BDS: Time for Justice: Springsteen, Palestine, and the Boycott

"Four months into 2012, and Bruce Springsteen has not booked a gig in Israel.  Last November, it appeared that negotiations with the legendary Boss were pretty much firmed up.  The Israeli press declared "Now its the Boss:  Bruce Springsteen lines up a concert in Israel," and "Bruce Springsteen to give concert in Tel Aviv" with confident conviction.  Plans were in the making for a June gig in Israel."


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#BDS: Lettre ouverte à Renaud Garcia-Fons

"Le 6 mai prochain, vous prévoyez de donner un concert à Tel Aviv, dans le cadre du Festival de musique « de la ville blanche ».

Nous sommes étonnés que vous, qui êtes attaché au respect de la dignité humaine, alliez donner un concert dans un pays qui bafoue le droit international depuis plus de soixante ans.

Nous nous souvenons que vous aviez en effet participé à un « Orchestre pour la Paix » à travers un « Concert de la solidarité humaine » à Paris en 2002."

Continuer à lire

#BDS: The diamond industry’s double-standard on #Israel

"All too aware of how bad association with war crimes is for business, the diamond industry has taken pains to evade questions about its connections with Israel’s human rights abuses — and so far has escaped scrutiny from watchdog organizations.
b

Representatives for 75 countries affiliated to the United Nations-based Kimberley Process Certification Scheme meeting in Kinshasa this week failed to reach agreement on the export of blood-stained diamonds from Zimbabwe. The elephant in the room was Israel’s burgeoning diamond exports which evade the human rights strictures imposed on Zimbabwe’s diamond exports."

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#BDS Victory: #EU Boycotts #UK Company for Dealing with #Israel

"The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement praised the EU on Wednesday for deciding not to renew a contract with the world’s largest security solutions company, because it also does business with Israel.

Group 4 Securicor (G4S), a UK-based company, has provided security services to the buildings of the European Parliament since 2008 – but lost the tender as of April 13, because it also provides security services to Jewish communities, security checkpoints and Israeli prisons at which Arab convicts from Judea and Samaria are held, according to BDS."

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#BDS: Appeal to L. Subramaniam to boycott the Tel Aviv White City Music Festival 2012

"Dear Dr. L. Subramaniam,

We understand that you are scheduled to participate in the Tel Aviv White City Music Festival, 2012, a festival sponsored by the Israel Ministry of Tourism and a company owned by the Tel Aviv municipality. 

We, a group of academics, activists and artists in India, came together in June 2010 to campaign against yet another apartheid regime by extending support to the international campaign for the academic and cultural boycott of Israel (see www.incacbi.in).

In response to a recent boycott call from the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (see appeal to participating writers on www.pacbi.org), the Indian Campaign urges you to withdraw your participation in this music festival. A number of conscientious musicians around the world are participants in this boycott, most recently Pink Floyd."

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#BDS: المغرب: الغاء مهرجان الرقص الشرقي بمراكش عقب احتجاجات على مشاركة اسرائيليين به

 نجحت احتجاجات تصاعدت خلال الايام الماضية في الغاء مهرجان للرقص الشرقي يشارك به اسرائيليون كان سينظم في منتصف ايار (مايو) القادم بمدينة مراكش.

وأفادت مصادر مطلعة أن الوكالة المكلفة بتنظيم النسخة الثالثة من مهرجان الرقص الشرقي بمراكش أعلنت عن إلغائه صباح امس الخميس، بعد موجة الانتقادات التي تعرض لها المهرجان على الموقع الالكتروني الخاص به. وقالت صحيفة 'مراكش365' الالكترونية أنه بعد موجة الانتقادات التي تلقتها الوكالة المكلفة بتنظيم النسخة الثالثة من مهرجان الرقص الشرقي بمراكش، وبعد تنبيه السلطات المحلية المنظمين إلى أن من شأن تنظيم هذا المهرجان أن يخدش الحياء العام للمغاربة، تم الاعلان صباح امس الخميس عن الغائه.

إقرأ\ي المزيد

#BDS: مشاركة المغرب و مصر و تركيا و ماليزيا و الهند في معرض إسرائيلي

جاء في الموقع الرسمي لغرفة التجارة الفرنسية الاسرائيلية ” اسرائيل فالي نيوز ” أنه من المرتقب حضور و فد فلاحي مغربي للمعرض الدولي للتكنلوجيا الفلاحية ” إغريتيك ” في دورته الثامنة عشر و المزمع عقدها ما بين 15 و 17 أبريل الجاري في تل أبيب . هذا المعرض سيعرف مشاركة وفود عربية و إسلامية مثل مصر و تركيا و ماليزيا و الهند ضاربين بذلك عرض الحائط كل دعوات رفض التطبيع مع الكيان الصهيوني.

إقرأ\ي المزيد

#BDS: Stockholm airport bars Israeli airline over security inspection methods

"Arkia has to stop flying to Stockholm because the Swedish capital’s international airport now refuses to allow Israeli methods of security inspections dictated by the Shin Bet security service, TheMarker learned on Wednesday. Thus, Stockholm’s airport joined those in Malmo, Sweden and in Copenhagen in refusing to allow Israeli security inspections, which involve ethnic and personal profiling, extensive questioning and selective inspections based on the perceived degree of risk to security."


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#BDS: Who really wields the baton at the London Philharmonic Orchestra?

"Calls for the boycott of Israel’s cultural ambassadors just won’t go away. Now London’s Globe Theatre is being criticised for its invitation to Israel’s Habima Theatre, the latter having performed in Israel’s illegal settlements. Prominent arts figures such as Mike Leigh, Emma Thompson, Jonathan Miller, and Mark Rylance, the Globe’s founding artistic director, have publicly called for the theatre to cancel Habima’s appearance. Meanwhile Günter Grass, author of the classic anti-Nazi novel The Tin Drum, created a storm with his poem Was gesagt werden muss (What must be said), which seeks to free Germans from the ancestral guilt that Israel exploits to secure their obedience. An outraged headline in the Jewish Chronicle equated the boycott call with Nazi book-burning, and Israeli politicians smeared Grass as a Nazi for his conscription into the Waffen-SS, which German youths ‘joined’ to stay alive."


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