More Propaganda

[nicky g]

Sorry, but I can't resist:

Elsewhere AC Player has posted a link to a news story about this; here's another one. Who wants to defend these overtly racist laws, then?


Israel imposes "racist" marriage law

Palestinian-Israeli couples will be forced to leave or live apart
By Justin Huggler in Jerusalem
01 August 2003


Israel's Parliament has passed a law preventing Palestinians who marry Israelis from living in Israel. The move was denounced by human rights organisations as racist, undemocratic and discriminatory.

Under the new law, rushed through yesterday, Palestinians alone will be excluded from obtaining citizenship or residency. Anyone else who marries an Israeli will be entitled to Israeli citizenship.

Now Israeli Arabs who marry Palestinians from the West Bank or Gaza Strip will either have to move to the occupied territories, or live apart from their husband or wife. Their children will be affected too: from the age of 12 they will be denied citizenship or residency and forced to move out of Israel.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch sent a joint letter to the Knesset, Israel's parliament, urging members to reject the bill. "The draft law barring family reunification for Palestinian spouses of Israeli citizens is profoundly discriminatory," Amnesty said in a statement. "A law permitting such blatant racial discrimination, on grounds of ethnicity or nationality, would clearly violate international human rights law and treaties which Israel has ratified and pledged to uphold."

B'Tselem, an Israeli human rights organisation, joined in the criticism of the law. Yael Stein, a spokesman, said: "This is a racist law that decides who can live here according to racist criteria."

Some Israelis believe they are sitting on a demographic time bomb, with an Israeli Arab community, already 20 per cent of the population, growing faster than the Jewish population.

The discrimination is not only against Palestinians, according to human rights groups, but against Israel's own 1.2 million citizens of Palestinian origin as well. The overwhelming majority of Israelis who marry Palestinians are the so-called Israeli Arabs - Palestinians who live in Israel and have Israeli citizenship.

"This bill blatantly discriminates against Israelis of Palestinian origin and their Palestinian spouses," said Hanny Megally of Human Rights Watch. "It's scandalous that the Government has presented this bill, and it's shocking that the Knesset is rushing it through."

The government pushed the vote through at speed, even agreeing to consider it a vote of confidence to get it through. It was passed by 53 votes to 25, with one abstention.

Gideon Ezra, a cabinet minister, said: "This law comes to address a security issue. Since September 2000 we have seen a significant connection, in terror attacks, between Arabs from the West Bank and Gaza and Israeli Arabs."

Since 1993, more than 100,000 Palestinians have become Israeli citizens through marriage, Mr Ezra said. But B'Tselem pointed out that only 20 of those 100,000 have been involved in suicide bombings or other militant attacks. Human rights groups said security concerns could not justify the new law, which amounts to collective punishment. Noam Hoffstater, another spokesman for B'Tselem, said: "Those who voted for the bill and those who support it are making a very cynical use of security arguments to justify it, even though they used no data. This in fact was a cover for the real reason, which is the racist reason, the demographic reason."

Many on Israel's right fear that it will be impossible to maintain Israel's identity as an officially Jewish state if the Arab sector becomes too large.

"Today I lost hope," Sa'id abu Muammar, an Israeli Arab, told Reuters news agency. He has been hiding his Palestinian wife from the police since their marriage a year ago. "This is what we've been doing and this is probably what we will have to continue to do."

[brad]

u realize ok to own non jewish slaves there, although law passed 5 years ago officially outlawing it.

big sex slave stuff.

but theyre gods chosen, those russians, so u r blatantly anti-semetic and in some countries could be imprisoned. here soon.

shame on u

[B-Man]

Since 1993, more than 100,000 Palestinians have become Israeli citizens through marriage, Mr Ezra said. But B'Tselem pointed out that only 20 of those 100,000 have been involved in suicide bombings or other militant attacks.

I wonder how many were killed or injured by those 20?

It is unfortunate that the effect of this law will be to make life more difficult for many innocent people. However, this law would be completely unnecessary if not for the suicide bombings. Every country has a right to self-defense. Every country has the right to set its own immigration policies.

[nicky g]

"However, this law would be completely unnecessary if not for the suicide bombings"

How is that the fault of the other 99,980 spouses? You might as well say that the US should ban all Saudi spouses because of 9/11 (I have a suspicion someone is going to take me up on this suggestion [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]). Besides, it's perfectly obvious that the suicide bombers are able to cross in from the West Bank and Gaza ayway.

[andyfox]

I note that President Bush, when Sharon was with him, told the press that he is committed to the preservation of Israel as a Jewish State. Israel defines itself as a Jewish State, and this, to me, is the heart of the problem.

I can move to Israel at any time and have all the rights and responsibilities of citizenship. My daughter-in-law cannot. The idea of defining one as a first- or second-class citizen based upon one's religion is problemmatical to say the least. The idea that the Jews are a people, rather than a religious affiliation, is at the heart of the problem.

[MMMMMM]

Agreed that it is part of the heart of the problem. However it is also rather understandable given that they are surrounded by a sea of Arabs who would love to crush them. So in many ways it is a sort of survival mechanism given their situation.

Now contrast this with nations such as Saudi Arabia where not only is there a state religion, but other religions are essentially taboo (or at least second or third-class), legally speaking. The many Islamic states have no such excuse as the Israelis for insisting on an a Jewish or Islamic state; they are not similarly threatened; they simply believe Islam is right for religion and government and the world. And they believe leaving Islam (the crime of apostasy) merits the death penalty.

So the Israelis have practical reasons for their legal bigotry (survival in a sea of mortal enemies), but the bigotry of the Islamic states is primarily due to backwardness and a totalitarian mindset.

[adios]

The implication here is that since the USA supports Israel and considers Israel an ally, the USA supports every law and every action that Israel has and undertakes and therefore the USA is guilty of this practice as well. That's BS and is meaningless at best and gross disinformation at worst. As a thought experiment consider if the USA suddenly cut off all aid to Israel and even went so far as to sever diplomatic relations. Would that really improve the situation in Israel and/or the Middle East? Or perhaps you're advocating an invasion of Israel by the USA to set things right. What is your point anyway? That Israel displays an ugly, racist attitude towards the Palestinians? Ok but that's probalby about the 200th time or so you've said it. What should be done to rectify it?

[adios]

"The idea that the Jews are a people, rather than a religious affiliation, is at the heart of the problem."

Andy I agree with your sentiment and your point but don't you think it's not just Israel that holds this idea? Given the events of this century (let alone throughout history), the overt bigotry and hatred against those practicing the Jewish faith, it's somewhat understandable that some might band together and believe that they're a people. Those that avow the hatred and bigotry treat them as a people and not as being affiliated with a religion. In my mind that's a part of being the "heart of the proble" as well.

[ACPlayer]

It is the heart of the problem.

I think I mentioned in an earlier thread that, IMO, any state based on a religious foundation (incl arab states, Israel, Pakistan, some trends in India, etc) is problematic. In fact the founding fathers of the US recognized this and codified it into the constitution. Separation of church and state is a good thing for a truly free society. Various attempts in this country to bring down that wall is dangerous for the freedoms in the US.

A possible consequence of the thinking of the founding fathers could and perhaps should be that the use of our US$ in support of any of these religious states should not be permitted. We are in essence supporting a religion with federal monies.

Neither Israel nor Saudi Arabia nor Iran nor... pick a theocracy is a free country. Some are more democratic than others, to wit: Israel and Iran but not free societies as seen by our founding fathers. JMHO.

[MMMMMM]

Israel is a far freer country than Iraq or Iran, and is much more democratic than Iran as well.

Israel is not nearly the religious theocracy that many Arab states are. In fact Israel is not a theocracy at all.