UCL Friends of Palestine (FoP) Society opposes the decision by the UCL International Relations Society to host Daniel Taub, the Israeli ambassador to the UK, to discuss Israeli foreign policy at UCL. As a figurehead of the Israeli government, one of his roles is to represent Israels policies in a positive light, and by doing so market to the international community a state that practices settler-colonialism, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid. This summer’s aggression left over 2000 Palestinians of Gaza dead (75% of whom were civilians, including 500 children), 106,000 internally displaced, 66% food insecure, 450,000 unable to access water (with 90% of Gaza’s water unfit for human consumption), and 20,000 housing units destroyed or severely damaged. It thus clearly a deeply insensitive act to choose to provide the ambassador with a platform with which to whitewash Israeli crimes and violations of human rights and international law. While FoP fully supports the right of freedom of speech, we believe that the decision to invite Daniel Taub constitutes a tacit acceptance of the legitimacy of Israeli policies. This is offensive to the students and staff of UCL and disrespectful of the memories of those who have died, been made refugees, and continue to be occupied and harassed on a daily basis as a result of the policies Daniel Taub is invited to defend. UCL FoP will be staging a protest outside the event on the 11th of November, the purpose of which is to express our sense of outrage and our solidarity with the Palestinian people in their struggle for justice, freedom, and equal rights.
Posted on: Mon, 10 Nov 2014 17:49:19 +0000
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