April 16, 2015

Israel's High Court Agrees, Boycotting Is Terrorism




[From article]
“High Court upholds part of Anti-Boycott Law, strikes part and splits on ‘1967 Israel'” Jerusalem Post, April 15, 2015
Anti-boycott bill becomes law after passing Knesset
Politics: The brouhaha over the boycott bill
Court had preciously frozen law that imposes sanctions on any individual or entity that calls for an economic boycott of Israel’s settlements in the West Bank or of Israel itself.
[. . .]
The High Court of Justice on Wednesday upheld two core parts and struck down one core part of the Anti-Boycott Law, and in a close 5-4 ruling upheld lawsuits against boycotters of “1967 Israel.”
The rulings that preserved core parts of the law came in a 9-0 vote on the authority of the finance minister to impose fines or withhold funding from Israeli NGOs calling for boycotts of businesses in all or parts of Israel, and a 8-1 ruling on the ability to file lawsuits against those NGOs.
One justice declared all lawsuits against boycotts unconstitutional.
American-born Justice Neal Hendel called free speech the “lifeblood” of democracy and reviewed American law, noting that it has no provision for lawsuits against boycotters.
At the same time, the court voted 9-0 to strike down as unconstitutional a core part of the law that would have allowed punitive damages in such lawsuits.
[. . .]
Construction Minister Uri Ariel (Bayit Yehudi) said the verdict is “a clear proof that attempts to harm the State of Israel via boycotts are unacceptable. Israel has a right to defend itself not only from harm to its security, but also from economic harm.”
[. . .]
The Anti-Boycott Law was passed in July 2011, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu abstaining but allowing it to go forward, and imposes sanctions on any individual or entity that calls for an economic boycott of settlements in the West Bank or of Israel within the Green Line.

http://pamelageller.com/2015/04/israels-high-court-rules-that-boycotts-bds-are-terrorism.html/

Israel’s high court rules that boycotts (BDS) are terrorism
ByPamela Geller
on April 15, 2015

No comments: