Norman Finkelstein Speaks

[Violet_Crumble]

by Nell Geiser
March 09, 2006

As a Jewish student who is looking forward to Norman Finkelstein’s speech on campus tonight, titled “Israel & Palestine: Misuse of Anti-Semitism, Abuse of History,” I am disappointed there’s been such misinformed debate about his visit. Maryum Saifee and Athar Abdul-Quader explained Monday on this page (“In Defense of Professor Finkelstein,” March 6) that inaccurate accusations hurled at Finkelstein only stifle productive dialogue. Since many of the charges levied against him seemed to be based on emotional appeals and not on facts, I decided to talk to professor Finkelstein myself to clarify his argument in his new book Beyond Chutzpah.

I asked Finkelstein to talk about the misuses of anti-Semitism in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He explained, “If you look at the historical record on the Israel-Palestine conflict, the past, if you look at the human rights record, the present, or if you look at the diplomatic record, the future, on how to resolve the conflict—if you look at those three records, it’s quite striking how broad is the consensus and how uncontroversial the record is. ... In fact, it’s hard to think of another, as it were, trouble spot in the world where the record is so unambiguous and so straightforward.”

“An obvious question arises—namely, how do you account for so much controversy, which, once you enter the public arena, swirls around the conflict that, if you look at the actual documentary record, is not controversial at all. And that’s the question I pose in the introduction to my book. And the answer I suggest is that most of the controversy surrounding the Israel-Palestine conflict is fabricated, contrived. And the purpose of that fabrication and contrivance is to divert attention from the actual factual record and to sow confusion about the real record.”

<snip>

I also asked Finkelstein what he would like to see discussed in a productive conversation about Israel-Palestine.

“I think the right answer is to steer away from slogan, steer away from ideological obfuscations, steer away from hot-button issues, and stick to the facts. In my opinion, what we now ought to be discussing has nothing to do with your position on Zionism. I don’t care if you’re a Zionist or not a Zionist, that’s not the issue. The issue is fairly straightforward. It’s as uncomplicated as an issue can be. Where do you stand on international law? Where do you stand on human rights law?”

“This is what the record shows: Israel has no right to any of the territory it occupied in the June 1967 war. The settlements Israel has built in the occupied territories are illegal under international law. Under international law, Israel has to fully withdraw. Israel’s human rights record in the occupied territories is an abomination. Each statement I just uttered to you is completely uncontroversial. Every mainstream source, bar none, every one, will validate each of the statements I just made to you. And then the question to be put to a rational, sane human being is, ‘Where do you stand on that?’ ‘Do you support the violations or do you oppose them?’ ‘Do you support international law or do you oppose it?’ And everything else is beside the point.”


http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?SectionID=107&ItemID=9881

[Binka]

1. Good Read Thanks For Posting n/t

[TomClash]

2. A Great University

Fortunately, the attempts by Campus Watch and other McCarthyite organizations to silence critics of Israel like Finkelstein have not been heeded by Columbia.

Quite a good read Violet.

[MrPrax]

3. Oh no...

Someone is making commonsensical observations about the I/P conflict. Yes, perish the thought that the conflict might be fairly straightforward and merely clouded by propaganda, racism and ideology.

[Coastie for Truth]

4. Paper By Professor Talia Einhorn

It's a rather lengthly paper, not a lot of sound bytes, but I am posting the two final paragraphs

<<<snip>>>

7. The Preconditions for a Peaceful Solution

The above legal arguments notwithstanding, the Jewish population of Israel has at all times wished to make peace with their neighbors. Since 1947, Israeli leaders have, one after another, agreed to accept programs that would bring peace in the Middle East. Israel has had an ever-growing peace camp. The late Prime Minister Menachem Begin ceded Egyptian territories captured during the Six Day War, the whole of the Sinai Peninsula, in return for a peace agreement, calling for “No more bloodshed. No more tears.” Upon signing the Declaration of Principles with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO), Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin declared on the White House lawn: “We have had enough of blood and tears. Enough.” Israeli children are brought up to understand the viewpoint of the Arabs, a task hardly ever taken up by nations in times of conflict. Prime Minister Ehud Barak attempted to go the extra mile towards a lasting peace by dividing Jerusalem and giving up the Temple Mount, the heart and soul of the Jewish people.

But whereas in Israel, people were rallying and demonstrating in their hundreds of thousands in support of the peace process, the Arab perception of the so-called “Peace Process” turned out to be a very different one. Indeed, the very term “Peace Process” is a contradiction in terms unless and until the following, elementary pre-conditions are met30: Arab democratic institutions must be established; Arab governance must become transparent and accountable; the Arab reformed legal system must protect individual rights and subject its authorities to open criticism; private law being the charter of a free society, private sector initiative – the key to economic prosperity – requires legal rules that govern property rights, their transfer and the settlement of disputes by an independent judiciary. The rules must be transparent, stable and enforceable in a fair and efficient manner; violence must be renounced and outlawed; Arab leadership must engage in education to peace and relinquish incitement and anti-Jewish hate propaganda.

8. Conclusion

The Jewish people’s historical right to Eretz Israel had been recognized by the international community and upheld by the rule of public international law. Israel is not obliged to support the creation of an Arab state west of the Jordan River alongside Israel. The Oslo Agreements were made with a view to enhance “a just, lasting and comprehensive peace”. Yet, since their coming into effect, the Middle East has witnessed, not peace, but violence of the worst kind in recent history. The establishment of the Palestinian Authority should serve as a “guide to the bewildered” of the grave risks posed by such an Arab state, which may eventually lead to the destruction of the Jewish state.

Under public international law, Israel is entitled to diligently encourage and promote close Jewish settlement of Eretz Israel, thereby realizing the principles set out by the League of Nations in the original Mandate document.

<<<snip>>>

Footnotes
30 Cf. in detail, Talia Einhorn, “The Arab-Israeli Peace Process: The Law Reform Perspective,” 3 European Journal of Law Reform (2001) 149-161.

Further reading:
1.

2.

[number6]

5. thanks for post

;)

[Jim Sagle]

6. Norman Finkelstein Speaks Shit.

:boring: