Comments on: TUC and Israel: When you need a cause, why let the facts get in the way?

By: Jonathan

Jonathan — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:40:43 +0000

Demeter

UCU members have never been balloted about a boycott of Israeli academics.

The predecessor union of UCU was AUTE. As I say in my article, their Constitution obliged them to ballot, if enough members called for a ballot after an Executive decision. That is what happened in 2005, and at the EGM of AUTE in 2005 the majority against a boycott was reportedly 4 to 1 (the numbers were never announced). I was outside the meeting hall and it was clear from talking to AUTE members that there was a heavy majority against a boycott.

By: Gerald

Gerald — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 17:13:50 +0000

Demeter to answer your question. The TUC as such does not have any members it is the individual Unions who have the membership. As a former Full Time Union Official I can tell you that the individual Union Delegations would have decided whether to support or oppose any motion at the Conference. It is possible that individual Unions may have discussed this and other issues at their own Delegate Conferences with the decision taken by the Delegates at their own Union Conference, but, I would be very surprised to hear of any Union that has balloted the individual members to seek their views.
Sadly what we have seen at this years TUC is the continued decline in size and influence of the ‘Heavy’ industry and Manufacturing Unions who traditionally would have voted this Resolution down.

By: Demeter

Demeter — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:44:59 +0000

Jonathan, thanks for this.

Do you happen to know how many TUC members actually voted in favour of this? For example, did the TUC ballot all its membership?

I ask because I seem to remember that a pathetically small number of UCU members voted in favour of their motion to boycott Israeli academics and that the UCU membership as a whole was not balloted (although I stand to be corrected if I have that wrong).

By: John Brown

John Brown — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 16:21:28 +0000

Never fear – Freedman is on the case … he seems to have a problem with anti-Semitism expressed by others … I notice, however, he doesn’t refer to “that vile disease coursing through British veins” or similar epithets he reserves for Israelis.

By: peterthehungarian

peterthehungarian — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 14:16:19 +0000

Hi Louise

However he will almost certainly lose his job, and will find it hard to get another one

Tou are worrying withou reason.
I’m sure that he’ll have many job offers: in the media: PressTV, Guardian,
in the UN HRC, UNRWA, in politics TUC, Respect etc.

By: Chas N-B

Chas N-B — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:37:25 +0000

Great article Jonathan.

By: Louise

Louise — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 13:24:16 +0000

Peter

I agree it is a pathetic punishment

However he will almost certainly lose his job, and will find it hard to get another one

By: seismicshock

seismicshock — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 12:56:47 +0000

Thanks for this Jonathan. It’s reassuring to hear people didn’t actually vote for this, but worrying that certain people would sidestep democracy specifically to hurt Israel.

By: peterthehungarian

peterthehungarian — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:50:22 +0000

I can’t believ it!

350 pounds punishment for a high ranking government official who publicly expressed his murderous hate of Jews and his wish to wipe them off…

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/sep/24/senior-diplomat-racial-harassment-case

Brits must be very proud of their legal system.

By: AKUS

AKUS — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 11:02:47 +0000

Excellent article, Jonathan.

It is interesting to see how many Brits complained on that thread about the TUC, and demanded that it confine itself to improving the lot of British workers rather than meddling in international politics.

The attempts by a few on the thread to praise the TUC and condemn the analysis by Benny Weinthal and Eric Lee another example of how far off-base the Guardian and its supporters are from the sane element of the British public.

In today’s Washington Post there is an article about the promotion of alternative energy (solar, primarily) in Spain as a source of job creation – there is an estimate that in Spain unemployment will rise to 19.3% next year. It does not take much thought to see a linkage between Spain’s fascination with condemning Israel and setting up kangaroo courts to ry Israelis as a tactic to draw attention away from its own problems.

Similarly. with the TUC – if they can not or will not do anything for employment in the UK, what better diversionary tactic than to follow historical precedent and — whip up hatred of the Jews.

By: Ariadne

Ariadne — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 10:28:47 +0000

And see what happened to the next Shermanator:

TheShermanator
23 Sep 09, 3:58pm (about 19 hours ago)
This comment has been removed by a moderator. Replies may also be deleted.

By: Ariadne

Ariadne — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 10:22:54 +0000

This one made me splutter my coffee:

gondwanaland
23 Sep 09, 3:50pm (about 19 hours ago)

[Response to The Shermanator]

The day Arabs have unions will be a bad one for Israel/US.

That’s why they’re actively involved in the violent suppression of democracy in the region.
-

Are any moderators stalwarts of MPACUK?

By: Jonathan Hoffman

Jonathan Hoffman — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:37:48 +0000

http://www.workersliberty.org/story/2009/09/22/help-palestinians-solidarity-not-boycott

http://thecst.org.uk/blog/?p=616

Mark Gardner on the CST blog writes about the excellent response by “Workers Liberty” to the TUC decision. As Mark comments “Workers Liberty understands antisemitism as a living, breathing, kicking phenomenon in which Jews – including Zionist and Israeli Jews – are real people, with real rights, and real fears.”

Both articles are highly recommended.

By: Joywo

Joywo — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 09:03:17 +0000

By referring to the fact that “luxury items don’t get through” Mita is actually helping to prove that there IS no blockade, as this specifically confimrs that other essential items do get through.
There aredetailed daily lists of the thousands of tons of supplies that go through on a regular daily basis, and also pictorial evidence of well stocked shops in Gaza.
There are also many Gazans who travel into Israel for medical treatment.
Where there is a blockade is from Egypt, and it is about time there was a free flow of help into Gaza from the Arab countries who showabsolutley no interest in helping their Palestinian brethren. The main reason Egypt keeps the border well sealed is to ensure no Palestinians seek a haven in Egypt. But that does not explain why the Egyptians shoot at Darfur refugees on the border.

By: Mita

Mita — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 08:33:36 +0000

JHoffman: And there is no blockade of Gaza. The reason Israel maintains checks on the movement of goods into Gaza is for security, so that materials which can be used by Hamas for terror cannot enter.
————–
I beg to differ. There definitely is a blockade. Luxury items don’t get through. They have no security value at all.