 |
| Tony Greenstein is Deliberation's Sayin of the week |
As the AGM of Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) approaches, the drive
to control, fragment, agitate and to steer away PSC from its fundamental
core issues is at all times high.
The crusade against PSC was ignited by Zionists from outside the movement beginning in September, following an
article published on the Zionist hate-website Harry's Place (HP), and a
letter from the Board of Deputies of British Jews” (BODBJ), accusing PSC and its branches of publishing anti-Semitic articles and
linking to Holocaust denial websites, which arguably is a crude lie. However, the crusade was
sustained,
promoted and
amplified by insiders with questionable loyalty, who roam freely within the Palestine solidarity movement.
Following those attacks and demands by BOD of British Jews, certain
elements inside the solidarity movement picked up where Zionists
stopped. Since then they have initiated a campaign of
defamation against Palestinian activists (
including myself) and numerous other supporters.
The smear and defamation campaign, ignited by BODBJ and its mouthpiece
HP, is destined to divide and curtail the Palestine solidarity movement.
It shrouds itself with a veneer of “ethicality” by invoking bogus
concerns about “racism”, while the result is the expulsion of
anti-racist activists including Palestinians, and the fragmentation of
the Palestine solidarity movement at large, its campaigns being debased,
its efficiency being crippled.
The
paragraph below is
only one piece of evidence that
some alleged supporters of Palestine
have indeed been engaging in gossip and spreading defamation, rumours
and lies. It is but one example of the appalling consequences of such
behaviour.
“
In Liverpool a Palestinian activist, Nahida, who was once the mainstay of the group, changed almost overnight when she married a sinister Dutchman. Jewish conspiracies took over her life and it was with difficulty that the branch reclaimed its website, which had posted links to her anti-Semitic website (‘Spiders Web’).” Tony Greenstein.
In his
latest defamation article, Mr. Greenstein extends his attacks to include yet another Palestinian with this defamatory claim:
"
In Liverpool the Friends of Palestine website was taken over by a holocaust denier"
Or another example is his use of insulting expletives in lieu of factual arguments:
"
At the AGM there is also a not very clever motion from Gill Kaffash .... It is a stupid motion from the stupid."
The aim of such vicious crusades, of course, is to discredit the
research of those who dig deeper, and to control the boundaries of
debate by shooting at those who dare to cross the line. As it appears,
no one is "allowed" to investigate neither the deeper ideological
motives nor the networks enabling Zionists crimes. No Palestinian is
"allowed" to express more assertively the true voice of their people
and their deeply anchored aspirations of FULL Liberation.
In this example,Tony
Greenstein never met and never had contact with the people he is
smearing. He uses lies and fabrications about their private life, to
execute ad hominem attacks against them, and to propagate libellous
accusations of anti Semitism and Holocaust denial against them.
Obviously he has been fed with rumours, which as his blog shows, he
never fails to transform in unreadable ramblings. .
I would have assumed that in all logic such attacks from external
enemies and their internal contributors, would reinforce the cohesion of
the movement, by a reflex of protection. What we see instead, is the
disturbing reality of utter silence of other members, or even explicit
approval of the attacks by the failure to reject them and sanctioning
those who engage in such attacks. The occupiers and enemies of Palestine
must be happy and indeed grateful,
since the damage to the Palestinian solidarity movement in the UK is
already substantial. Suffice to look at the nonsensical amendments and
motions put forward, the waste of time and effort, and the harmful
evictions and alienation of scores of members and potential members.
Such abhorrent behaviour is allowed to continue within the movement with
the compliance of decent members who have swallowed the lies and let
them pass unchallenged
without demanding thorough investigations of such offence, and without firm rejection, chastisement or sanctions against guilty elements who took part in such
smear campaign
As they exclude more and more Palestinians through their defamatory
campaign, as they rally themselves up and down the country to attend
the AGM, and as they strengthen their position within by appointing
themselves as political guides and censors of the solidarity movement;
Mr. Greenstein and his clique expose their determination to take over
PSC and to define its aims.
It is nothing but deliberate
Controlled Opposition,
when such individuals silence Palestinians and capture the levers of
decision as to what is good for Palestinians, and what is not, and what
aims to pursue, and what aims need to be smothered. Has the Palestinian
voice not been smothered enough already, after a century of Zionism?
Does it not appear evident that post-Zionism is preparing itself to do
exactly the same? Why would a campaign who claims itself to be in
solidarity with Palestinians, betray the noble aim of enabling
Palestinians to freely express their Legitimate and Sovereign Rights?
Instead, Mr. Greenstein and co condescendingly
declare that PSC members need "
more internal education on Zionism":
He writes: "
On Saturday there will be one motion on anti-Semitism and racism on the agenda from the National Executive. A motion from Naomi Wimborne-Idrissi and myself, which called for more internal education on Zionism, has been amended and accepted by the Executive."
It is disturbing when the likes of Mr. Greenstein, -who sticks the
accusatory label “anti-Semite” (i.e. racist) on whomever disagrees with
his views, and who introduces to PSC redundant motions to emphatically
re-reject Judeophobic racism and to emphasize yet again on
“anti-Semitism”, feels vindicated to surreptitiously collaborate with
the incitement of racial and religious hatred against Muslims, when for
example he spreads blatant lies against
the Islamic Resistance Movements Hamas, and even about the Qur'an, thus joining the ranks of Islamophobes when he propagates such hateful
unsubstantiated claim:
"
the Quoran also have passages that are chauvinist and today, in the context of state policy, would undoubtedly be deemed racist"
Moreover, Mr. Greenstein, the avid "anti-racist",
finds no shame in propagating
Islamophobia by attacking the religion of Islam as whole and publicly
participating in division, fomenting hatred and incitement against
Muslims by arrogantly pretending that:
"
Islam has introduced sectarianism into the Palestinian movement and has nothing to offer but further division"
Imagine for a moment someone writing: "Judaism has introduced
sectarianism into the Palestinian movement and has nothing to offer but
further division", one can only imagine the outbursts of wrath, fury,
outrage and accusation that would follow, by Mr. Greenstein and co.
With the acceptance of such methods; whereby the defamers give themselves the right to DEFINE the meaning of words like
racist,
anti-Semite and
Holocaust denier,
then they allow themselves to ACCUSE, LABEL and DEFAME others with such
titles, without any proof or evidence, and without allowing the accused
to defend him/her self, they demand the excommunication of those
accused and even aim to remove the right of appeal against such
accusation, justice becomes a joke!
Regrettably, PSC has exhibited signs of moral fatigue by allowing some
of its members to engage in such Zionist-style methods of operation by:
- Meddling in private affairs of members and using slander and defamation as a political tool (as seen from the writing of Tony Greenstein).
- The use of the label “Anti-Semitism” as a political tool.
By branding those they disagree with, with charges of racism and
anti-Semitism (Racism is unlawful according to British law). Completely
dismissing the seriousness and the gravity of such allegation, they
(carelessly or malevolently) have accused other activists of committing
an unlawful offence.
Furthermore, PSC and some of its branches failed in the following:
- Evading to address the defamation against its members;
- Escaping the responsibility of launching an investigation to uncover the guilty elements;
- Failing to understand the real meaning of racism;
- Failing to identify the REAL racist;
- Failing to sanction/punish guilty members who engaged in such libellous acts;
- Failing to apologise to accused individuals for the harm and damages caused.
It has become increasingly apparent that some clique inside the
solidarity movement, under the pretext of “fighting anti-Semitism”, are
engaged in hijacking, deforming and sidetracking the solidarity movement
from supporting the Palestinian people and their cause of Liberation,
and instead pushing PSC into morphing into yet another ADL,
"witch-hunting" and "book-burning" organization.
Tragically, the excessive and inappropriate use of the word
"anti-Semite", by the likes of ADL (who have their very own definition
of the word), and the same pathetic use that has been adopted by some
elements inside the solidarity movement -who just like ADL, claim the
exclusive right to define the meaning of words and the boundaries of
debate, such excessive use by Zionists and anti-Zionist alike, and
As I warned before, they have managed to make the word vacuous, meaningless and even a nuisance.
Those whose primary aim is to fight anti-Semitism are better advised to join more
appropriate organizations who deal specifically with anti-Semitism, there are
myriad of them around.
Those whose main concern is to educate people about the Holocaust, thus
enabling Zionists to continue to use and abuse it, in what Dr
Finkelstein correctly calls the “Holocaust industry”, should NOT do so
on the back and expense of Palestinian and their solidarity movement.
Those interested in bickering and infighting -which only weakens the solidarity movement, would feel more at home working
here or even
here far and away from our Movement.
People with such divergent aims should stop imposing their agenda on others, and leave PSC to do what it was created for,
SUPPORTING PALESTINIANS IN THEIR STRUGGLE FOR LIBERATION.
True Friends of Palestine should not allow themselves to be hoodwinked or sidetracked into adopting other groups' agendas or
doing other organizations' work.
Diverting PSC from its main aims does not serve the cause of Palestine or the Palestinians.
Henceforth,
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to put an end to this fiasco;
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to have the
courage to stop slanderers and liars from hijacking the solidarity
movement, dragging it down and turning it into a bickering stage of
accusations and counter-accusations;
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to have the
dignity and cease to alienate/ expel exiled Palestinians by phoney,
uncorroborated and unsolicited claims and defamatory allegations;
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine not to allow
itself to be steered away from its original aims of supporting the
oppressed Palestinians and to stay focused on the daily slaughter of
Palestinians.
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to remember that
Palestinians have NOTHING to do with the Holocaust, yet they have been
paying the price for it since before it actually even happened!
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to remember that
they are not an association of historians, and ought not to be
distracted by the obsession about an historical event that ended almost
seven decades ago, instead of focusing on the
ongoing genocide against Palestinians and the destruction of their Biblical Land;
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to rescue
itself from being diverted into nonsensical, useless, fruitless, endless
debates, which irremediably lead to unnecessary infighting, thus
wasting and crippling the movement;
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to remember
that the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian population, and the
annexation of their country, has been almost completed while we respond
with deference to people whose prime interest is obviously not the
restoration of Palestine, or the Rights of Palestinians.
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine not to become an
arm of Michael Whine, morphing into a
"Holocaust-deniers hunters" instead of trying to stop the
ongoing and
upcoming genocides of the Middle East;
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine not to allow
itself to be misguided and hoodwinked even from comprehending and
recognizing of the
meaning and
manifestation of
racism and the real definition of an anti-Semite, Hasn't the anti-Semitic charge been abused and trivialized enough?
I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine not to become
deafened by big-mouthed detractors, or blinded by glittery definitions
coiled by deception, so as it fails to identify the REAL RACISTS who
are worthy to be rejected and fought against.
Finally, I call upon PSC and all genuine supporters of Palestine to
take a firm action against malicious trouble-makers, and to expel those
who engage in unsubstantiated defamation of other activists.
Such agitators whose exclusive organizations embrace
Zionists as full members, those who come loaded with hidden agendas, neither represent Palestine nor Palestinians
Their agenda includes the preparation and facilitation of a prosperous
and secure future for the planners, authors and perpetrators of our
NAKBA.
They blather about road maps, about deleting the green-line while
coercing the Palestinians to forget their inalienable rights to their
Historic Palestine.
They aim to deceive Palestinians and the world to accept the
terrorists, colonizers, war-criminals, thieves and murderers who
occupied Palestine since 1948, they want to promote them as "civilised"
"peaceful", humane", "Jewish", "peace-loving" "Israelis", who should
have the same right to the Land of Palestine as Palestinians do!
It is not up to a Netanyahu, Schneerson, or Lieberman, and sure NOT for
a Semoff, a Dropkin or a Greenstein to decide for us about the future
of our Homeland; it's not for them to decide what is good for Palestine
and what is not, who is allowed to stay and who is not, or who is to
be summoned, charged, prosecuted or punished for their decades of
genocide and war crimes and who is not.
True friends of Palestine appreciate that ultimately, only Palestinians
are entitled to make such decisions, especially after decades of
relentless slow genocide. Palestinians are entitled to use whatever
appropriate methods of resistance, legal, intellectual, or otherwise to
achieve their long-lost Liberty.
True friends of Palestine realize that it is the fundamental and
intrinsic core of the Palestinian National Rights, to define, express
and publish concepts such as the unhindered Right to Return, Restitution
AND Compensation, Liberation of the occupied Homeland, unrestricted
Sovereignty including over Immigration Policies, Prosecution of
Criminals, etc. Those who smother these fundamental Rights, contribute
to the finalization of the Zionist project, itself representing the
total negation of all bases of Law, in particular pertaining to Crimes
Against Humanity, Wars of Aggression, War Crimes, and ironically, the
negation of the Post-WW2
Nuremberg Principles, especially
the sixth principle, which were wisely crafted to precisely avoid such horrors to happen again.
My prime concern has always been the cause of Palestine and the
Palestinians’ inalienable Human Right of Self-Determination in their own
ancestral Land, which they inhabit and protect since thousands of
years, continuously. The voice of Palestinians is barely heard in the
West. Therefore, those whose aim is to muffle the voice, block the
research, contain the freedom and veil the views of Palestinians cannot
be truly friends of Palestine.
Real friends are those who want to keep the solidarity movement on
the right track, focused on Palestine and the Liberation of Palestine.
Hereby, as a Palestinian exiled from my home for more than 44 years, I
affirm my right and the right of my people to aspire to the Liberation
of our Homeland and to pursue the intellectual means that will help to
achieve that goal, moreover since this goal is the strict reassertion of
Human Rights and International Law.
I affirm my right to continue my investigations into the role of global
Jewish Zionist networks through their many facets, institutions and
organizations supporting, sustaining and propagating the cause of the
Zionist entity.
I affirm my right to continue investigating the supremacist ideology
that animates the entire Israeli-settler society and to expose its
consequences on Palestinians, and beyond.
I affirm my right to continue my activism, to share the results of my
work and to connect with people who want to learn about Palestine,
without being defamed, censored or chastised by self-appointed gurus.
I affirm my right to defend my reputation and the reputation of my
fellow human beings who are wrongfully accused and defamed, and to stand
up to those who cause harm to the cause of Palestine, those who use ad
hominem attacks, defamation and slander as a political tool to muffle
and excommunicate their opponents.
I affirm my right to continue to expose those elements who try to
achieve deleterious political aims by controlling and crippling the
Palestinian solidarity movement, through the use of debate framing,
information filtering, and eviction of activists who step outside the
narrow boundaries set by these elements to keep the opposition
constricted and limited in its scope and efficiency.
Finally, I call upon the Solidarity Campaign NOT fall prey to such
manipulation conducted by individuals with ulterior motives and
compromised loyalty who appointed themselves to be in charge of the flow
of information, to
control the direction of the Palestinian solidarity and to push it towards the acceptance of “soft” yet final and permanent colonization of Palestine, thus to
steer it away from its prime objective; the unconditional support of Palestinians and their quest for Full Liberation.
Hi Nahida, I think you're seriously overestimating the awareness of such things amongst the wider PSC membership. I only know about these things from Gilad's newsletter and from Tony Greenstein's blog, not exactly big circulation outlets.
I have some time for Tony Greenstein, but I have to agree with you that his constant calls for people to be silenced fall right into the category of behaviour that Chomsky outlined in the essay that was appropriated for the intro to a book by Faurisson: (roughly) " the left is still too attached to Stalinist and totalitarian methods..."
And for what seems to be down to long-standing acquaintance there seems to be far too much indulgence for Tony and his cohorts with PSC = I think! And the 'I think' is the crucial part, because like most PSC members, my relationship with the centre is just one of paying subs and receiving a mag (which seems little better than a vanity publication). Illness makes it difficult for me to get involved in my local branch, so I don't know if these matters are discussed there; but they're certainly not discussed in the PSC literature or on its website. And who is there to even write to about these matters? who would I write to to demand investigations? I'm not even sure of the circumstances, the rules - who took the decision to expel who under what mandate...
But I'm not happy about it. I accept that officers of PSC, in the course of PSC business, should restrict themselves to the core business of PSC, and as far as I can see PSC members have been quite fastidious about that.
I have some time for Gilad Atzmon too, but I don't think the areas he goes into are appropriate for PSC to go into. But that's quite a different matter from insisting that PSC members should have to fall in with an approved menu of opinion 'off-duty' as it were.
In fact, I really object to being asked to 'affirm the Holocaust' - I regard even the term 'Holocaust' to amount to a privileging of jewish suffering (Tony Greenstein says as much himself). As you say, PSC should stick to the job in hand. Anti-semitism and the holocaust are someone else's job.
I have to respect whoever keeps PSC going for at least doing that much ( it's more than I do), but it has always seemed a damp squib to me,as if it want to remain a secret in case it attracts antisemites.