MALAYSIA NOT ALONE IN BOYCOTTING ISRAEL
SOME Malaysians were unhappy when the government banned Israeli athletes from competing at the World Para Swimming championships in Kuching in July.
Subsequently, the International Paralympic Committee stripped Malaysia of the right to host the event.
This was seen as a missed opportunity for the nation because it turned down the chance to host an international event.
To understand why countries such as Malaysia cannot tolerate Israel, we should look at the historical beginnings and current developments.
Although the United Nations Security Council Resolution 242 had, on Nov 22, 1967, required Israel to withdraw from Arab land that it occupied during the war in June 1967, Israel did not abide by it.
Today, the West Bank is nominally controlled by the Palestinian Authority, but is under Israeli occupation. Israeli troops enforce Israeli security restrictions on Palestinian movements and activities, as well as Israeli settlers.
As for Gaza, Israel left the territory in 2005 but it has been in and out of Gaza on many occasions.
In 2008, Israel sent soldiers into Gaza and, during this time, an estimated 1,300 people, many of them civilians, were killed before a ceasefire was declared.
In 2012, at least 167 Palestinians and six Israelis were killed in Gaza during an Israeli operation.
In December 2017, the United States formally recognised Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, saying it would move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.
The UN General Assembly rejected Trump’s Jerusalem move when 128 countries voted for the US to drop its recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital.
Malaysia’s ban on Israeli athletes is not new.
Many countries have either banned Israeli citizens, boycotted events organised by or involving Israel, or held academic boycotts and banned Israeli goods or products.
Last month, the Irish lower house of Parliament voted for a bill to ban the purchase of goods and services from illegal Israeli settlements.
The bill was mooted by independent Senator Frances Black to impose a ban on the import or sale of goods produced by settlements in the occupied West Bank.
In 2015, more than 300 academics from at 72 British universities announced a boycott of Israel and its educational institutions.
The boycott is effective till today and will be lifted only when Israel complies with international laws.
The academicians had pledged not to accept invitations to act as referees or participate in conferences funded or organised by Israel.
Malaysians angry with the sports ban probably do not realise that Israel did the same when they prevented 21 men and one woman from participating in the 2013 Bethlehem Marathon despite an official request from the head of the Palestine Olympic Committee.
In 2016, the Palestinian Olympic team head was prevented from leaving Gaza to be with his team for the Rio Olympics in Brazil. In addition, the Palestinian team had to buy their sports equipment and other paraphernalia in Brazil as Israel had prevented the entry of equipment that was mostly donated by foreign governments when they demanded payment as taxes or entry fees.
Malaysians should be proud of the government’s stance on Israel because as a small country, we can make a huge difference in the lives of Palestinians, who are rejoicing our stance in their homeland.