- the fact the UN has been a bastion of anti-Israel sentiment and a platform for Israel bashing
- Australia is committed to a two-state solution
-but this commitment is conditional on Israel's right to live in peaceful and secure borders, a right denied by the charter of terror group Hamas, whose military wing is outlawed in Australia, and it's also based on bilateral direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, whereas the Palestinian bid for statehood via the UN is unilateral- Palestinian officials claim to be planning worldwide protests (probably including protests in Australia) on the day of the UN vote, and the likelihood of mass unrest across the dusputed territories and Arab world does not augur well for peace and stability or a kickstart to bilateral talks between the parties
- Foreign Minister Rudd’s alleged preference for Australian abstention on 20 September is widely viewed as a sop to the UN's Arab bloc, whose support he wants for Australia’s bid for a temporary seat at the UN Security Council in 2013, but it's wrong to sacrifice Israel for that aim.
- anyway, an affirmative vote at the UN General Assembly will be legally ineffective, since full membership of the UN for a Palestinian state requires the backing of the 15-member Security Council and the United States intends to veto the proposal.
- an abstention by Australia would be misrepresented by the Greens and their leftist bedfellows as a victory:
"For despite [Greens leader] Bob Brown’s public statements, among his growing ranks are those who try to disguise their anti-Israel vitriol under the veneer of progressive politics.
Aussie Greens Help To Demonise Israel in 2006
The newly elected senator for NSW, Lee Rhiannon, is the quintessential case in point. She openly defended Marrickville Council’s ill-fated support for the Israel boycott, a campaign that has morphed into the targeting of Max Brenner chocolate shops across Australia.
Make no mistake. Factions of this mob of anti-Israel protesters — some of whom are due in court next month for breaching bail conditions after they were initially arrested in the melee outside Max Brenner in Melbourne on July 1 — are red, not green.
One of their chants reveals their true colour: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!”
This is straight out of the Hamas song sheet and is not-so-subtle code for the elimination of Israel and, in its place, a Palestinian state between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean. [My emphasis]
Moreover, what is so galling is their rank hypocrisy. Where are the mass protests about the slaughter of innocents in Syria, or Libya, or Egypt? Their silence about these crimes is deafening."Read the article: http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/opinion/gillard-is-right-and-rudd-is-wrong-to-sacrifice-israel-on-altar-of-un/story-e6frg6zo-1226119974007
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/canberra-to-boycott-anti-racism-seminar/story-fn59niix-1226120782149
ReplyDeleteKol Hakavod Australia!
Hooray, Herb!
ReplyDelete