{"id":56226,"date":"2015-04-13T12:00:04","date_gmt":"2015-04-13T11:00:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=56226"},"modified":"2015-05-05T21:25:53","modified_gmt":"2015-05-05T20:25:53","slug":"did-israel-lobby-bullying-and-threats-push-univ-of-southampton-to-cancel-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2015\/04\/did-israel-lobby-bullying-and-threats-push-univ-of-southampton-to-cancel-conference\/","title":{"rendered":"Did Israel Lobby \u201cBullying and Threats\u201d Push Univ. of Southampton to Cancel Conference?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"aipac\"<\/a><\/p>\n

2 Apr 2015 – <\/em>Organizers of an academic conference on Israel are proceeding with an urgent legal challenge after the UK\u2019s University of Southampton<\/a> today confirmed that it has canceled the event.<\/p>\n

As The Electronic Intifada reported<\/a> on Tuesday [31 Mar 2015], university officials told organizers that they intended to withdraw permission for the conference.<\/p>\n

But the university did not publicly confirm the cancelation until today, when it issued a statement<\/a> citing \u201cthe foreseeable risks to safety and public order at and near the conference venue\u201d as a justification for shutting it down.<\/p>\n

The conference, \u201cInternational Law and the State of Israel: Legitimacy, Responsibility and Exceptionalism<\/a>,\u201d had been scheduled for 17-19 April.<\/p>\n

Police: the university\u2019s decision<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThis was not an easy decision,\u201d the university states, adding that it \u201cwas made on the basis of information from the police who say it is probable there will be a high number of demonstrators at the event, the consequences of which could lead to incidents of public disorder.\u201d<\/p>\n

But speaking to The Electronic Intifada today, a spokesperson for Hampshire police seemed to distance the force from the cancelation: \u201cit\u2019s very much a university decision \u2026 the decision to cancel the event is definitely the university\u2019s decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

A statement posted on the Hampshire Constabulary website<\/a> today in response to enquiries from The Electronic Intifada confirmed that the force had been asked by the university to \u201cprovide a view on security\u201d for the conference.<\/p>\n

Organizers have previously rejected<\/a> such claims as a pretext for succumbing to intense political pressure<\/a> from Israel lobby groups and their supporters in government.<\/p>\n

\u201cBullying and threats\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

A number of the university\u2019s own faculty have publicly condemned the decision.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt seems to me outrageous that you seem to have allowed the bullying and threats of the Israeli lobby to prevent the perfectly lawful and legitimate exercise of free speech and academic debate,\u201d Professor David Gurham, director of research for the University of Southampton School of Law, wrote in a letter<\/a> to the university\u2019s vice chancellor Don Nutbeam.<\/p>\n

\u201cI understand that the police had reported that they would be perfectly able and willing to deal with any security concerns at the event: this ought to be good enough,\u201d Gurham added.<\/p>\n

A report in The Jewish Chronicle<\/em><\/a> on Tuesday lent weight to organizers\u2019 suspicions that concern for safety was an excuse.<\/p>\n

Board of Deputies of British Jews president Vivian Wineman told the Chronicle<\/em> that \u201cWhen we had a meeting with the university vice-chancellor they said they would review it [the conference] on health and safety terms.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe two lines of attack possible were legal and health and safety and they were leaning on that one,\u201d Wineman added.<\/p>\n

The Board of Deputies is one of a number of Israel lobby groups that have lobbied for the conference to be canceled.<\/p>\n

Legal challenge<\/strong><\/p>\n

Lawyers acting for the organizers are expected to file an application this week for judicial review<\/a> of the university\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n

In a statement posted today<\/a>, conference organizers revealed that an internal appeal of the decision had been rejected by the vice chancellor, prompting them to take the battle to the courts.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis decision by the university is wrong in law, wrong in morality and wrong for the University of Southampton in particular and for all academic spaces all over the country and the world generally,\u201d the organizers say.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hope that immediate legal action will help save the reputation of the University which has sadly been thrown into serious doubt by this decision.\u201d<\/p>\n

Israel embassy welcomes cancelation<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sussex Friends of Israel and the Israeli embassy welcomed the university\u2019s decision<\/a> to suppress the conference.<\/p>\n

The Board of Deputies of British Jews also welcomed the cancelation. \u201cThis conference was never about academic freedom. It represented the opposite of free speech,\u201d the group told The Jewish Chronicle<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was to be an international gathering of anti-Zionists who were using the cover of a distinguished university to promote their view that there should never have been a Jewish state,\u201d the Board of Deputies said. \u201cSuch events have no place at a reputable British university.\u201d<\/p>\n

Growing outcry<\/strong><\/p>\n

Meanwhile, there is a growing international outcry over what looks to many like yet another example of freedom of speech and academic freedom being suspended when it comes to the question of Palestine.<\/p>\n

There are now almost seven thousand signatures on an online petition<\/a> urging the university to \u201cuphold free speech\u201d and allow the conference to proceed.<\/p>\n

More than 900 academics from all over the world have signed on to a statement<\/a> in support of the conference.<\/p>\n

A growing number of scholars have also written individual and group letters<\/a> to Southampton protesting its decision.<\/p>\n

The letters from academics \u2013 including those from Southampton itself, the University of London colleges Goldsmiths and SOAS, Irish professors with the group Academics for Palestine and others \u2013 have been posted online<\/a>.<\/p>\n

__________________________________<\/p>\n

Ali Abunimah – <\/em>Co-founder of <\/em>The Electronic Intifada and author of <\/em>The Battle for Justice in Palestine<\/a>, now out from Haymarket Books, and of <\/em>One Country: A Bold-Proposal to End the Israeli-Palestinian Impasse<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 electronicintifada.net<\/a><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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DON’T BUY<\/strong> PRODUCTS WHOSE<\/strong> BARCODE<\/strong> STARTS WITH<\/strong> 729<\/strong>, which indicates that it is produced in Israel. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0DO YOUR PART! MAKE A DIFFERENCE!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

7 2 9: BOYCOTT FOR JUSTICE!<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2 Apr 2015 – Organizers of an academic conference on Israel are proceeding with an urgent legal challenge after the UK\u2019s University of Southampton today confirmed that it has canceled the event. More than 900 academics from all over the world have signed on to a statement in support of the conference.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-56226","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-europe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56226","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56226"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56226\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56226"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56226"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56226"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}