‘This boycott is a nonviolent attempt to raise awareness’

Australians who have taken a stand against the occupation tell The Jewish Independent they mostly support the Sydney Festival boycott but some express reservations about BDS

AUSTRALIANS WHO HAVE taken a stance against Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian people and territories have articulated nuanced positions and sentiments about the Sydney Festival boycott. While most of those contacted by The Jewish Independent support the boycott call, some expressed reservations about the broader BDS movement.

Vivienne Porzsolt, spokesperson for Jews against the Occupation Sydney, is forthright in her support for the boycott. “I work alongside Palestinians on the campaign to boycott the Sydney Festival because I cannot abide what the State of Israel has done and is doing to another people in my name.

“The call on both artists and audiences to boycott the Sydney Festival arises in response to the Sydney Festival’s acceptance of $20,000 sponsorship from the Israeli Embassy,” Porzsolt told The Jewish Independent.

“It is entirely beside the point that individual Israelis, like Ohad Naharin, the choreographer of Decadance, the work being produced by the Sydney Dance Company, may be opponents of Israel's ongoing oppression of the Palestinians.

“The issue is not Israeli works or artists, as opponents of the boycott call falsely claim, but funding of the Festival by the Israeli government, and billing of that government as a ‘Star Partner’ of the Festival.”

Porzsolt rejected the argument by ethicist Simon Longstaff that “this is not just a polite debate, a stimulating ‘marketplace of ideas’. This is a struggle for justice against an oppressive regime. The Sydney Festival should not be giving comfort to this regime by welcoming it into its fold”.