Petition: Expel Omar Barghouti
To: Tel Aviv University
To the Rector, President, Friends Offices of Tel Aviv University,
Dear Sirs,
Literally thousands of people all over the world are working very hard to demonize and delegitimize Israel. An especially strident and persuasive voice is that of Omar Barghouti, whose devastating accusations against Israel can be found on dozens of internet sites, newspapers all over the world and even at international conferences. What makes his work especially repugnant is his wide use of half-truth, selective omission and outright lie. He is clearly an enemy of Israel.
We recently learned that he is a doctoral student at the Tel Aviv University. If this is indeed true, it is quite incredible because Omar Barghouti is a founding member of The Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel and has personally called on countless occasions, for an international boycott of all Israeli universities as well as trade and cultural ties.
About Tel Aviv University itself, he has written (in Counterpunch): “Tel Aviv University refuses to date to acknowledge the fact that it sits on top of an ethnically cleansed Palestinian village (Sheikh Muwannis). Some of TAU's departments are also organically linked to the military and intelligence establishment.”
We can’t help wondering at the logic of Tel Aviv University according this enemy of Israel with the means to obtain a doctorate in Ethics. Can this indeed be true? Ethics!!! As Israeli citizens we also deeply dismayed that an academic institution, which gets part of our hard-earned taxes to keep it going, is enabling such a person to use its facilities. We are sure a lot of Jews around the world who donate generously to academic institutions in Israel would be quite devastated to learn how their monies are used.
There could be three solutions to this incredible situation:
1. Properly knowledgeable and motivated staff members could engage Omar Barghouti in a sincere debate on the whole Israel-Arab conflict in order to persuade him to rethink his position. Surely ethics (if that’s what he’s studying) should be based on intellectual honesty.
2. Find a way to sue him for libel and false pretences and anything else.
3. Simply disassociate from him (and any others of his ilk who cramp the corridors of your university).
Sincerely,
SIGNEZ LA PETITION EN CLIQUANT ICI