Israel's Knesset has just, moments ago, passed a bill outlawing specific forms of nonviolent protesting in Israel, severely damaging free speech and the functioning of its democracy as a whole.
Some are already calling it the death of Israel's democracy.
Gal Beckerman, of The Forward, explains that this bill, just passed by a vote of 47-36, will allow civil courts to impose:
harsh punishment[s] and financial fines on anyone engaged in the nonviolent protest tactic of boycotting, directly or indirectly, Israeli goods or institutions (even if the boycott is not successful).
The bill, which is responding to the success of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movements aimed at pressuring Israel to (among other things) cease construction on West Bank settlements, has swiftly dealt a severe blow to Israel's status as a democracy.
Amazingly, it is now illegal for an Israeli to post on Facebook, "Don't buy this product – it was made in the settlements."
Again, from Gal Beckerman:
This is an odious law for the ways in which it chills free speech in Israel — if democracy’s greatest test is it’s ability to allow the harshest criticism, whether the flag burners or the boycotters, Israel will be failing if it passes this law.
But what makes it even worse is that it purposefully conflates protest against the occupation with protest against Israel. The text of the bill, courtesy of the Association for Civil Rights in Israel, defines a “a boycott against the State of Israel” in the following way: “deliberately avoiding economic, cultural or academic ties with another person or another factor only because of his ties with the State of Israel, one of its institutions or an area under its control, in such a way that may cause economic, cultural or academic damage.”
I cannot agree more with Beckerman, for aside from the damage this bill will do to the functioning of Israel's democracy, the following point he makes is of crucial importance:
"But what makes it even worse is that it purposefully conflates protest against the occupation with protest against Israel."
Too many, like myself, are easily labeled as "anti-Israel" when we make reasoned, intelligent critiques of the occupation and protest it with the force of our words. And this conflation, now codified, would be devastating for those of us who are invested in Israel's success, and critique the occupation in part because of said investment.
Now, Israel has just outlawed the nonviolent protest tactic of boycotting Israel, with the practical implication being that not only could Israel itself penalize individuals and organizations for boycotting Israeli products or institutions on political grounds, but individual Israelis themselves have now been given the unlimited right to sue anyone who engages in this form of protest.
And the focus here? Those who boycott Israel due to "an area under its control." Meaning? The settlements.
Meaning: Israel will no longer legally allow for the freedom of expression, articulated through boycotting, with regard to its settlement policies.
The Knesset’s legal adviser, attorney Eyal Yanon, has criticized the new anti-boycott bill as approaching “illegality and perhaps beyond...[and] damages the core of freedom of expression in Israel."
America's greatest ally in the region, and the self-proclaimed only-democracy-in-the-Middle-East, just became exponentially less democratic, codifying criticism against Israel as an attack against its legitimacy and existence.
Update: It appears, from reports, that Israelis are preparing to stream into Rabin Square to protest. This will not go unnoticed or unopposed.
Update 2: This from an article just posted by Haaretz:
According to the law, a person or an organization calling for the boycott of Israel, including the settlements, can be sued by the boycott's targets without having to prove that they sustained damage. The court will then decide how much compensation is to be paid. The second part of the law says a person or a company that declare a boycott of Israel or the settlements will not be able to bid in government tenders.
MK Nitzan Horowitz from Meretz blasted the law, calling it outrageous and shameful. "We are dealing with a legislation that is an embarrassment to Israeli democracy and makes people around the world wonder if there is actually a democracy here," he said. Ilan Gilon, another Meretz MK, said the law would further delegitimize Israel.
Update 3: Thanks to +972 Magazine, we now know that Knesset work on the anti-boycott bill could find no similar laws on the books in any functioning democracy in the world.