[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 131 (Tuesday, October 8, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S10130-S10131]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  STATEMENTS ON SUBMITTED RESOLUTIONS

                                 ______
                                 

 SENATE RESOLUTION 336--URGING THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY TO REJECT A 
         BOYCOTT OF ISRAELI ACADEMIC AND CULTURAL INSTITUTIONS

  Mr. CORZINE submitted the following resolution; which was referred to 
the Committee on Foreign Relations.
       Whereas a campaign is underway by elements of the 
     international academic community to limit cultural and 
     scientific collaboration between foreign universities and 
     academics and their counterparts in Israel;
       Whereas a number of European academics have signed 
     petitions calling upon the national governments of Europe, 
     the European Union, and the European Science Foundation to 
     sever contacts with Israeli academics, as well as issue a 
     moratorium on grants to Israeli research centers and cultural 
     institutions;
       Whereas the Association of University Teachers and NATFHE, 
     unions that represent professors and researchers employed by 
     research centers and universities in the United Kingdom, have 
     passed resolutions supporting academic boycotts of Israel;
       Whereas several institutions of higher education, such as 
     the University of Lille in France, have refused to cooperate 
     with Israeli Universities;
       Whereas invitations requesting Israeli researchers to 
     address academic assemblies have been rescinded because of 
     anti-Israel sentiment;
       Whereas Israeli scholars, including Gideon Toury and Miriam 
     Shlesinger, have been dismissed from their positions on the 
     editorial boards of academic journals solely because of their 
     affiliation with Israeli institutions;
       Whereas because of its location in Israel, the Goldyne 
     Savad Institute in Jerusalem was denied scientific materials 
     needed to develop effective treatments for anemic Palestinian 
     children by a Norwegian school of veterinary medicine;
       Whereas a campaign to limit academic ties between the 
     United States and Israel is emerging, as demonstrated by a 
     petition calling for an American academic boycott of Israel 
     circulated by Mazin Qumsiyeh, a Yale University professor;
       Whereas counter campaigns to oppose an academic boycott of 
     Israel have gathered significant support in several 
     countries, including France, Poland, the United Kingdom, 
     Germany, Australia, and the United States;
       Whereas Philippe Busquin, the Commissioner for Research for 
     the European Union, issued a statement on April 23, 2002, 
     maintaining that ``the European Commission is not in favour 
     of a policy of sanctions against the parties to the conflict 
     but rather advocates a continuous dialogue with them which is 
     the best way to bring them back to negotiations'';
       Whereas an open letter written by Paul Scham and Eva 
     Illouz, academics associated with Hebrew University in 
     Jerusalem, asserts that ``the call to boycott Israeli 
     academics shows unpardonable ignorance of the role played by 
     scientists, intellectuals, and artists in challenging the 
     political consensus and in creating the public debate that 
     rages in Israel at all times, including now'';
       Whereas an editorial in the May 2, 2002, issue of the 
     respected British scientific journal Nature states that, 
     ``Israel is a research powerhouse that, given an eventual 
     improvement of relations with its neighbors, could rejuvenate 
     science and development in the region through collaboration 
     and training. Rather than signing boycotts, which will 
     achieve nothing, researchers worldwide can help the peace 
     process concretely by actively initiating more. . . 
     collaborations and encouraging their institutions to do the 
     same.'';
       Whereas foreign-funded research projects intended to foster 
     cooperation between Israelis, Palestinians, and Arab 
     academics in various disciplines including water resource 
     management, desalinization, and cancer treatment, have 
     continued despite current events;
       Whereas Article 19, section 2, of the United Nations 
     Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states that, 
     ``Everyone shall have the right to. . . receive and impart 
     information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, 
     either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or 
     through any other media of his choice'';
       Whereas any attempts to stifle intellectual freedom through 
     the imposition of an academic boycott is counterproductive 
     since research and academic exchange provide an essential 
     bridge between otherwise disconnected cultures and countries; 
     and
       Whereas stifling scientific and cultural exchange would 
     limit the substantial contributions the international 
     academic community makes to humanity: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
       (1) the international scholarly community, the European 
     Union, and individual governments, should reject, or continue 
     to reject, calls for an academic boycott of Israel and 
     reaffirm their commitment to academic freedom and cultural 
     and scientific international exchange;
       (2) the worldwide educational establishment should reverse 
     actions taken to impede academic collaboration and free 
     intellectual expression with Israeli intellectuals and 
     institutions; and
       (3) the United States and the American scholarly community 
     should continue to actively support efforts to increase 
     academic cooperation and encourage cultural and scientific 
     exchange between the United States and Israel.

  Mr. CORZINE. Mr. President, I rise today to submit a resolution 
calling on the world community to reject, or continue to reject, calls 
for an academic boycott of Israel and reaffirm its commitment to 
academic freedom and cultural and scientific exchange. This legislation 
also calls on the international educational establishment to reverse 
any actions it has taken in support of an academic boycott of Israel, 
and on the U.S. to support efforts to increase academic cooperation and 
encourage cultural and scientific exchange between the United States 
and Israel
  In recent months I have been troubled by reports that a movement is 
brewing to limit contact between European Governments, institutions, 
and academics, with their counterparts in Israel. Petition drives are 
underway in Europe and elsewhere to encourage decision-makers and 
scholars to academically isolate Israel as a way of expressing 
dissatisfaction with Israeli policies regarding the Palestinian 
population.
  Campaigns in support of an academic boycott are as counterproductive 
as they are unjustified. They breed intolerance, disrupt important 
scientific inquiries, and undermine efforts towards

[[Page S10131]]

peace. Yet groups ranging from the Association of University Teachers, 
a labor union in England, to the University of Lille in France have 
made the unfortunate decision to allow their misguided political 
beliefs to disrupt constructive academic collaboration with colleagues 
in Israel.
  As you may be aware, in June of this year, two Israeli scholars were 
dismissed from the boards of translation journals based in Manchester, 
England. No one asserts that these two fine academics were dismissed 
for incompetence or for poor scholarship. No one argues that the 
remarks or actions of these intellectuals reflected poorly on their 
institutions or on these publications. No one even claims that they 
were dismissed for their political views. They clearly were not. 
Rather, they were dismissed simply because of their nationality. They 
both are Israeli citizens and carry Israeli passports.
  What makes their dismissal all the more ridiculous is that one of the 
academics discharged is Miriam Schlesinger, an Israeli human rights 
activist who has been a consistent voice of dissent within Israeli 
society. As the former chair of Israel's chapter of Amnesty 
International, Professor Schlesinger has been highly critical of some 
of the Israeli policies that the boycott is also seeking to reverse. 
The case of Miriam Schlesinger highlights an important fact seemingly 
overlooked by proponents of the boycott: in free societies, like 
Israel, academics often provide a range of viewpoints, many of which 
will differ from official government policy.
  In addition to working against peace and cultural understanding, an 
academic boycott will stifle meaningful scientific advancements. 
Despite the nascent quality of the campaign against academic exchange 
with Israel, the announced boycott has already confounded research 
projects intended to foster cooperation between Israelis and 
Palestinians in many important areas, including water resource 
management and cancer treatment.

  In fact, in one particularly shocking example, a Norwegian veterinary 
school refused to provide an Israeli research center, Goldyne Savad 
Institute of Gene Therapy at Hadassah Medical Center, with material it 
needed to conduct an important medical study. This thoughtless 
bureaucratic decision disrupted research intended to develop new 
therapies for treating anemic Palestinian children.
  By passing this resolution, the Senate will join a growing chorus of 
institutions and publications that have condemned the practice of 
restricting academic exchange with Israeli and academics and 
institutions. For example, an editorial in the well-respected British 
scientific journal Nature, argues that an academic boycott of Israel 
will undermine regional progress. The article explains, and I quote, 
``Israel is a research powerhouse that, given an eventual improvement 
of relations with its neighbors, could rejuvenate science and 
development in the region through collaboration and training. Rather 
than signing boycotts, which will achieve nothing, researchers 
worldwide can help the peace process concretely by actively initiating 
more . . . collaborations and encouraging their institutions to do the 
same.''
  The European Union has already made it clear that an academic boycott 
is unhelpful at best and counterproductive at worst. Philippe Busquin, 
the Commissioner for Research for the European Union, explained in an 
open letter that sanctions against Israeli academic institutions would 
undermine efforts to create a constructive dialogue. In that letter, 
Busquin appropriately emphasized the role that European, Israeli and 
Palestinian institutions and scientists play in ``addressing critical 
regional issues such as agriculture or water management . . . which, is 
certainly more effective than many well-intentioned words without any 
concrete impact.''
  Sharing ideas and learning about another culture leads to greater 
tolerance and understanding, while severing intellectual and cultural 
ties only breeds ignorance and stultification. This senate must send a 
message that an academic boycott of Israel is not a catalyst for peace, 
but rather an unwarranted impediment to progress in the region. Because 
cultural understanding and scientific advancement improve the human 
condition, the US should seek to encourage cultural and scientific 
exchange between our country and our strongest ally in the Middle East, 
Israel.
  I urge my colleagues to support this resolution, and I yield the 
floor.

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