Kuusitoista israelilaista akateemikkoa, entistä virkamiestä ja muuta julkisuuden henkilöä tukee kansanedustajamme Veronika Honkasalon lakialoitetta siirtokunnissa tuotettujen tuotteiden maahantuontikiellosta.Israelilaiset lähettivät eduskunnalle kirjeen, jossa he ilmaisevat tukensa Honkasalon aloitteelle.”Siirtokunnat ovat suurin este konfliktin rauhanomaiselle ratkaisulle”– Länsirannan ja Itä-Jerusalemin de facto liittäminen Israeliin, siirtokuntien laajentaminen palestiinalaisten pakkosiirroilla ja talojen tuhoamisella ja se hallintotapa, jota Israelin valtio harjoittaa miehitetyillä palestiinalaisalueilla tekevät tästä lakialoitteesta tarpeellisen ja ajankohtaisen, israelilaiset kirjoittavat.– Israelin siirtokuntia miehitetyillä alueilla ei tule legitimisoida osaksi Israelia.
Siirtokunnat ovat suurin este konfliktin rauhanomaiselle ratkaisulle.– Israelin huolestuneina kansalaisina, jotka eivät ole kadottaneet näköpiiristään mahdollisuutta lopettaa konflikti ja siirtyä kahden valtion rauhanomaiseen rinnakkaiseloon, kannustamme eduskuntaa tukemaan tätä lakialoitetta, israelilaiset kirjoittavat.Israelilaisten akateemikkojen, entisten virkamiesten, journalistien ja muiden julkisuuden henkilöiden kirje eduskunnalle kokonaisuudessaan:January 2022As Israeli citizens committed to the future of our country, we are writing to expressour support and gratitude for the Occupied Territories Bill in Finland. The unabatedde facto annexation conducted by Israel in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, theincreasing settlement expansion intertwined with house demolitions and forcedevictions of Palestinians, and the regime Israel imposes in the Occupied PalestinianTerritories (OPT) make this bill yet more necessary and timely. We hope that thisinitiative will echo in other European Union member states.Israeli settlements in the occupied territories must not be legitimised as part of Israeland are one of the main obstacles to a peaceful solution to the conflict. Israel’songoing rule of the OPT stands in stark contradiction to the guiding principles of theEuropean Union and its handling of the world order: the sanctity of human rights andthe validity of the rule of international law. It defies all relevant UN Security Councilresolutions, including UNSCR 2334 of December 2016, which inter alia “calls uponall states….to distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the Stateof Israel and the territories occupied since 1967.” We believe it is crucial for theinternational community to emphasize its support for upholding the rule ofinternational law and the defense of human rights in the OPT.As concerned citizens of Israel who have not lost sight of the possibility oftransforming Israel’s conflict with our Palestinian neighbors into peaceful coexistencewithin a two-state reality leading to reconciliation, we urge the Finnish Parliament tosupport this legislation in the spirit of President and Nobel Peace Prize laureateMartti Ahtisaari and in light of UNSCR 2334, by differentiating between legitimateFinnish trade with Israel and Finnish business transactions with illegal settlements inthe West Bank and East Jerusalem. A vote for this bill is a vote for peace.1. Prof. Elie Barnavi, Former Israeli ambassador to France2. Ilan Baruch , Former Israeli Ambassador to South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, andZimbabwe3. Michael Ben-Yair , Former Attorney General of Israel; former acting Supreme CourtJudge4. Prof. Yoram Bilu, Israel Prize recipient (2013)5. Avraham Burg , Former Speaker of Knesset and Head of the Jewish Agency6. Prof. Naomi Chazan , Former Member and Deputy Speaker of Knesset; formerPresident of the New Israel Fund7. Prof. Itzhak Galnoor , Former Head of the Israeli Civil Service Commission8. Prof. Moty Heiblum, EMET Prize recipient (2014); member of the Israel Academy ofScience and Humanities9. Dr. Ilana Hammerman, Israeli writer and translator10. Prof. Eva Illouz, Department of Sociology, Hebrew University Jerusalem; formerpresident of Bezalel Academy of Art and Design, Jerusalem11. Prof. Yehoshua Kolodny, Israel Prize recipient (2010)12. Prof. Miki Kratsman, EMET Prize Laureate (2011)13. Alex Libak, Photojournalist; Israel Prize recipient (2005)14. Dr. Alon Liel , Former Director-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; FormerAmbassador to South Africa, and Turkey15. Prof. Kobi Metzer , Former President of the Open University of Israel16. Prof. David Shulman , Israel Prize recipient (2016); EMET Prize recipient (2010);member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences