Israel scored an own goal in segregated buses decision
Op-ed: The BDS campaign leaders are finding it difficult to believe that the Israeli government has insisted on giving them such a wonderful gift.
Have the people at the top lost their common sense? Sometimes one has to rub one's eyes in disbelief in light of the decision makers' foolishness. It didn’t start today and didn't start yesterday. They know that Israel is facing horrific propaganda. They know that the apartheid campaign is intensifying. So why?
"Segregated buses" are a symbol. An excellent weapon for those spreading the apartheid claim. Let's assume that on the practical level there are excellent excuses and wonderful arguments. But the damage is so big, so great, that the BDS campaign leaders are finding it difficult to believe that the Israeli government has insisted on giving them such a wonderful gift.
Israel has the right to take any measure to defend itself against a new wave of terror or lone terrorists. Occasionally, we must admit, it requires taking precautions which violate human rights. It's a necessity we can't do without. But segregated buses? Why the actual concept leads every strong-minded person or new activist to the dark days of South African and the Southern United States. Why they are waiting for an opportunity to shout "apartheid." And here, one decision made by the Defense Ministry gave them exactly what they wanted.
This time, for a change, the justifications are dubious too. How many passengers on these buses have hurt Jews in the past year? In the past two years? I directed this question at the Defense Ministry spokesman. The spokesman sent me to the minister's bureau. The minister's bureau sent me to the IDF Spokesperson's Unit. There is no response. There is embarrassment. It didn't prevent the decision on a move which is mainly symbolic. A symbol of discrimination. A symbol of apartheid. A symbol of the decision makers' insensitivity.
Let's not delude ourselves. Israel is far from being perfect. There are exceptions. The Shuhada Street in Hebron, which includes segregation between Jews and Palestinians, is causing huge damage to Israel, much more than the security benefit. It's not apartheid. It's mainly foolishness which allows the apartheid claim to flourish.
And the sadder thing is that this conduct clarifies that the penny hasn't dropped. It's unforgivable when a soldier humiliates an Arab at a checkpoint. But it's even more unforgivable when the leaders themselves decide to make foolish moves.
Don't they understand what they are doing? Don’t they understand that such a decision will push hundreds of students, many of whom are Jewish, into the anti-Israel camp? Don’t they understand that the settlers' convenience isn't worth even a small bit of the strategic damage which will be inflicted on Israel?
The foolishness is greater than it seems, because no one consulted the Foreign Ministry which is against it, and the Justice Ministry which is against it, and not even many of the settlers and the right, who are against it too.
The only comfort is that the prime minister intervened and prevented even greater damage. But that's very little comfort. There are many other moves which can be made in order to improve the Palestinians' lives, without harming security needs. They can be implemented. They have to be implemented. Perhaps someone at the top will come to his senses and realize that it's time to implement them.
It's not just a Palestinian interest. It's mainly a national and Zionist interest.
