The baffle of Britain
ZEDDY LAWRENCE
JUST three weeks out of Britain and I must confess I find myself bemused. Not by these foreign shores that I’m now privileged to call home. True, the rather erratic weather has been a little baffling.
But what has really perplexed me in recent days -— somewhat surprisingly -— is the country and community I’ve left behind, or rather, the contradictory perceptions people have of it.
On one hand, I read Isi Leibler’s damning indictment of Britain’s “cowardly” communal leaders, accusing them of burying their heads in the sand, rather than confronting the anti-Israel sentiment that plagues virtually every element of society.
Why were these “trembling Israelites” silent on Goldstone, he asks. Why do they kowtow to Foreign Secretary David Miliband rather than express their displeasure at his policies? And why are those mavericks that do speak out for the Jewish State¬† condemned for rocking the boat?
The picture Leibler paints is certainly not a pretty one. Whether it’s correct or not, well, we’ll come to that shortly. For the moment, though, let’s reflect on an altogether different point of view.
Readers will recall a story in The AJN last week (27/11) concerning a TV documentary shown on Channel 4 in the UK, titled Inside Britain’s Israel Lobby. The main thrust of the program was to suggest that a number of Anglo-Jewry’s leading communal organisations had both the government and the media in their grip.
This all-powerful lobby was portrayed as a covert cabal, operating behind the scenes to manipulate policy and public opinion, in some cases through the use of hefty donations to political parties. In sharp contrast to the “trembling Israelites” of Leibler’s piece, these Jewish leaders were more akin to the elders of Zion of anti-Semitic myth.
So which is it to be? The ragtag group of ineffectual nebbishes, or the Machiavellian money-men who use their influence to stifle criticism of the Jewish State?
Certainly, one would be hard-pushed to find a member of the Jewish community in Britain who subscribes to the latter theory. One need only look at the biased coverage of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on TV and in the papers to see which way the media swings.
As for the political establishment, Britain’s stance on the Durban Review Conference and the Goldstone Commission Report speaks for itself. In short, if all-powerful lobbies had an umbrella organisation, Britain’s pro-Israel lobby would be drummed out for bringing the “all-powerful” status into disrepute.
Does that mean Leibler’s critique of the community’s leaders is correct? Without a doubt, there have been occasions when it seems popular pressure forces them into action —- a case in point, the pro-Israel demonstrations during Operation Cast Lead were spearheaded by the grassroots. Only after activists took to the streets to face down the pro-Palestinian protestors was an official solidarity rally organised.
As for the politicians, yes, the tendency is to take a gently-gently approach rather than batter them into submission. Why? Well, Oborne’s documentary says it all. If the community went in all-guns blazing then, correct or not, the “all-powerful” accusation might appear to have some foundation.
In truth, though, the communal leadership in Britain does an admirable job. Any one of the thousands of people who marched as part of last year’s Salute to Israel Parade did so because those at the top had no qualms about displaying their love of the Jewish State in public.
Likewise, the row that’s erupted over the stance taken by the current president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews regarding the Conservative Party’s links to certain foreign politicians in the European Parliament shows he’s not prepared to stand idly by.
As editor of a Jewish newspaper in the UK for the best part of five years, time and again I witnessed the Board and the Jewish Leadership Council fighting the community’s corner over boycotts, over anti-Semitism, over shechitah, over media bias, over faith education, over Holocaust denial, in fact, over anything that affected us. And, time and again, thanks to their efforts, our concerns were addressed and our interests upheld.
Do they always get it right? Maybe not. Did I have faith in them though? One hundred per cent.
Yes, Britain may not be the most Jew-friendly, Israel-friendly country on the planet. But the people to blame are not those who stand up for Jews and Israel —- for that would be to point the finger at the victims, rather than the perpetrators. Those behind the boycotts and the bias are the real enemy, not those who seek to stop them.
Zeddy Lawrence is national editor of The Australian Jewish News.
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