Learn about the history of the Palestinian struggle for freedom, equality and justice by exploring major events in the history of their oppression on this day of the year.
17 January
On January 17th 2016, French Prime Minister Manuel Valls said “French authorities must change their attitude” towards demonstrations that call for a boycott of Israeli products, which he accused of fostering a “nauseating climate”. He condemned a protest in Paris, staged by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement against the Israeli colonisation of Palestinian land. Vals claimed “It is obvious we have shifted from criticism of Israel to anti-Zionism and from anti-Zionism to anti-Semitism.”
17 يناير 2021م
في مثل هذا اليوم من عام 2016 ، قال رئيس الوزراء الفرنسي مانويل فالس إن "السلطات الفرنسية يجب أن تغير موقفها" تجاه المظاهرات التي تدعو إلى مقاطعة المنتجات الإسرائيلية ، والتي اتهمها بتعزيز "مناخ مقزز". وأدان احتجاجا في باريس نظمته حركة المقاطعة وسحب الاستثمارات وفرض العقوبات (ب.د.س) ضد الاستعمار الإسرائيلي للأراضي الفلسطينية. ادعى فالس "من الواضح أننا تحولنا من نقد إسرائيل إلى معاداة الصهيونية ومن معاداة الصهيونية إلى معاداة السامية".
The French Government attacked the BDS movement...
France’s prime minister has criticised boycotts of Israeli products, saying they fuel anti-Semitic sentiment. But critics say using France's strict laws against "inciting discrimination" to criminalise the boycotts violates free speech. Manuel Valls said “French authorities must change their attitude” towards demonstrations that call for a boycott of Israeli products, which he accused of fostering a “nauseating climate” in the country.
...and suffered a serious defeat when the European Court of Human Rights ruled for the democratic right to BDS
PARIS (Reuters) - The European Human Rights Court (EHCR) ruled on Thursday that a French criminal conviction against activists involved in a campaign to boycott products imported from Israel had no sufficient grounds and violated their freedom of expression...The EHCR said there was little scope in European conventions for restrictions on political speech and that its very nature was to be controversial and virulent as long as it did not cross the line and call for violence, hatred or intolerance.
“The Court ordered France to pay 27,380 euros to each campaigner, almost £25,000.