De - Shelving Apartheid, Re - Imagining Resistance: Boycott, D ivestmen t, Sanctions and the Palestinian National Movement by Jonas Xavier Caballero Sidney Sussex College 12 August 2012 This dissertation is submitted to the Graduate Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Philosophy in Middle Eastern Studies University of Cambridge 2012 ii Copyright © by Jonas X. Caballero 2012 iii ABSTRACT The boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement entered the Palestinian political landscape in 2005 amidst the absence of a unified national liberation strategy and a truly representative Palestinian political body . By channeling extan t energies through a three - tiered platform enshrined in the Palestinian Civil Society Call for BDS , the moveme nt has reinvigorated the Palestinian national movement It has done so by mobilizing around principles that seek to unite Palestinians in their sc attered communities in the occupied Palestinian territores , Israel, and the Diaspora. Further, BDS provides access to previously marginalized groups, most notably to Palestinian queer and Israeli activists, and has also drawn to the movement Palestinians d isenchanted by prior forms of resistance Due to the history of failures of the Palestinian leadership, Palestinian BDS activists have come to cherish the leader les s - ness of the movement. Although this may sustain Palestinian involvement in BDS, it may als o be what prevents it from becoming a complete liberation strategy. At the same time , Palestinians within the movement have criticized it for engaging in ant idemocratic and unfair pra c tices. Thirty - six Palestinian BDS activists were interviewed for this s tudy. The data analysis builds upon the existing literature on the history and development of Palestinian nationalism and D e - Shelving Apartheid, Re - Imagining Resistance: Boycott, Divestmen t, Sanctions and the Palestinian National Movement Jonas X. Caballero University of Cambridge, 2012 iv political participation and explains how the BDS movement has emerged as an important factor in the development of the Palestinian nat ional movement. This study also highlight s the parallels and distinctions between BDS and prior f orms of Palestinian nationalism and calls attention to the pitfalls and possibilities of BDS as a nascent strategy in the resistance to Israeli settler colonia lism and apartheid. v TABLE OF CONTENTS DEDICATION ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................ IX ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................ ................................ ................................ ........ X 1.0 CHAPTER ONE - INTRODUCTION ................................ ................................ ................ 1 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE ST UDY ................................ ................................ ........... 2 1.2 WHY FOCUS ON BDS? ................................ ................................ ............................. 5 1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS ................................ ................................ ......................... 7 1.4 PREVIEW OF DISSERTAT ION CHAPTERS ................................ ....................... 7 2.0 CHAPTER TWO - REVIEW OF THE LITERA TURE ................................ ................... 9 2.1 BACKGROUND ON PALEST INIAN NATIONALISM AN D IDENTITY ........ 10 2.2 THE 1936 - 1939 ARAB REVOLT IN PALESTINE ................................ ............... 13 2.3 FIRST INTIFADA ................................ ................................ ................................ ..... 20 2.4 SECOND INTIFADA ................................ ................................ ................................ 26 3.0 CHAPTER THREE – METHODOLOGY AND ANAL YSIS ................................ ....... 34 3.1 PARTICIPANT SELECTIO N ................................ ................................ ................. 34 3.2 DELIMITATIONS AND LI MITATIONS ................................ .............................. 35 3.3 METHOD ................................ ................................ ................................ ................... 37 4.0 CHAPTER FOUR - INTERVIEWS AND ANALY SIS ................................ .................. 39 4.1 ARRIVAL OF BDS ................................ ................................ ................................ ... 40 vi 4.2 THE ACTIVISTS: WHO A RE THEY AND WHAT DRO VE THEM TO BDS? 41 4.2.1 Before the BDS Call: Lifelong activism ................................ ....................... 42 4.2.2 After the BDS Call: Campuses and Cast Le ad ................................ ............ 43 4.2.3 BDS’s geographical specificity ................................ ................................ ...... 48 4.3 STAYING THE COURSE: FACTORS THAT SUSTAIN BDS ACTIVISM ..... 49 4.3.1 The legacy of the first Intifada ................................ ................................ ...... 50 4.3.2 The desire to return ................................ ................................ ....................... 52 4.3.3 Symbolic and economic impact of mounting BDS victories ....................... 55 4.4 PARALLELING A DISAPP OINTING PALESTINIAN LEADERSHIP ........... 59 4.5 LEVELING THE PLAYI NG FIELD? BDS POSSIB ILITIES ............................. 63 4.5.1 Engaging the international ................................ ................................ ............ 66 4.5.2 Engaging the Israelis ................................ ................................ ...................... 70 4.5.3 Engaging the queers ................................ ................................ ....................... 72 4.6 DIRTY LAUNDARY: BDS PITFALLS ................................ ................................ .. 76 4.6.1 Speak for yourself! The issue of representation ................................ .......... 76 4.6.2 Witch - hunts and intimidation: the issue of accountability ........................ 80 4.6.2.1 The case of Sari Hanafi ................................ ................................ ...... 82 4.7 BDS REBUTTAL: INCONS ISTENCIES IN THE LOG IC OF BDS ................... 8 3 4.7.1 A smokescreen for the one - state solution? ................................ ................... 84 4.7.2 A compass without a destination: on the absen ce of a national liberation strategy ................................ ................................ ................................ ........................ 86 5.0 CONCLUSION ................................ ................................ ................................ .................. 88 vii 5.1 SUMMARY OF THE STUDY ................................ ................................ ................. 88 5.2 DISCUSSION OF THE FI NDINGS ................................ ................................ ........ 89 5.3 IMPLICATIONS FOR PRA CTICE ................................ ................................ ........ 93 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................ ................................ ................................ ....................... 95 viii LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad and the burning of Israeli settlement products. Photo by Nasser Ishtayeh , AP. Source: www.csmonitor.com 61 Figure 2. Meeting with Palestinian Minister of Health. Photo source: http://www.moh.ps ......... 62 ix DEDICATION “Your hear t is a muscle the size of your fist.” - Unknown This study is dedicated to all those who have their fists held high. x ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS This project would not have been po ssible without the generous support from the US - UK Fulbright Commission, and I t hank Michael Scott - Kline, Lauren Jacobs, Penny Egan, Monique Aronsohn, and the whole Fulbright team for their amazing work and dedication . My appreciation also goes to Suzannah Horner and Dr. Iain Black of Cambridge’s Sidney Sussex College for the special care and attention they have given me. I also than k the North American Foundation Fund for an additional research grant that allowed me to conduct my fieldwork in Palestine and the UK. Special thanks goes to my supervisor, Dr. Lori Allen, for the deep insi ght and encouragement given to me throughout the year that this study was undertaken. I also want to thank Tash Sabbah of the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies for her quick responses and kind words when times were rough. I want to acknowledge my rock, my buddy , my mother, Muffin Peluso. Without you none of this would have been possible. Thank you for the endless support! Enormous gratitude goes to Kate Daher, Courtney N asser, Loubna El - Abbadi, Omar He jleh, Bob Ross, Sarah Moawad, Ryan Branagan, S aleh Al Amer, Elaine Linn, Judy Zang , Neta Golan, Katie Miranda, David Caballero, Joey Edgar, Jo hn Nathan Jones, Billie Peluso , Mary Mac k , Edgar Um , Koko Roberts, Andalusia, Etta Cetera , and all of my friends who encouraged me throughout this journey. To m y lovely friends who left us too soon, Cristian xi C á rtes and Edith Wilson, you both hold special places in my heart and I know we will share coffee and Bloody Mary’s again one day! I want to especially thank Diana Buttu for giving that lecture on that fatefu l day in 2002. I dread thinking about where I would be had I not stumbled upon your words that day! Last but surely not least I would like to send my sincerest heartfelt gratitude to the Palestinians who took part in this study. For some, opening old wound s was painful. For others, speaking about sensitive topics was challenging. Thank you for your trust, your time, and your friendship. One of these days we will sip on some sweet shai bi na3na3 and watch those walls come crumbling down! Goddess willing. 1 1.0 CHAPTER ONE - INTRODUCTION “Can three simple letters spell liberation for one of the world’s most polemic conflicts? ” - Ben White, 2012 Th e boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement entered the Palestinian political landscape in 2005 a midst the absence of a unified national liberation strategy and a truly representative Palestinian political body . By channeling extant energies through a three - tiered platform enshrined in the Palestinian Civil Society Call for BDS , the moveme nt has reinv igorated the Palestinian national movement It has done so by mobilizing around principles that seek to unite Palestinians in their scattered communities in the occupied Palestinian territores (OPT) , Israel, and the Diaspora. Further, BDS provides access t o previously marginalized groups, most notably to Palestinian queer and Israeli activists, and has also drawn to the movement Palestinians disenchanted by prior forms of resistance Due to the history of failures of the Palestinian leadership, Palestinian BDS activists have come to cherish the leaderless - ness of the movement. Although this may sustain Palestinian involvement in BDS, it may also be what prevents it from becoming a complete liberation strategy. At the same time , Palestinians within the moveme nt have criticized it for engaging in ant idemocratic and unfair pra c tices. Thirty - six Palestinian BDS activists were interviewed for this study. The data analysis builds upon the existing literature on the history and development of Palestinian nationalis m and 2 political participation and explains how the BDS movement has emerged as an important factor in the development of the Palestinian national movement. This study also highlights the parallels and distinctions between BDS and prior forms of Palestinian nationalism and calls attention to the pitfalls and possibilities of BDS as a nascent strategy in the resistance to Israeli settler colonialism and apartheid. 1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE S TUDY Over the past century, Palestinians have been confronted with an array o f drawbacks preventing them from attaining liberation from settler colonialism or political rights enshrined in international law, let alone a state to call their own ( Hammami and Tamari 2001; Khalidi 2006; Khalili 2007; Y. Sayigh 1997). These drawbacks ha ve included collapsed negotiations and neglected agreements 1 to unsuccessful armed and unarmed struggles , and a corrupt leadership claiming to represent the whole of the scattered Palestinian populations across the Middle East and throughout the world. Fur thermore, the absence of any semblance of Palestinian societal cohesion both historically and more recently has rendered a solid and unified national liberation strategy illusory (Khalidi 1997). Struggling to stymie the rising apathy and frustration of a n ew generation of Palestinians who are all too aware of these failures, Palestinians have been left to ask themselves, “What else can we do?” 1 Such as the Madrid Conference (1991), Oslo Accords (1993), Oslo II (1995), Camp David (2000), and the Taba Summit (2001)). 3 On July 9, 2005, more than 170 Palestinian civil society organizations (CSOs) 2 enacted a call for boycott, divestm ent, and sanctions against Israel “until it complies with international law and universal principles of human rights” (“Palestinian Call” 2005 ). Since the Call was enacted from within the walls of the OPT, political parties, human rights organizations , rel igious groups, and politicians across the globe have endorsed the united appeal for BDS. International student groups, trade unions, concerned consumers, academic institutions, and medical practitioners have also taken action against Israel by adopting BDS ( Abu - Laban and Bakan 2009; Barghouti 2011 ; Qumsiyeh 2011 ). The Palestinian national movement has, in effect, been globalized, as P alestinians in their scattered locales and Palestine solidarity activists across the world can now easily engage in challengi ng Israel’s occupation and apartheid policies The BDS Call 3 was initiated by Palestinian refugees, Palestinians living in Israel, and Palestinians living in the OPT, and is supported by Palestinian political parties, women’s unions , refugee rights associa tions, trade unions, and others. 4 The BDS Call urges economic, cultural, and academic boycotts, divestment, and sanctions against Israel until it adheres to its responsibilities under international law by: 1. Ending its occupation and colonization of all Ara b lands occupied in June 1967 and dismantling the Wall; 2. Recognizing the fundamental rights of the Arab - Palestinian citizens of Israel to full equality; and 3. Respecting, protecting and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties as stipulated in UN Resolution 194 (“Introducing the BDS Movement”). 2 This paper uses the terms CSOs and NGOs (non - governmental institutions ) interchangeably. 3 See “Palestinian Call for Boyco tt, Divestment, and Sanctions” for the full Call. 4 For a full a list of the civil society organizations that signed the Call, see “Palestinian Civil Society Call for BDS.” 4 Palestinians BDS activists in this study believe that through broad boycott and divestment initiatives and the implementation of sanctions, Israel can be damaged both morally and economically. BDS, they believe, c an eventually lead to the recognition of full Palestinian rights compliant within international law, similar to the way in which the antiapartheid movement against South Africa helped to bring down the apartheid regim e there ( Abu - Laban and Bakan 2009; Barghouti 2012 ; Clark and Worger 2004 ). It was through antiapartheid victories that “elite white South Africans realized that they could not continue with the apartheid system in the face of world anger” (Qumsiyeh 2011: 2 07 ). BDS activists believe similar activism will advance the demise of Israeli apartheid 5 (Abu - Lana and Bakan 2009; Hijab 2011; Qumsiyeh 2011 ). Through boycotts , activists target Israeli and multinational companies that profit from the Israeli military oc cupation . Through economic boycotts, any person across the globe can engage in BDS, simply by refusing to purchase a product produced in Israel or in illegal Israeli colonies in the West Bank (“Introducing the BDS Movement”) BDS also targets all Israeli a cademic and 5 T he 1973 Convention on the S uppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid defined apartheid as a crime against humanity and that “inhuman acts resulting from the policies and practices of apartheid and similar policies and practices of racial segregation and discrimination” are defined as international crimes. The Apartheid Convention defines apartheid as “similar policies and practices of racial segregation and discrimination as practised in southern Africa,” – including “inhuman acts committed for the purpose of establishing an d maintaining domination by one racial group of persons over any other racial group of persons and systematically oppressing them” (Dugard 2008). These acts include “murder, torture, inhuman treatment and arbitrary arrest of members of a racial group; deli berate imposition on a racial group of living conditions calculated to cause its physical destruction; legislative measures that discriminate in the political, social, economic and cultural fields; measures that divide the population along racial lines by the creation of separate residential areas for racial groups; the prohibition of interracial marriages; and the persecution of persons opposed to apartheid” (Dugard 2008). In 2011, the Russell Tribunal on Palestine found that Israel is engaged in an instit utionalized regime of apartheid as defined by international law (“Russell Tribunal ”). Former South African President Nelson Mandela, US President Jimmy Carter, Palestinian - American author Ali Abunimah, and Israeli historian Ilan Pappé have all stated that Israel is not only engaged in a system of apartheid but that its system is worse than the one practiced in South Africa (Lembede 2012, “Jimmy Carter” 2006, Abunimah 2006, Barat 2012). 5 cultural institutions on the grounds that these institutions either directly maintain or defend Israeli ap artheid policies or have been complacent with Israeli human rights violations through their silence (“Call for Academic and Cultural Boyco tt” 2004 ). Through divestment , BDS activists target corporations that are complicit in Palestinian human rights violati ons. By focusing on investment portfolios and pension funds, activists promote divestment from targeted companies and reinvestment in alt ernative and socially responsible companies (“Introducing the BDS Movement”) Sanctions is arguably the hardest level for BDS activists to achieve due to Israel’s political ties to international governments , specifically the United States. In calling for s anctions against Israel, BDS hope to end international governments’ complicity in the Israeli occupation and apartheid policies (“Introducing the BDS Movement”). 1.2 WHY FOCUS ON BDS? Extensive r esearch has been conducted on the history of Palestinian nationa lism and political participation (Abraham 1984; Antonius 2000; Hammami and Tamari 2000; Khalidi 1997 , 2006 ; Khalili 2007; Peteet 2000; Qumsiyeh 2011; R. Sayigh 2007 a ; Y. Sayigh 1997; Swedenburg 1990, 1995; Tamari 2009). However, due to the nascenc y of the movement , none of the literature positions BDS within the history and development of Palestinian national ism The purpose of this study is to expand upon the rather large body of research on the history and development of Palestinian nationalism by (1) s ituating the BDS movement and the biographies of Palestinian BDS activists within it and (2) assessing the parallels and comparisons of BDS as they pertain to prior assertions of Palestinian nationalism B y “assertions” of Pale stinian nationalism I am refe r ring to periods of sustained Palestinian resistance against 6 colonial and settler colonial rule in Palestine. Although many articles and anal yses exist of BDS in newspapers, on websites, and occasionally in scholarly journals, none that I have found examin e BDS within the broader history of Palestinian activism or Palestinian nationalism. Nor has BDS been viewed through an ethnographic lens centered on Palestinian BDS activists in order to discern how Palestinians view BDS with regard to the trajec tory of P alestinian activism It is important to consider this trajectory within the theory of new social movements, which serves as an appropriate framework of analysis for this study . As Nash points out, today’s historic metamorphoses in the Middle East warrant analyses of the previously underestimated power of social movements with their capability of alteri ng the future (Nash 2005 ). The existing literature on new social movements will benefit by incorporating analyses of of the current BDS movement 6 while simu ltaneously securing a place for BDS (and the recent wave of revolutionary movements across the Middle East ) Furthermore, new social movements tend to incorporate new tactics that help to amplify their message in the global market of human rights activism (Nash 2005). The transnational dimension of BDS connects the movement to broader human rights struggles and social movements. For example, in February 2012, the Oakland chapter of the Occupy Wall Street movement voted to back the BDS movement. 7 In Septembe r 2012, BDS will be a key focus of the “World Social Forum Free Palestine , ” which wi ll convene in Sao Paolo, Brazil. According to its website, the World Social Forum Free Palestine : is an expression of the human instinct to unite for justice and freedom an d an echo of the World Social Forum’s opposition to neo - liberal hegemony, colonialism, and 6 In this essay I am concerned with what I call the current BDS movement as there have been actions related to boycott, divestment, and sanctions in Palestine as early as the 1880s. For example, Palestinians during this time petitioned the Ottoman government to sanction “the onward drive of Zionism” (Qumsiyeh 2011: 207). 7 The proposal passed with 135 “yes” votes, 1 “no” vote, and 12 abstentions (Barrows - Friedman 2012a). 7 racism through struggles for social, political and economic alternatives to promote justice, equality, and the sovereignty of peoples (“Call for the World Social For um” 2012). This kind of networking, coupled with the effects of international social movements and protest groups on transnational movements, is crucial to understanding new social movement s ( Abdelrahman 2011 ). With this is mind, we can begin to probe the following research questions that have guided this study. 1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS By examining BDS within the history and development of the Palestinian national movement , we can begin to answer the following research questions that guided my study : Is the BD S movement an important development in the Palestinian national movement? What draws previously marginalized and disenchanted Palestinians to and sustains their involvement in BDS; who is part of Palestinian BDS politics that underlie BDS efforts and how d o Palestinian activists view BDS in relation to other forms of Palestinian activism? What are the parallels, distinctions, and drawbacks of BDS with regard to prior assertions of Palestinian nationalism? 1.4 PREVIEW OF DISSERTATION CHAPTERS Chapter Two investi gates the major tropes of the Palestine national movement extracted from the existing literature. Reviewed in this literature are three assertions of Palestinian nationalism that have emerged since the beginning of the Zionist movement in the late nineteen th century. They 8 include the 1936 - 1939 Arab R evolt in Palestine and the first and second Intifadas In Chapter Three I describe the methodology used in this study including the relevance and significance of conducting ethnographic interviews as a methodolo gy for data collection. The chapter explains my process for participant selection and addresses the limitations and ethic al considerations of this study. In Chapter Four, I present and analyze the data obtained thr ough the interview process and highlight t he primary themes that arose with regard to this study’s research questions. Chapter Five summarizes the findings and emphasizes the study’s implications 9 2.0 C HAPTER TWO - REVIEW OF THE LITERA TURE “In the long run, the settlements and walls that are built to c onfine the Palestinians can only provoke further humiliation, which will lead to further resistance, and perhaps stimulate different political forms and political leadership ” - Rashid Khalidi, 2006 The quest to define what is Palestinian, Palestinian nati onalism, and indeed to define who or what speaks for the Palestinian people , has been long and arduous. It has been a quest fraught with varying operations centers 8 and opposing ideologies on what constitutes Palestinian nationalism or a national liberatio n strategy ( Beinin 1990; Jabber, Lesch, and Quandt 1973; Khalidi 199 7 , 2006 ; Khalili 2007 ; Y. Sayigh 1997). This quest for representation, identity, and resistance strategies has continued in the absence of an internationally recognized state entity and of ten in opposition to what has typically been considered the sole representative body of the Palestinian people: the PLO. R e cent literature on the Palestinian national movement “mirrors the dynamics of incoherent contemporary Palestinian politics,” much of which is guided by a statist or post - colonial framework 9 (Qato, et al, 2012: 3). Although this may be partially true, evidence of an alternative framework exists , for example , in Adam Hanieh’s (2011) examination of 8 Including the West Bank, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Tunisia, and Egypt (Khalidi 1997, 2006; Y. Sayigh 1997). 9 Recent scholarship on Palestinian political histo ry tends to focus on the occupation or theorizes about establishing Palestinian statehood under occupation, rather than focusing on an agenda based on liberation aimed at challenging the settler colonial structure (Qato, et al. 2012).