|
Arsenal FC supporting Israeli
Apartheid
IHRC calls upon all campaigners to contact Arsenal FC
to protest against their decision to sign a sponsorship deal to promote Israel
as a tourist destination. The campaign is supported by the Palestinian Return
Centre, Innovative Minds, Friends of al Aqsa, the British Muslim Initiative, the
Muslim Association of Britain, the Palestinian Forum in Britain and the
Scottish-Palestinian Solidarity Campaign.
Arsenal Football Club has just signed a sponsorship deal to promote Israel as a tourist destination from next season. The £350,000 agreement makes Israel Arsenal's "official and exclusive travel destination." Below are just some of the benefits Israel will receive from this deal: - Israel will be featured on digital perimeter boards and 450 high-definition LCD screens at the stadium on game days; - Israel will feature on the team's website, Arsenal.com; and in its magazine. - The televised ads will reach audiences in an estimated 198 countries. - The Israeli Tourism Ministry will receive intellectual property rights, the use of the team logo and the right to use photos of the team and its players in ads. - The Israeli Tourism Minister will be allowed use the stadium banqueting hall twice a year and organize an exhibition at the end of the playing season - The stadium will hold permanent sale tables for Israel t-shirts The financial advisers Ernst & Young were employed to draft this proposal with the aim of bringing an extra 2 million tourists to Israel annually. Israel is a racist apartheid state built upon the ethnic cleansing of the indigenous Arab population from Palestine. Anti-apartheid campaigners such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu have stated as much and called for a complete boycott of Israel similar to that used against apartheid South Africa. Israel_s apartheid policies include the segregation of West Bank roads by the military and the construction of a vast steel and concrete barrier through the West Bank and Jerusalem. Dubbed the "apartheid wall" by human rights activists, because it forces communities apart and grabs land, it was held to be in violation of international law by the International Court of Justice. Israel_s plan to carve up the West Bank, apportioning pieces of territory to the Palestinians is also comparable with South Africa's "bantustans" - the nominally independent homelands into which millions of black men and women were herded. Israel's racial discrimination is daily life of most Palestinian Arabs who have no place in a "Jewish" state. Since Israel is a Jewish state, Israeli Jews are given special rights which non-Jews do not have. Israel has deprived millions of Palestinians of their liberty and property and has waged a war against a civilian population, in particular children. As regards football, Israeli human rights groups have documented how Israeli soldiers routinely shoot Palestinian children playing football outside their refugee camps. Furthermore, Israeli authorities regularly prevent Palestinian players from attending international games. In September 2004, five players were prevented from traveling to the World Cup qualifier against Uzbekistan. Unable to play in Palestine, the team travels to Doha, Qatar, for "home" games and trains in Ismailia, Egypt, more than 100 miles from the local Gaza players' homes. For a full detailed analysis of the apartheid in Israel and its parallels with apartheid South Africa, please read Chris McGreal_s excellent 2-part report in the Guardian at the links below: www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1703245,00.html www.guardian.co.uk/israel/Story/0,,1704037,00.html For Arsenal to sign a deal to promote such a state is to go against the very principles of _Kicking Racism out of Football_. Amazingly, Arsenal_s Managing Director who signed the deal, Keith Edelman stated after the deal was signed, _We are in the forefront of the anti-racism campaign in England_. This deal will no doubt put this reputation into serious question. For additional information about Arsenal_s links to Israel and Israel_s treatment of Palestinian footballers, please visit. www.inminds.co.uk/boycott-arsenal.html Suggested Action IHRC urges all campaigners to: a) Contact Arsenal Football Club reminding them that Israel is a racist apartheid state which is consistently in breach of international law in its human rights abuses; that it routinely shoots Palestinian children playing football; and that such a deal endangers Arsenal_s anti-racist reputation: Commercial and Marketing Department Arsenal Football Club Arsenal Stadium Avenell Road Highbury London N5 1BU Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Tel. 020 7704 4170 Fax. 020 7704 4171 b) Contact the Football Association_s _Kick Racism out of Football_ Campaign reminding them that Israel is a racist apartheid state which is consistently in breach of international law in its human rights abuses; that it routinely shoots Palestinian children playing football; that such a deal endangers the FA_s anti-racist reputation and the Kick it Out campaign itself. Ask the FA to use its influence to prevent the deal going ahead: Kick It Out PO Box 29544 London EC2A 4WR T: 020 7684 4884 F: 020 7684 4885 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] We urge campaigners to write their own letters but please contact us at [EMAIL PROTECTED] if you require sample letters. Please CC Islamic Human Rights Commission on all correspondence so we can track the number of letters sent. -------------------------------------------------------------- If you are reusing this alert, please cite the source as IHRC. -------------------------------------------------------------- For more information, please contact the office on the numbers or email below. -------------------------------------------------------------- Islamic Human Rights Commission PO Box 598 Wembley HA9 7XH United Kingdom Telephone (+44) 20 8904 4222 Fax (+44) 20 8904 5183 Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Web: www.ihrc.org *************************************************************************** {Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.} (Holy Quran-16:125) {And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33) The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim] The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all." [Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- All views expressed herein belong to the individuals concerned and do not in any way reflect the official views of IslamCity unless sanctioned or approved otherwise. If your mailbox clogged with mails from IslamCity, you may wish to get a daily digest of emails by logging-on to http://www.yahoogroups.com to change your mail delivery settings or email the moderators at [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the title "change to daily digest".
SPONSORED LINKS
YAHOO! GROUPS LINKS
|
