Another Ghandi jailed, another promise unfulfilled, another reason for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions.

West Bank resident Mohammad Othman recently traveled Norway, asking that country's leaders to divest from companies implicated in and profiting from the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That's really not much to ask, given that the occupation violates international law and is only one item on the long list of injustices heaped upon Palestinians by the Israeli government. Othman’s visit was part of the new strategy of non-violent resistance that Palestinians have adopted. In fact, many in Israeli society have advocated these types of activities, claiming that the occupation would cease to be justified as soon as Palestinians stopped using violence to resist their oppression. They said to the Palestinians, "put down your weapons and start marching like Ghandi, and then our government won't have an excuse to occupy you, and our fellow countrymen will see the justice of your cause, and like that the occupation will be over.” And so Mohammed Othman did just what they said, and just what makes sense. Like so many others in Palestine, he began to work for his freedom by writing, marching, protesting, and advocating for international pressure on Israel and a non-violent end to the occupation. What they didn’t anticipate is how he and his friends would go about it, and how successful they would be. A few weeks ago, Norway divested from the Israeli military company Elbit because it was in blatant violation of their socially responsible investment guidelines.

On his way back from Norway to his home in Jayyous village, Mohammad was arrested without cause and thrown in an Israeli prison. He’s still there today, awaiting charges and a trial. And he’s not the first non-violent resister to be jailed without cause. Many other peaceful protesters have had their homes ransacked in the middle of the night, or have been arrested and jailed and beaten and tortured and shot and denied medical treatment. And some have been murdered in cold blood while simply marching for their freedom.

How did this happen? Wasn’t the deal that once Palestinians put down their weapons, Israel would finally be able to dismantle the wall, take down the settlements, give Palestinians back their water resources and arable land, and allow them to have economic and political independence? Did Israel dupe Palestinians or did the peace camp wildly misjudge Israeli society’s ability to change course? Even though there is quite a case to be made that Israel is not interested in peace and won’t give up the occupation until it has no other alternative, I also think it’s worth examining the latter explanation. The freedom for peace deal was really a test of both parties. Could Palestinians give up violent resistance to occupation, and given that could Israelis finally put a stop to the occupation and destruction of their lands? Palestinians in the West Bank have passed the test with flying colors, but Israel has failed it miserably.

One reason for this is that the occupation has become institutionalized: the Israeli economy profits from the separation wall, from the flow of relief aid through Israel and into Palestine, from access to Palestinian water and farmlands, and from the lack of regulations in the occupied territories that allow companies to cut costs by polluting and poisoning the land. Another, more depressing reason is that the peace camp isn’t so peace-loving after all. I don't ascribe bad motives to people like Gershom Gorenberg who cry out for the Ghandis that are marching right under their noses, but when Palestinians are jailed and tortured and beaten and murdered, the Israeli left is nowhere to be found. Save a few brave souls, Israel’s left wing has chosen to ignore their end of the bargain by passively allowing their government to continue brutalizing Palestinians long after violent resistance has ended. And when Palestinians proposed Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions as ways of pressuring Israel to grant them freedom, the Israeli left reacted with horror and outrage and charges of anti-semitism. Evidently it is not enough to adopt non-violent tactics; these tactics must be non-effective as well.

The Palestinian turn towards non-violence exposed the hollow nature of the Israeli peace camp and the inability of Israeli society to control the occupation that has become such an ingrained part of its society and economy. The model that was established during the 1960s American civil rights struggle showed that when an oppressed people took the justice of their cause to their good hearted fellow citizens, those citizens would force an end to the oppression carried out in their name. That is clearly out of the question in today’s Israel. Thankfully there is another model we can follow. The South African example shows that an oppressed people can appeal to the world community to use its political and economic leverage to force change onto a recalcitrant regime. That is the theory behind the Boycott Divestment and Sanctions movement and you can tell it works by its long list of victories, as civil society around the world gags at the sight of Israel bombing Gaza and divests from its weapons dealers, checkpoint builders, and settlement financiers. Pressure is slowly growing, not just in economic terms but in public sentiment as well.

Think about that the next time you go shopping. Remember Mohammad Othman, jailed for being the Ghandi Israel encouraged him to be. Put down that Ahava makeup, Sabra hummus, Lev Leviev diamonds, and the rest of the garbage produced by the industries built on the land Mohammad and his compatriots are fighting to liberate. Stop buying goods from companies that profit from occupation, review your investments and sell your shares in complicit firms, encourage your communities to do the same and educate people around you on the need for civil society to intervene on behalf of Palestinians. The evidence is clear that Israel is either unwilling or unable to change its course, so now it is up to people of conscious around the world, like you and me, to make it happen.

Extra: Listen to an interview with Mohammad Othman about the campaign to save his village and the types of repression the Israeli government has used in response to non-violent resistance. (Feb 2009, 12 mins).