Wednesday, 22 May 2013

Anarchist Rees


 ▼  May (41)

From: g87
Sent: Wednesday, May 22, 2013 1:27 PM
Subject: Anarchist Rees
Anarchist Rees
Professor Stuart Rees has multiple  plays at anarchy in trying to vitiate Julia Gillard government’s policy declaring the BDS and antisemitism improper. These ideas  manifestly being  supported by both main political parties.

JG:''It means remaining alert to new vehicles by which hatred and social poison can be spread''
 Julia here clearly vitiates the boycoteers’ illegal ‘policy’ as a poison by another name.
The Australian 14/5:  Anti-BDS stance `easy, populist'

The PM  et al also  signed the London Declaration on Combating Antisemitism, Rees response? ‘’Childish, thoughtless but easily populist''.The Australian 14/5
Plainly he demands the right to be anti semitic. And unpopular? Very unpopular?

Rees also unilaterally ignored his Vice Chancellor Stuart Spence’s demand "I do not consider it appropriate for the university to boycott academic institutions...’’ –The Australian 10/5

But it gets arguably worse. There are two on this earth with these views. Rees’ fellow traveller at the centre of the much – parodied Peace and Conflict AKA Boycott studies confirmed his demands as follows:
‘’The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement is conceived as part of a remedial strategy in the face of inadequate government responses to Israeli policy.’’
Jake Lynch, director, Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, Sydney University’’ The Australian 11/12/12


Maybe the professor emeritus R and Lynch should should form a BDS Party, get the numbers on the floor of the House of Representatives and  stop acting as if he /they  cannot be sacked!

Geoff Seidner
13 Alston Gr
East St Kilda 3183
03 9525 9299


Academic rights
SUPPORTING the call for a boycott of institutional links with Israeli universities does not have anything to do with race or racism. Under my direction, the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies has hosted public talks by several prominent Jewish speakers.
The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement is conceived as part of a remedial strategy in the face of inadequate government responses to Israeli policy.
It is my right as a member of the academic staff of the University of Sydney to comment publicly on the matter as I have. The comments you have obtained from opposition frontbenchers constitute a political attack on freedom of expression.
Jake Lynch, director, Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, Sydney University
Boycott campaign formally rejected 
UNIVERSITY of Sydney officials have released an uncompromising statement opposing the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and rejecting calls from the director of its Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, Jake Lynch, to sever links with Israeli institutions.
The statement came as Green and socialist members of the Students Representative Council stayed away from a meeting on Wednesday night where a motion countering pro-BDS moves was expected, denying the meeting a quorum so no business could take place.
The statement acknowledged "lots of comments and questions about the Students Representative Council's motion to support the boycott of Israeli university Technion . . . The University of Sydney does not support the SRC motion nor the proposal originally put by Associate Professor Jake Lynch."
The statement quotes vice-chancellor Michael Spence as saying: "I do not consider it appropriate for the university to boycott academic institutions in a country with which Australia has diplomatic relations. Should the Australian government suspend diplomatic relations with Israel or request the university to suspend its institutional relationships with Israeli universities, then the question should be revisited.
Tuesday 14 May 2013


The Australian

Anti-BDS stance `easy, popular'

but easily populist''.

Author: EXCLUSIVE, CHRISTIAN KERR
Publication: The Australian (2,Tue 14 May 2013)
Edition: N - Canberra
Section: Local
Keywords: human (1),rights (1)


SYDNEY Peace Foundation head Stuart Rees has lashed out at Julia Gillard for signing the London Declaration on Combating Anti-Semitism, calling the gesture ``childish, thoughtless  but easily populist''.
Professor Rees is on the staff of the University of Sydney's controversial Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, which last year denied a request for co-operation from the only Israeli academic to create a civics curriculum for both Jewish and Arab school students.

The centre cited its support for the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, which explicitly equates Israel with apartheid-era South Africa.

Last month the Prime Minister became the first Australian parliamentarian to sign the London Declaration. ``This declaration reminds us that combating anti-Semitism is an active process, not a passive one,'' she said. ``It demands vigilance. It means remaining alert to new vehicles by which hatred and social poison can be spread.''

Professor Rees originally made his comments in an email responding to comments made by opposition frontbencher Christopher Pyne when he attacked the BDS movement on Friday.

``Activism, boycotts and sometimes sanctions campaigns aren't always anti-Semitic, but when you target individual businesses because they are Jewish, it is clearly anti-Semitic,'' Mr Pyne said in a statement on the declaration, pointing to BDS activity at universities in NSW.

``It is sad that 70 years after the second world war and the discovery of the Holocaust we are still having to defend the right of Jewish people to live in their Jewish homeland in Israel free from this kind of anti-Semitic campaign.''

Professor Rees dismissed his remarks as ``the usual childish, thoughtless but easily populist response'' in the email, which was obtained by The Australian. ``Justice for the Palestinians and indeed security for Israelis deserves more than predicable `happy to get on any easy bandwagon' approach of this politician.''

Asked if his criticisms also applied to Ms Gillard, Professor Rees responded ``of course''. ``The resort to charges of anti-Semitism regarding the world-wide criticisms of the internationally illegal policies of the government of Israel is an age-old technique to stifle any criticism of blatant human rights abuses,'' he said.

Mr Pyne said: ``It is disappointing that Professor Rees is the director of the Sydney Peace Foundation and yet also a supporter of the BDS movement that seeks to delegitimise Israel, targets Jewish businesses and prohibits a healthy cultural exchange between universities and in so doing damages the prospects for peace.''

Professor Rees declined to comment yesterday, saying he had just returned from overseas.



COMMENTARY P10

EDITORIAL P11

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