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Israel Institute demands answers from PM on UN resolution
Israel Institute of New Zealand co-director, Ashley
Church, has slammed the Government for its recent support of
a UN World Health Organisation (WHO) resolution which
singled out Israel for the “health conditions in the
occupied Palestinian territories, East Jerusalem, and the
occupied Syrian Golan” and is demanding answers from Prime
Minister Jacinda Ardern. “The Government’s
continual bias against Israel is bad enough – but this
grubby little act of self-serving virtue signalling takes
New Zealand’s record on Israel to a whole new
low”. "The Prime Minister needs to explain to New
Zealanders why beating up on Israel has become ‘business
as usual’ for this Government” The World Health
Organisation met on 22 May and considered an agenda
containing 21 items - but only one of these (item No. 14
against Israel) focused on a specific
country. “Resolution 14 – which New Zealand
supported - points the finger at Israel for increased health
and mental health issues for Palestinians stemming from
“trauma injuries and exposure to violence during the
‘Great March of Return’ – but completely ignores the
leading role of Hamas and other
terrorist groups in orchestrating that march and encouraging
violent acts, by demonstrators, as they approached the
Gaza-Israel border” “Additionally, health
conditions in the Palestinian territories are the
responsibility of the Palestinian Authority – which
receives substantial international support to provide these,
and other services. Why target Israel - which isn’t
responsible for the health of Palestinians, but actually
provides support to them regardless?”
Mr Church
notes that Israeli hospitals and clinics continue to provide
world-class health care to thousands of Palestinian Arabs
every year as part of Israel’s humanitarian outreach - as
well as to Syrians fleeing Assad.” Mr Church also notes
that the WHO meeting contained no agenda item or resolution
regarding any other country. “Where was the
resolution condemning Syria, where hospitals and medical
infrastructure have suffered devastating bombings by Syrian
and Russian forces? Where was the resolution condemning Yemen, where 19.7 million people lack access to
health care service due to the current crisis? Where was the
resolution condemning Venezuela, where the health system has
collapsed, causing millions to flee the country?” Mr Church
says that the New Zealand Government is fully aware of these
facts. “They know these things because we’ve
repeatedly told them and provided evidence – yet rather
than taking an objective position, or at least standing back
and examining the issues, they choose to side with regimes
run by thugs, tyrants and those committed to the destruction
of Israel.” “Jacinda Ardern and Winston Peters
need to come out from under their cloak of political
posturing and show some real leadership.” The WHO
vote was passed 96 to 11 on the resolution, with 21
abstentions and 56 nations absent. The ‘No’ votes came
from nations including the US, the UK, Australia, Canada,
Guatemala, Brazil, the Czech Republic, Germany, Honduras and
Hungary. “On what basis did New Zealand turn its back
– not just on Israel, but on traditional allies – to
vote in favour of a resolution which was clearly designed to
politicise health for the purposes of making yet another
attack on Israel”? Mr Church also noted that Brazil
and Germany had both recently announced that they would
oppose biased UN resolutions against Israel and that their
‘no’ vote was consistent with that policy. Mr Church
says that the Israel Institute has recently produced a short
video highlighting the issue of bias within the UN and that
it has received considerable international
interest. “The UN
bias toward Israel is clearly absurd and damaging to peace
and stability. Rather than being a party to the gutless
attacks of Israel’s enemies, New Zealand needs to stand
firm and be a voice for stamping out the discrimination
which exists in that international
body”.
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