Israel's Yair Lapid takes campaign over settlement labelling to Brussels

[webfact]

Israel's Yair Lapid takes campaign over settlement labelling to Brussels



JERUSALEM: -- Yair Lapid is the former finance minister of Israel.

He served in the previous government under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The former journalist and newspaper columnist was in Brussels on Wednesday 13th January for talks with EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and member of the European Parliament.

Lapid has been a vocal critic of a recent EU move to label products from Israeli settlements.

He also says progress in negotiations in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will only come by involving other major players in the region.

In September, Lapid endorsed the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative as a framework for future talks.

Euronews correspondent James Franey spoke to the leader of the centrist Yesh Atid party at the European Parliament in Brussels.


-- (c) Copyright Euronews 2016-01-15

[RuamRudy]

What is his objection? If there is no political comment afixed to the goods, it is up to the consumer to make up his or her mind as to whether to purchase the products. Does he not think that European consumers are intelligent enough to reach their own rational conclusion as to whether they want to purchase items labelled thus?

[dexterm]

In September, Lapid endorsed the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative as a framework for future talks.

Now that's a good start. Maybe the EU's labelling of goods from the illegal Israeli colonies in the West bank is beginning to pay dividends already.

But I hope it is not all just more stonewalling talk.In that there's a contradiction involved: accepting the goods from the illegal West Bank colonies as though they were part of pre 67 Israel contradicts the first clause of the Arab Peace Initiative

(a) Complete withdrawal from the occupied Arab territories, including the Syrian Golan Heights, to the 4 June 1967 line and the territories still occupied in southern Lebanon.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arab_Peace_Initiative#The_declaration

A moratorium on settlement building to run concurrently with a moratorium on labelling would create a better atmosphere for serious discussion of the Arab Peace Initiative that some Israeli politicians are now purporting to accept. It would lessen tensions in the current round of violence too.

From what I have read, the Arab Peace Initiative is not set in stone and much is up for negotiation and compromise such as land swaps and compensation for Palestinian refugees rather than right of return.

Lets hope something constructive comes from Lapid's visit and it isn't just a smokescreen for further land grabs.

[dexterm]

If Israel believes its West Bank settlements are legal what have they got to hide? Why are they trying to disguise that fact, and hoodwink European consumers by undermining their choice.

Why does Israel have a problem with telling the whole truth? To distinguish between a product made in Tel Aviv or Ramallah is simply detailing the truth. Consumers want truth, information, and choice.

Europe's response if the lobbying works should be the same as for other products that have labels that don't tell the whole truth.

Take free-range eggs, for instance. There is no law for caged-hen egg producers to label their eggs as coming from caged hens. Consumers who objected to caged hens stopped buying ALL eggs. So the only option was for the free-range eggs to be labeled as such voluntarily by the free range farmers.

Thus, Israeli goods will be boycotted until Israeli producers who are not in occupied territories label their products, voluntarily, "NOT produced in occupied territories".

[abrahamzvi]

If Israel believes its West Bank settlements are legal what have they got to hide? Why are they trying to disguise that fact, and hoodwink European consumers by undermining their choice.

Why does Israel have a problem with telling the whole truth? To distinguish between a product made in Tel Aviv or Ramallah is simply detailing the truth. Consumers want truth, information, and choice.

Europe's response if the lobbying works should be the same as for other products that have labels that don't tell the whole truth.

Take free-range eggs, for instance. There is no law for caged-hen egg producers to label their eggs as coming from caged hens. Consumers who objected to caged hens stopped buying ALL eggs. So the only option was for the free-range eggs to be labeled as such voluntarily by the free range farmers.

Thus, Israeli goods will be boycotted until Israeli producers who are not in occupied territories label their products, voluntarily, "NOT produced in occupied territories".

I have taken the time to listen to the interview. It was indeed a waste of time.Mr. Lapid just repeated the Israeli statements, contradicting himself at least 5 times and said nothing new, apart from stating that he is a centrist. If his positions represent the centrists views, what are the leftists? Peaceful settlers? Mr. Lapid, you should know that as your Prime Minister you can't fool the world. You may be able to fool Israeli voters for a while, but even they will get wiser one day.

[Jingthing]

I think a big part of Israel's objection to the EU labeling is that the EU has unfairly SINGLED OUT Israel (the one and ONLY state with a majority demographic of Jewish people) for this labeling considering there are about TWO HUNDRED other regions in the world under conflict and the EU doesn't mandate such labeling towards them. There is also the historical sensitivity of what the Europeans, not only Germany, did to their Jews, again with the LABELS. I'm with Bibi on this one.

Jews in Europe RIGHT NOW are migrating to Israel in large numbers. Why for the most part? European Jew hatred. Yet again.

The labeling is not helping with that.

No, I don't think labeling is the biggest issue in the world for EU or for Israel. But I still find it disgusting.

Edited January 15, 2016 by Jingthing

[dexterm]

I think a big part of Israel's objection to the EU labeling is that the EU has unfairly SINGLED OUT Israel (the one and ONLY state with a majority demographic of Jewish people) for this labeling considering there are about TWO HUNDRED other regions in the world under conflict and the EU doesn't mandate such labeling towards them. There is also the historical sensitivity of what the Europeans, not only Germany, did to their Jews, again with the LABELS. I'm with Bibi on this one.

Jews in Europe RIGHT NOW are migrating to Israel in large numbers. Why for the most part? European Jew hatred. Yet again.

The labeling is not helping with that.

No, I don't think labeling is the biggest issue in the world for EU or for Israel. But I still find it disgusting.

The focus is on Israel because it is savable. My dearest wish is for Israel to make peace with the Palestinians and its neighbors in a one or two state solution, and join the family of civilized European democracies and even become members of the EU. I think European politicians feel the same way too, and are chastizing Israel for behaving so very badly at the moment.

We frequently hear from the usual posters that the Israeli economy is doing OK. But just imagine what it could do if it had full trade relations with all its neighboring Arab countries who recognize it in its permanent borders. Tel Aviv would be the financial, technological, trade and tourist epicenter of the the entire Middle East.

BDS and labelling would be history.

[Linky]

Surely they should be happy it is being labelled. Arent they proud of where its made?

Logic dictates they are against the labelling because they know it is wrong.

Other countries are happy to have food labelled, even labelled to the region the goods are made. I guess some countries and areas are proud of where their produce comes from.