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By JEREMY HAY
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
The Sonoma County Human Rights Commission has refused to take actions called for by activists for Palestinian rights, who say the company that runs Sonoma County Transit buses is complicit in human rights violations by Israel.
The North Coast Coalition for Palestine this week lobbied commissioners to recommend that the county board of supervisors investigate whether Veolia Transportation violates international law by operating bus routes from Israel to Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The coalition wants the county to end its $7.35 million annual contract with Veolia when it comes up for renewal in 2014.
Commissioners differed about whether the matter was within their purview and, after a 4½ hour meeting, voted 5-4 not to create a committee to examine that question further.
“I do not believe this is within the jurisdiction of the commission,” said chairwoman Judy Rice, who, when the commissioners deadlocked 4-4, cast the tiebreaking vote.
Gail Jonas, the commissioner who moved that the committee be created, said Thursday the jurisdictional issue was not clear cut. “Even if it’s ambiguous, the committee could resolve it by saying there’s sufficient leeway. And I think there is.”
She said she sympathizes with coalition aims.
“Veolia provides essential services to the illegal settlements and assists in their ability to continue to be there. I’ve done my own homework on that,” she said.
Chicago-based Veolia, the subsidiary of a French conglomerate, issued a statement Thursday saying the “hearing was very important to unmask the true, anti-Israel intentions of the Boycott, Divest, Sanctions movement,” known as BDS.
The North Coast coalition is aligned with BDS, which campaigns to isolate Israel economically to force it to change its policies toward Palestinians.
Coalition opponents on Tuesday said the commission should never have taken up an issue involving international politics.
By doing so, it had acted counter to its mission to “promote better human relations among all people in Sonoma County,” said George Gittleman, rabbi of the county’s largest synagogue, Shomrei Torah.
“What this did was create a toxic forum for nasty things to be said on both sides with no hope of creating any kind of real dialogue or new understanding from one perspective to the other,” he said.
Coalition members said that while they did not get what they want, they were heartened by the outcome because the support they got from the four commissioners.
“We felt that this was a huge victory because this is a brand new issue to some of these people,” said Lois Pearlman. “To get them to that point, we felt that was a huge victory.”
Two new commissioners are to be appointed this month. Pearlman said that might open the door to another effort at that level, or that the coalition may approach county supervisors directly.
“There’s no doubt that this effort will continue,” she said.
Gittleman said the coalition’s true aim is the elimination of Israel as a Jewish state.
“I don’t think it is a credible organization because I don’t think they’re honest about what their goals are,” he said.
(You can reach Staff Writer Jeremy Hay at 521-5212 or jeremy.hay@pressdemocrat.com.)
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I’m just happy to hear that the Government is going to “NOT” do something!
“I support Israel’s right to exist, but that doesn’t mean that Israel has the right to retain the territories they conquered from the Arab world.”
Nelson Mandela-Communist. Imprisoned for advocating violent revolution.
Yes, it does.
When a nation attacks its neighbor and loses, to the winner belongs the spoils.
We got the US from England by winning a war.
Most borders were drawn as a result of wars.
Germany is a lot smaller today because they also lost a war.
Lesson to the poor sad mistreated Arabs…err…Palestinians: don’t start a war you can’t afford to lose.
When you invaded Israel over and over, what were you gonna do if you won?
Give it right back to the Jews?
Sure. I’ll bet.
The fortunes of war can be a real drag, man.
If this had been about South Africa, I bet they’d found the courage to take an action. Illegal is illegal, why are we giving money to a company that gives services to illegal settlements?
Nelson Mandela: “We identify with the PLO because, just like ourselves, they are fighting for the right of self-determination. I support Israel’s right to exist, but that doesn’t mean that Israel has the right to retain the territories they conquered from the Arab world.”
Bishop Tutu: I therefore wholeheartedly support your action to disinvest from companies who benefit from the Occupation of Palestine. This is a moral position that I have no choice but to support, especially since I know of the effect that Boycotts, Disinvestment and Sanctions had on the apartheid regime in South Africa.
SO all of a sudden borders and the rule of law matter to this crowd? Do they feel the same way about our own borders?
Do they advocate the removal of the illegal settlement of foreign citizens in our towns? I somehow doubt it.
Seems like this is a bit of a beam/mote situation……..
Abolish the Sonoma County Human Rights Commission. What purpose does it service other than to cause trouble at taxpayer expense like this latest little charade into foreign affairs where it has no jurisdiction?
If there is a “human rights” issue in Sonoma County, we have laws and a court system to deal with it.
This extra, extra layer of government bureaucracy should have been abolished years ago.
County government needs to focus on solving the county budget crisis, crime, education and basic services provided by local government.
Wondering off into the weeds of foreign policy is not the policy this county government is charged with or should be involved with.