Australian Jewish News - 14 November 2003

I REGRET having to pen this op-ed. However, Stephen Rothman's dissembling on the issue of Jewish communal activity (AJN 7/11) cannot go unanswered.

But first, clarification on the petition circulated by Dr Gerald Steinberg. It was signed by at least two members of the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies executive, the president of the Zionist Federation of Australia and a number of other community leaders.

It is not an Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) petition. It was not initiated or circulated by AIJAC. It was heavily promoted, website and all, in the AJN (17/10). I did not sign it. Why does the editorial (AJN7/11) single out AlJAC executive director Dr Colin Rubenstein and why misrepresent the emphasis of the quote which was directed at the Sydney Peace Foundation? Rothman claims that the "push" from AIJAC turned "a cleverly-devised strategy into a fiasco" The only evidence he cites to support this sweeping and unsubstantiated claim is to write that AIJAC allegedly "deliberately made the awarding of the prize a political issue in the NSW Parliament"

That is not true. Several state and federal politicians, Labor and Liberal, contacted AIJAC requesting information on Dr Ashrawi; they were provided with material available on our website and in the press. They approached AIJAC; not the other way round. Is Rothman suggesting AIJAC should have declined to provide the information?

At no stage has Rothman been in touch with Dr Rubenstein or myself to inquire about our activities or to convey concerns. He chose instead to air his unfounded concerns in the general media. I fully agree with last week's editorial that a strategy "aimed at managing and containing the issue was sidetracked" - but not by AIJAC. It was sidetracked by Professor Stuart Rees and Kathryn Greiner, who made the influence of the so-called "Jewish lobby" the major subtext of the debate. Indeed, it was their actions which, in the words of the editorial, "created the impression that the community resorts to bullying tactics to get its way"

As Paul Sheehan wrote (Sydney Morning Herald 4/11), "for a peace maker, Rees has proved adept at making war" The tragedy is that in making this war, Rees and Greiner were aided and abetted (presumably unwittingly) by Rothman.

The transcripts of Rothman's inter views on the ABC (29/10 and 3/11) disclose that, far from representing a united community in refuting the outrageous Rees/Greiner allegations of 'intimidation', Rothman explicitly criticises Jewish persons and organisations for engaging in these activities. In doing so, he plays into the hands of those who seek to bring Australian Jewry into disrepute. He has done our community a great deal of damage. AIJAC acted responsibly, and in a measured way, in explaining why Dr Ashrawi was not an appropriate recipient of the peace prize. On this there has been clear consensus shared by all mainstream Jewish organisations. The AJN editorial points out correctly that the issue "should not have been about Premier Carr. Lobbying the premier is entirely legitimate, but in a non-confrontational manner." This view is shared by AIJAC and has underpinned our activities relating to the prize. Spokespersons representing Jewish organisations, usually in response to media queries (frequently from the Jewish press), made it clear we would prefer Premier Carr not to present the prize and to review his position in light of further information made available. However, once it became clear that the premier had made a decision to proceed, AlJAC focused on Dr Ashrawi as not being a worthy recipient. I was therefore concerned to discover prior to the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies October plenum, open to the public and the Jewish press, that Rothman proposed to support a motion which expressed "surprise and disappointment" at the premier's decision to present the prize and called on him "to reconsider"

Sharing the view of the AJN editors about "counterproductive barbs being directed against the NSW premier', I contacted a respected member of the NSW Jewish community, who has no formal links to AIJAC, and asked him to explain to Rothman the importance of focusing on Dr Ashrawi and the Sydney Peace Foundation and to eliminate the references to Premier Carr, which would achieve nothing other than possibly to irritate a friend. This message was conveyed to Rothman. He chose not to act on it The resolution was passed with only one dissenting vote. So much for Rothman's strategy of "containing the issue"

Never have I encountered such inexplicable behaviour on the part of a Jewish leader. What could have motivated Rothman to attack AlJAC, rather than the real culprits, Rees and Greiner? Why falsely accuse AIJAC of creating a political issue in the NSW Parliament without ascertaining whether there was any basis for the allegation?

Why support a NSW Jewish Board of Deputies resolution calling on Premier Carr to reconsider, when it was clear this would not occur? The community deserves answers.

Mark Leibler is National Chairman of the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council.