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Some of you will find this article strange, specifically because I have written about Netanyahu. But I wrote that article to add nuance to the usual superficial analysis we see from ‘experts’ on Middle Eastern affairs and to expose Kiwis to a new view and model of international affairs that is not usually discussed by our media and academic class.
My first foray into the Israel/Middle East issue was when the media reported on clashes between Jewish settlers and the Palestinians. The issue came closer to home when two Israel Defence Forces veterans were invited to speak at Victoria University of Wellington, which led to protests by Palestinians. However, it wasn’t until I started university and attended a meeting of Wellington Palestine to hear the Palestinian side of the issue that I began investigating and came upon Australian-Israeli commentator Avi Yemeni, who provided the Israeli view of the issue and led me to understand how much of what we hear from the media about Israel is wrong.
So it was with excitement that I celebrated Trump’s announcement of moving the American embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Then, by chance, I met a number of Zionists and embraced Zionism. I helped with some campus activism and setting up of a student group. This led to much criticism from people of all political persuasions: the group was not well received with low turnout at meetings and only minimal interest in our public events; however, through this group, I met a number of the Jewish and Zionist communities in Wellington and from other parts of New Zealand, including certain members of parliament.
I also began receiving resources about Israel and even had a chance to personally meet the then Israeli ambassador. On campus, I organised a number of speaking engagements about Israel and countered a campaign for the university to end their relationship with the Embassy of Israel and their scholarship. We even infiltrated a pro-Palestine meeting to hear their plans to start Students for Justice in Palestine.
I brought this Zionism with me when I joined a political party and was happy when they came out with a statement of support for Israel. Of course, the party then faced criticism and supporters left the party over this. I truly believed at the time that New Zealand would prosper with full support for Israel and a one-state solution, instead of the conventional two-state solution. This was part of a worldview that saw New Zealand being part of the collective West that should be defended at all costs, in contrast to the independent foreign policy we have.
However, some things began to concern me. One was the constant talking about what we Kiwis and New Zealand could do for Israel. But what I never heard in these discussions was what Israel could do for New Zealand. There was never any discussion about how Israel could help New Zealand’s economy and defence, or how Israel could be a useful ally for New Zealand’s interests. How can the West continue a relationship with a country that demands so much and gives so little in return? In fact, it almost seems Israel’s relationship with New Zealand is one in which New Zealand is seen as a useful idiot: this attitude was evident when the Israeli security service thought it would be easy to get a New Zealand passport under false identities.
Another concern for me was the inconsistency on free speech. In 2020, we decided our theme should be on free speech, with a series of talks featuring speakers such as Dr Don Brash, Dane Giraud, Ashley Church, Professor Paul Spoonley and Elliot Ikilei. However, while we were doing this, a colleague also began advocating for the university to adopt the working definition of antisemitism created by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, a group of unelected experts who wanted institutions and governments to criminalise any speech that would be deemed antisemitic.
It was only when I saw an example of this being passed into law in America that I saw how this definition could restrict freedom of expression. This bill was passed around the time some American universities began to ban Students of Justice in Palestine under pressure from donors. How can the Zionist movement claim to be for free speech when they are actively stopping any criticism of Israel? This inconsistency even became apparent in the State of Israel, which, as the self-proclaimed ‘liberal democracy in the Middle East’, very nearly passed a law criminalising the preaching of the gospel.
This inconsistency also led to some unethical things being done in the name of standing for Israel. While many of our actions could be seen as genuine lobbying and advocacy, there were several things I was told to do that could be considered unethical. One was the monitoring of academia.
When John Mearsheimer claimed that the Zionist movement in America was monitoring academia for signs of ‘antisemitism’ they could report to the faculty, I did not believe him, until I was asked by a prominent Jewish activist to do exactly that. I had merely passed along to this activist that one of the discussion topics for a paper I was doing for my degree examined Israel/Palestine. I was then instructed to monitor the lecturer for any antisemitism. One Zionist activist went even further than this, advising me to collect any information on pro-Palestine activists to add to their database.
To my regret, I passed on quite a bit of information to this individual and provided profiles of pro-Palestine activists in Wellington. I later found out that some of these profiles ended up in the hands of the Embassy, meaning I had possibly indirectly contributed to the monitoring of private citizens by a foreign government.
I also became frustrated at how New Zealanders were willing to prioritise Israeli matters over New Zealand matters. There is still a Red Cross nurse who has been held in captivity by ISIS for the last 10 years. Where were the rallies to release her? Not to mention there was no concern that there are elements of New Zealand society who support ISIS, something that reared its ugly head in New Lynn. Where were the rallies and demands for the government to respond to this? What is also concerning is the outrage over the murder of Israeli children while there is silence over the New Zealand babies killed by abortion every year.
The final straw for me was when Israel refused to take in the civilian refugees after October 7, with the former Mossad chief insisting the West should take them instead. Supporters were celebrating the bombing of Gaza and there was much advocacy from Zionists for the whole region to be bombed. When asked about the civilians killed in these attacks, the reply is often that it was Hamas’ fault. This defence of the killing of civilians and blaming it on Hamas horrifies me.
It is for these reasons I can no longer call myself a Zionist. The movement has become nothing more than a proxy for a foreign nation in the West. In his book The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy, John Mearsheimer pointed out that while there was nothing illegal, immoral or illicit with lobbying for Israel in American politics, this does not obligate America to continue their unconditional funding for Israel, nor should this restrict America from condemning Israel for their actions as they would for any other country for similar violations of human life and dignity. After all, Russia, China and Iran are all rightly condemned for their human rights violations, so why should Israel be exempt?
This change in position is based on my realisation that my loyalty is to New Zealand first and not to a foreign nation. That is the obligation I have for the rights and freedoms I enjoy as a citizen of this great country. I do still support Israel’s right to exist and defend itself and I also support peace and the stopping of the killing of Palestinian civilians, but, as for my position on the events in the Middle East, I am neither pro-Palestine or pro-Israel: I am pro-New Zealand.
