03 December 2004
CHRISTIAN AID: "CHILD OF BETHLEHEM"
EXPLOITS CHRISTMAS TO PROMOTE ANTI-ISRAEL CAMPAIGN; "PRESSUREWORKS"
PULLS TEENS INTO INCITEMENT
The launch of Christian Aid's 2004 Christmas campaign
appeal once again highlights the biased political agenda of this powerful
organization regarding the Middle East conflict. Drawing upon powerful
Christian imagery and symbolism, Christian Aid headlined its appeal "Child
of Bethlehem", concentrating on the story of a seven-year old Palestinian
girl living in Bethlehem who was "hit in the eye by shrapnel from a bullet
fired by Israeli soldiers." In keeping with previous reports, as analyzed
by NGO
Monitor, Christian Aid's focus on sympathy for this child in large subway
advertisements and elsewhere erases the context and the dilemmas posed by
Israel's right to defend itself against Palestinian terror.
While Christian Aid operates in over 50 countries, it has chosen to headline
this particular case for its Christmas appeal. It is impossible to ignore the
emotions that images of a child from Bethlehem conjure among Christians during
the Christmas period. It is also clear that Christian Aid has, in a subtle way,
linked the suffering of Palestinian Christian children with that of Jesus, who
was born in Bethlehem, and to centuries of anti-Semitism and blood libels
against the Jewish people.
Indeed, Christian Aid is planning to distribute an 18-page
brochure to churches for use as a religious resource to promote this
Christmas appeal. The brochure is described as containing "Worship
resources which make connections between the Bethlehem of Christ's birth and
the contemporary situation in the Middle East". The brochure acknowledges
that "Attacks on Israeli citizens by Palestinians, unreservedly condemned
by Christian Aid, continue to impede efforts to build peace". Despite this,
Christian Aid has never released any detailed report or campaign focused on the
brutality of Palestinian terrorism, demonstrating that this is a secondary
issue, at best, on Christian Aid's pro-Palestinian agenda. Christian Aid
continues to promote a highly simplistic and biased "solution to
Palestinian poverty" based on "an end to military occupation…"
Such a sweeping political claim that places the entire blame on Israel is
incorrect, as illustrated by the Arab terrorism and aggression that preceded
the "occupation", and clearly outside the professional competence of
a charitable organization. The brochure also alleges that Israel's security
barrier and other measures have harmed the Palestinian population, without
mentioning the terror that led to these measures.
This campaign marks a dangerous departure, adding Christian scripture and
religious symbolism to the ingredients of the volatile cocktail of anti-Israel
propaganda that is being promoted widely under the guise of humanitarian
assistance.
In another example, Christian Aid has also attempted to engage with the
younger generation with the recent launch of its "Pressureworks" website. The
website, while promoting Christian Aid in the background, makes no secret of
its support for what are regarded as radical causes allied to the
anti-globalization movement, describing itself as "direct and fast moving
campaigning action for the wired and fired up". The prominence of the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict is evident from the large photograph of
Jerusalem's Har Homa neighborhood seen behind barbed wire, which dominates the
website's homepage. Drawing attention to Christian Aid's highly politicized and
misleading report "Facts
on the ground: The end of the two-state solution?", Pressureworks
urges its readers to "Take
action now!" by contacting their MPs and Foreign Office ministers. For
this purpose the standard letter condemns Israeli security policies,
settlements, the security barrier and "the presence of overwhelming
Israeli military force in Palestinian civilian areas, [which] threatens people
in the region and beyond." Calling for the dismantling of all settlements,
the letter urges the European Union to "take appropriate measures if
Israel fails to comply". Nowhere is there a call for Palestinians to put
an end to terrorism.
Pressureworks asks "What's
wrong?" in the Middle East, stating that "Osama Bin Laden refers
to US support of the Israelis as one of the main reasons for his 9/11 attack on
the World Trade Centre", thus attributing the rise of international
terrorism to the US and Israel. Pressureworks also features an article on water shortages
in the Palestinian areas, relying upon the testimony of the highly politicized
Christian Aid partner Palestine Monitor. Unsubstantiated allegations are made
accusing Israeli settlers of attacking water tankers and preventing them from
getting to Palestinians in need and that "Israeli soldiers have shot and
punctured rain-water tanks on the roofs of Palestinian homes."
Christian Aid's promotion of its anti-Israel agenda is continuing through
the organization's attempt to broaden its appeal beyond its traditional
Christian supporters and into the youth market and its 'trendy' political
causes, thus spreading the demonization of Israel to a new generation. With its
Christmas campaign, Christian Aid is acting irresponsibly by mixing religion
with its brand of anti-Israel politics, in order to further its own biased
agenda.