Almost half of the US Senate and over 50 per cent of the House of Representatives have signed a proposed bill which would outlaw boycotts against Israel.
The proposed “Israel Anti-Boycott Act”, co-sponsored by Republican and Democratic Senators, would “amend the Export Administration Act of 1979 to include in the prohibitions on boycotts against allies of the United States boycotts fostered by international governmental organizations against Israel”. It would also “direct the Export-Import Bank of the United States to oppose boycotts against Israel, and for other purposes”.
Those violating the bill could receive a fine of anywhere between $250,000 and $1 million, and up to 20 years in prison.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has spoken out against the bill, saying it “violates first amendment rights”.
In a post on the organisation’s website, Brian Hauss, an ACLU Staff Attorney, wrote: “No matter what you think about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, one thing is clear: The First Amendment protects the right to engage in political boycotts.
“This is a proud constitutional legacy. Today, though, the right to boycott is under assault. Over the past several years, federal, state, and local legislators have introduced wave after wave of legislation seeking to stamp out boycotts and divestment campaigns aimed at Israel”.
In a response to the ACLU, Senators Ben Cardin of Maryland and Rob Portman published a letter stating that the bill “does not punish US persons based solely on their expressed political beliefs.
“This legislation does not encourage or compel persons to do business with Israel, nor does it punish individuals or companies from refusing to do business with Israel based on their own political beliefs, for ‘purely pragmatic reasons,’ or for no reason stated at all”.
The intended legislation, they point out, is an extension of an Act implemented to fight against the Arab League’s boycott of Israel in the 1970s. The current bill would extend that to combat adhering to an international boycott of Israel (such as the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement).
