Yesterday we did a post on the stunning fact that back in 1977 the Senate held hearings on the colonization of the West Bank by Israel! And two of the witnesses were strong critics of Israel. A friend was reading the transcript of the 1977 Senate hearings, and came upon a passage that is particularly relevant to this week’s news, from pg. 43.
The witness is the pro-Israel witness, Yehuda Zvi Blum, then a professor at Hebrew University. And former Senator Jim Abourezk has just asked him about reports of the lack of rights in the occupied territories.
BLUM: When he speaks about political demonstrations and the like, then obviously we are shifting to a different sphere. We are shifting to the political rights which are invariably curtailed in occupied territories by the State that at least for the moment does not claim sovereignty and has not turned the population into its citizens. That was the situation in Germany between 1945 and 1949. That was the situation in Japan of MacArthur during the first years of American occupation in Japan.
I think Israel is no exception except perhaps for one important point. Israel has given a great amount of freedom of movement from the territories to the neighboring countries, back and forth. You will not find many other countries in the world where, before the conclusion of peace, you would find so many tourists coming to the occupied territories from enemy countries as you find in the case of Israel, in spite of all the security risks involved.
Senator ABOUREZK. I would like to ask you again if you approve or disapprove of the denial of legal rights and human rights of the people living in the West Bank?
Mr. BLUM. The way the question is phrased reminds me of the question “Have you stopped beating your wife?”
