Statement on events at Wits University

On 28 August protesters at the Daniel Zamir concert at Wits University sang "dubula e juda" ("shoot the Jew"). We condemn this slogan in the strongest terms.

We were dismayed to read that Muhammed Desai, coordinator of BDS South Africa, justified this behaviour. Desai reportedly said, "Just like you would say kill the Boer at [a] funeral during the eighties it wasn't about killing white people, it was used as a way of identifying with the apartheid regime". He is further quoted, "the whole idea anti-Semitism is blown out of proportion".

We are committed to the struggle for Palestinian freedom, equality and justice. It is an extremely difficult struggle waged against one of the most effective and dishonest propaganda campaigns in history. Anti-Semitism, besides being personally insulting to us, scores an own-goal. It undermines the struggle for Palestinian freedom.

Above all it is a form of racism with a catastrophic history which must be rejected by all decent people.

Israeli leaders wrongly claim to speak on behalf of all Jews but this does not justify anti-semitism. The history of Jewish persecution is abused to justify oppression of Palestinians, but this can never justify anti-semitism. The compelling evidence that organisations such as the SA Zionist Federation used racial profiling to control access to the Daniel Zamir concert, which we also condemn in the strongest terms, can never justify anti-semitism.

We support BDS South Africa's right to protest but the behaviour of the protesters and Desai's subsequent comments simply cannot be justified. We call on BDS South African to issue an unequivocal apology and to commit to stamping this out.

Statement issued by Nathan Geffen and Doron Isaacs, August 30 2013

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