Bearing in mind the horrific culmination of European anti-Semitism during the Second World War, we empathise with his legitimate fears of anti-Semitism rearing its ugly head anywhere.
However, we would like to point out that anti-Semitism is a phenomenon peculiar to Europe and other Western societies but not to Asia.
The anti-Israel movement in Malaysia, which Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions Malaysia (BDS Malaysia) is a part of, is not in any way anti-Semitic.
Just like the Austrian chancellor, we abhor all forms of anti-Semitism and do not wish to be associated with any of them.
We have no problems whatsoever with anyone of Jewish origins or, for that matter, any ethnicity. One’s ethnicity is no more and no less an accident of birth.
But we do have problems with Zionists whether they are Jews or non-Jews because of Zionist Israel’s unrelenting persecution of the Palestinian people over the past seven decades.
The barring of Israelis from our country cannot be interpreted as a form of anti-Semitism. We do it because we do not want to be exploited by the Zionist propaganda machine as an example of a Muslim-majority country which accepts and tolerates the Israeli oppression of the Palestinian people.
Our boycott of Israel continues because of this and because of our support for the Palestinian cause.
We have never been anti-Jewish at any level. Jews who are vocal critics of Israel such as Miko Peled, Dr Peter Slezak, Ms Anna Baltzer and the leader of the Gaza Freedom Flotilla, Ms Zohar Regev, have all visited Malaysia.
In fact, Miko Peled’s visit was hosted by Mahathir himself. So much for Mahathir’s anti-Semitism.
We would respectfully direct Chancellor Kurz’s attention to the following concerns:
* Having declared Austria as a friend and partner of Israel, is that an endorsement or moral support for the apartheid policies of the Israeli government against Palestinians?
If it is not, Austria should speak up and publicly object to those policies. What are friends for if they do not point out the error of one’s way?
If it is, then Austria is in no position to lecture others about the racist nature of anti-Semitism.
* The Israeli government, for self-serving reasons, is in the habit of branding all criticism of its actions and policies as anti-Semitic. While an anti-Semite correctly means a person who does not like Jews, it is now starting to mean a person whom the Israeli government dislikes. Such is the ease with which it uses that accusation against its critics.
Chancellor Kurz should be concerned that in his opposition to anti-Semitism he does not become an unwitting party to such dishonest attempts to stifle free speech and legitimate criticism of Israeli actions.
* The Israeli government claims to speak and act in the name of all Jews in the world, despite clear evidence that it does not. This deliberate conflation of “Jew” and “Israeli”, especially involving Israeli actions which are clear violations of the human rights of Palestinians, plays no small part in fuelling anti-Semitism.
Rising anti-Semitism suits the Israeli government since it leads to higher Jewish emigration to Israel. They even have the audacity to demand US$250 billion from eight Arab countries for the emigration of Jewish people since the birth of Israel in 1948.
Lisa Kokin in her artwork for the Jewish Alliance Against Zionism, 1978, sums it up well: “Being Jewish is NOT the same as being Zionist. Our own history of persecution as Jews helps us to understand the struggle of the Palestinians to determine their own destiny.”
Nazari Ismail is chairman of BDS Malaysia.
The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of FMT.