Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is facing mounting criticism after it emerged that her government’s coalition partner branded Zionism a “racist ideology.”
In 2015, the Scottish Green Party, the junior party in the Scottish government, endorsed a declaration that labelled Israel an “apartheid state” and stated that Hamas should not be considered a terrorist organization. The motion also denounced Israel as a “Jewish state,” alleged that Zionism was a “racist ideology based on Jewish supremacy in Palestine,” and called Israel “unacceptable,” according to the Jewish Chronicle.
The motion also argued for the abolition of the law of return, and called for the right of return for Palestinian Arabs and their descendants. It also offered support for the BDS movement.
The Greens’ Policy Motion 2, was debated and voted on during a Saturday, when observant Jews would not have been able to attend. It still stands as party policy, as it has not be revisited since it was approved.
Conservative Scottish Member of the European Parliament (MEP) Jackson Carlaw, whose riding has a large Jewish population, condemned the Green Party, calling them a “disgrace” for the motion.
“Nicola Sturgeon has welcomed ministers into her government who don’t support the internationally recognized IHRA definition on anti-Semitism,” Carlaw tweeted. “It’s a complete and utter disgrace and a betrayal of Scotland’s Jewish community.”
The coalition between the Scottish National Party and the Greens gives the Greens two ministerial positions. Accordingly, the coalition deal does not mention foreign policy, meaning the Greens are able to continue to promote the party’s views without conflicting with those of the Scottish government.
The Green Party’s position is “abhorrent to British Jews and to opponents of anti-Semitism everywhere,” Campaign Against Antisemitism’s Joe Glasman told the Scottish Sun.
He demanded Sturgeon clarify her government’s stance.
“If she fails to control the extremist elements of her new governing partner, she’ll be to blame for elevating those views into the national conversation. Amid campaigns for Hamas to be proscribed in full by the UK Government, a party whose policy is the opposite sits in the Scottish Government,” Glasman said.
The Scottish government issued a statement to the Chronicle that said: “We remain absolutely committed to action to address anti-Semitism, which is utterly unacceptable. There is no place for it in Scotland.”
(Arutz Sheva’s North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Rosh Hashanah in New York. The time posted automatically on all Arutz Sheva articles, however, is Israeli time.)