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Divestment Does Not Promote Peace
(Boston Globe) Geoffrey H. Lewis and Theodore W. Asta - Divestment from companies doing business in Israel is not an effective strategy to promote peace. Rather, it is a strategy that denies the complexities of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and seeks to punish Israel, rather than engage in a constructive solution. As we heard from people on both sides, particularly from those identified with the peace camps, divestment takes one ''out of the game" and serves only to alienate the pro-divestment community from the many who genuinely seek a peaceful resolution to the conflict. Continuing to debate the use of economic sanctions against Israel is divisive and distracting. Those who care about peace in the region support organizations that are working toward coexistence and reconciliation between Arabs and Jews within Israel as well as Palestinians and Israelis. The writers were part of a group of 28 mainline Protestant and Jewish leaders who traveled to Israel to study the issue of divestment.