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The Constitution Committee’s legal adviser, Gur Blai, pointed out that the bill is mostly implementable inside Israel and in most cases will not be used against BDS organizations abroad.Blai also said the bill “brings up constitutional difficulties,” and that calls for a boycott still fall under freedom of expression. In addition, he pointed to a High Court of Justice decision on an earlier version of the Boycott Law, which ruled out lawsuits without proof of damages.“There is a lot of tension between the ruling and the bill as it is worded today,” he lamented.Joint List MK Dov Henin suggested that Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev could be sued for the Argentina game’s cancellation under the new law. Critics have argued that Regev is to blame for the development, because she pushed for the friendly match to be moved from Haifa to Jerusalem, including providing government funding for the move.“You are taking the State of Israel to a place in which it is encouraging boycotts against itself. Therefore, if we read the original bill, it must be enacted against Culture Minister Regev who brought about a boycott of Israel. MK Kisch should initiate an investigation against her,” Henin said.Similarly, Meretz MK Mossi Raz said, “If you want to implement the law, put Miri Regev on trial.... The whole purpose of this bill is to limit freedom of speech. I am against boycotts of Israel and for boycotts of illegal settlements, which are immoral.... Boycotting is a legitimate tool in Judaism. A man who refuses to give his wife a divorce can be boycotted [or excommunicated], so why not for other reasons?”Former sportscaster MK Zouheir Bahloul (Zionist Union) said “This is a knock-out from Argentina because of the politicization, and the Jerusalemization. It’s clear this game would have happened if not for the minister’s intervention.”Likud MK Bennie Begin, however, said Argentina’s decision was an “own goal.”Still, Begin suggested that the text of the bill be changed: “We are in a constant tension between the right to free speech and other needs. We must always see how we can harm [free speech] less and not allow our enemies to hurt us.”After Wednesday’s committee vote, the bill will have to go through a first reading, more committee discussions, and then a second and third reading before becoming law.The Ministerial Committee for Legislation has also asked that the bill be brought back for it to review before the first reading, and until then, the coalition will not be instructed to support the bill.
MK calls to use Boycott Law against Regev over Argentina cancellation
Critics have argued that Regev is to blame for the development, because she pushed for the friendly match to be moved from Haifa to Jerusalem, including providing government funding for the move.
