Meeting of the Parliament 21 April 2015
I, too, thank Sandra White for lodging the motion. I agree with the motion’s proposal that we need a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. There are quite a few other things that we need as well.
Primarily I would want to see Britain, Scotland and the European Union acting as peacemakers in the middle east. Jumping on board with one side or the other will not be helpful. Both sides already have lots of rich and powerful supporters, so what they need are some genuinely trustworthy friends who will not take sides but seek to get all parties round the table. I say all parties and not just two, because this is not just about Israel and Palestine. Other big players such as the United States, Egypt, Iran and Saudi Arabia must all be part of any serious long-term solution.
If we look at just Israel and Palestine, we see that Israel is bigger and stronger, but when we look at the other players in the region we see that several of them are much bigger and stronger than Israel, so both Israel and Palestine may feel nervous about some of their neighbours. Palestine has about 4 million people and Israel some 8 million. However, Egypt has 82 million and Iran 77 million, so let us not forget which are the really big countries in the region. Palestine has very little to spend on defence, whereas Israel spends $18 billion or thereabouts on its defence budget. However, let us remember that Saudi Arabia spends $59 billion on defence, which is much more than what Israel spends.
While we are making comparisons, perhaps we can mention human rights. The international human rights rank indicator puts Israel at 71st in the world, Palestine 107th, Iran 166th and Saudi Arabia 205th. Israel’s rank of 71st is not great, but it is certainly not the worst in the region. I would have more time for those who demand sanctions against Israel or want its leaders charged with war crimes if those people were consistently critical of Saudi Arabia, where there is little democracy to speak of and human rights are largely ignored.
Why are so many people and even political parties so critical of Israel and so lenient towards Saudi Arabia? Is it because Saudi Arabia is a rich and powerful country and we want its business and its money whereas Israel is a pretty small country and it is easier to bully it around?
Last week, I attended a Yom Hashoah event in Giffnock. The evening was very powerful and moving. Ken Macintosh, Jackson Carlaw and Jim Murphy were there, as well. Jews in the west of Scotland marked the Holocaust and especially the British liberation of Bergen-Belsen. It is clear that the Jews feel somewhat vulnerable these days, as criticism of Israel very readily spills over into anti-Semitism in Glasgow.