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May 6, 2005/Nisan 27 5765, Volume 57, No. 36
Academic explains why Ireland is anti-Israel
JON IHLE
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
DUBLIN, Ireland - There's an old joke in Ireland about the man in Belfast who, when asked his religion, answers simply that he is Jewish.
"That's fine," his questioner replies. "But are you a Catholic Jew or a Protestant Jew?"
Though the joke appears to be aimed at Belfast tribalism, its real target is Irish parochialism - the tendency to view the outside world primarily in terms of local obsessions.
Rory Miller, a Jewish Dubliner who lectures in Mediterranean studies at King's College, London, has chosen to examine Ireland's evolving policy toward the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in his new book, "Ireland and the Palestine Question, 1948-2004."
"There's never been anything on the Middle East and Ireland," he says. "It's a hugely discussed issue here, it's widely debated, yet the discussion is based on a significant amount of ignorance and prejudice. Nobody really knows the facts."
Miller's extensive and original treatment covers the Irish state's original concerns over the partition of Palestine and access to Christian holy places in Jerusalem, the fate of Palestinian refugees and the status of the current "road map" peace plan.
Most significantly, it addresses why Israel and the "Palestine question" have occupied a place in Irish consciousness that is far greater than their geographic, economic or political relevance to Ireland.
The Palestinian intifada has engendered widespread antagonism toward Israel in Ireland. Miller says there are two main reasons for this: the isolation of Yasser Arafat, enforced by Israel after the collapse of the Oslo accords, and the demonization of Ariel Sharon.
"Ireland was a leading supporter of the legitimization of Arafat, and then they saw him being isolated and they couldn't tolerate it," Miller says. "It was a renunciation of 30 years of Irish policy.
"The Sharon factor is also hugely important," he continues. "I don't think Israelis or Americans realize how much he's the bogeyman of Europe. You say Ariel Sharon to people here - they think he's the devil."
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