Monday, July 8, 2013

Arutz Sheva headline reads "BDS Fail"

"BDS fail"  is rapidly becoming an internet meme.
Nothing left to do but smile, smile smile.

Sixty Gaza farmers crossed into Israel last week for an agricultural seminar, blissfully unaware of the supposed "siege" of Gaza, or of Palestinian civil society's call to boycott the Zionist entity.

From Arutz Sheva: BDS Fail: Grateful Gaza Farmers Attend Israeli Seminar

The office of the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), a part of the IDF, reported this week that last Wednesday and Thursday, two groups of Arab farmers totalling 60 people left Gaza in order to attend an agricultural seminar in northern Israel, designed to advance the Gaza agricultural sector.


Farmers, heads of agricultural associations and merchants had arrived at the conference sponsored by Origins Seeds Company, a company which exports cucurbitacae (pumpkins, squashes, etc.) and field cultivation seeds to 17 world countries, including Gaza and the Palestinian Authority areas in Judea and Samaria.
From COGAT:
Last years, the farmers had purchased seeds from the company and were pleased with their quality, and so it was important for them to attend the seminar and learn more about the product they're using. During the seminar, the farmers completed several workshops on cultivation methods, planting schedules, soil preparation, proper use of irrigation and fertilizer and disinfestation methods.
 In addition, the farmers focused primarily on watermelons, and had stated that this year, owing to the training programs conducted frequently in Israel; growers had achieved unprecedented crop yields – 11 tons of produce for each decare of cultivated fields – A twofold increase compared with the preceding year.

 Seminars such as this take place once a year. Nevertheless, Gaza farmers, with the help and guidance of the GCLH, attend seminars and vocational training sessions such as this on a monthly basis. The seminar allows farmers to obtain information directly from Israeli companies with which they conduct business, as well as from companies from around the world, thus further supporting and improving the Gaza agricultural sector.

This of course, begs the question. If the Palestinians consistently reject BDS in favor of cooperation with Israel,  why are American and European activists ignoring and marginalizing their voices?

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