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[Boycott - Cultural]

Cirque du Soleil put Humanity before Profit - Say No To Apartheid!


inminds
12 January 2015



Cirque du Soleil is a contemporary circus based in Montreal, Quebec with an estimated annual revenue of US $810 million. In 2012 they breached the Palestinian call for a cultural boycott of Israel and performed in Israel. In 2014 they where once again scheduled to perform in Israel in summer, we picketed their performances in London in January. They subsequently cancelled their Israel performance due to security reasons with the slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza at full flow at the time. But now they have been rebooked to perform their 'Quidam' show for 11 performances at Tel Aviv's Nokia Arena in July 2015.

On 10th January 2015 we picketed their performance in London at the Royal Albert Hall to speak to their fans and to ask Cirque du Soleil to put humanity before profit, and not again turn their backs on the oppressed, but to face up to the ugly reality of apartheid, and to respect the Palestinian call to boycott apartheid Israel by cancelling their performances in Tel Aviv.

Though it was impossible for a small group to cover all 12 entrances to the Albert Hall, the response from the visitors was very good with hundreds of leaflets being taken and many posing with the banners for photos and giving us the thumbs up. The private security were shocked by our presence and rudely demanded we move from the main entrance, which they insisted was on private property, saying they were expecting 5,000 people to come through that entrance. We explained that it was a public footpath and we had as much right to be there as they did. They called the police, and despite spending 30 minutes to-and-fro trying to convince the police to move us they failed. The police did initially approached us and say that the private security claim this is private property and we should move, to which we responded it was a public footpath and you as policemen should know that. The police could not respond to that and allowed the protest to continue without further hindrance.

























Video: Speech outside Royal Albert Hall



Cirque du Soleil put Humanity before Profit - Say No To Apartheid!

We are here today outside the Royal Albert Hall to ask Cirque du Soleil, who are performing inside, to stand on the side of justice and against apartheid and against racism, to cancel your scheduled performance in apartheid Israel this summer and to stand with the Palestinians who have called for a boycott of Israel.

Whilst you are performing in London today, children are suffering under occupation in Palestine.
In 2014, 1266 Palestinian children were abducted by Israel - thats one child taken from their parents every 7 hours!

40% of the 600 taken in Jerusalem alone were sexually abused by Israeli soldiers during their arrest or interrogation.

Torture is a routine part of interrogation - 75% of Palestinian children detained by Israel are physically tortured.

One boy, Ali Shamlawi, abducted from his home nearly two years ago, was held at Israel's notorious Al Jalame childrens dungeon in solitary confinement in a filthy windowless 1m by 2m hole in the ground for two weeks and then violently tortured and sexual threats made against his sister in order to coerce a confession from him of stone throwing.

If he is convicted, and the conviction rate for Palestinian children in Israeli military courts is 99.74%, then he will face over 25 years imprisonment.. essentially for no crime other than being Palestinian.

Cirque du Soleil, dont be the poster boy for Israels crimes against children.

Cirque du Soleil listen to the Palestinian call for a cultural boycott of apartheid Israel.



In 2012 the Palestinian Circus School requested you not perform in Israel, they wrote:
"We do not take lightly calling for Cirque du Soleil, or any circus for that matter, to not perform in Israel, especially since we ourselves are totally committed to the art of circus and are committed to bringing the circus everywhere we can. However, for circus to be faithful to its art form, we are also unrelentingly committed to human rights. Thus, we write to request that Cirque du Soleil reconsider its planned performance in Israel, and join other artists from around the world who have called on you to support human rights and the right of all people to be free from military occupation."

Yet you chose to ignore their plea and crossed the picket line of the oppressed to perform for the oppressor in Aug 2012.

Do not repeat that mistake. This is your chance to redeem yourselves and follow your conscience to stand on the right side of history, to stand against racism and occupation.

Don't again turn your back on the oppressed, we urge you to join other prominent artists and cancel your Israel performance.

Roger Waters of Pink Floyd said
"Artists were right to refuse to play in South Africa's Sun City resort until apartheid fell and white people and black people enjoyed equal rights. And we are right to refuse to play in Israel until the day comes – and it surely will come – when the wall of occupation falls and Palestinians live alongside Israelis in the peace, freedom, justice and dignity that they all deserve"

Your Global Citizenship initiative states that Cirque du Soleil believes “that it is still possible to build a better world and that we can be responsible global citizens.”

Cirque du Soleil take responsibility and start building that better world today by cancelling your performance in apartheid Israel.

Boycott Apartheid!
Boycott racism!
Free Palestine!
















Message to Cirque du Soliel (from leaflet)



Leaflet (back)

In the name of Justice, we call on Cirque du Soleil to cancel your scheduled performances in Tel Aviv in July 2015, and to stand with the Palestinians who have called for a boycott of Israel.

Whilst you are performing in London today, children are suffering under occupation in Palestine. In 2014, 1266 Palestinian children were abducted, 40% of the 600 taken in Jerusalem alone were sexually abused by Israeli soldiers during arrest or interrogation. Torture is a routine part of interrogation. One boy, Ali Shamlawi, abducted from his home nearly two years ago, was held at Al Jalame childrens dungeon in solitary confinement in a filthy windowless 1m by 2m hole in the ground for two weeks and then violently tortured and sexual threats made against his sister in order to coerce a confession from him of stone throwing. If he is convicted, and the conviction rate for Palestinian children in Israeli military courts is 99.74%, then he will face over 25 years imprisonment.. essentially for no crime other than being Palestinian.

In 2012 the Palestinian Circus School requested you not perform in Israel:

"We do not take lightly calling for Cirque du Soleil, or any circus for that matter, to not perform in Israel, especially since we ourselves are totally committed to the art of circus and are committed to bringing the circus everywhere we can. However, for circus to be faithful to its art form, we are also unrelentingly committed to human rights. Thus, we write to request that Cirque du Soleil reconsider its planned performance in Israel, and join other artists from around the world who have called on you to support human rights and the right of all people to be free from military occupation."

Yet you chose to ignore their plea and crossed the picket line of the oppressed to perform for the oppressor in Aug 2012. This is your chance to redeem yourselves and follow your conscience to stand on the right side of history, to stand against racism and occupation. Don't again turn your back on the oppressed, cancel your Israel performance.


"Artists were right to refuse to play in South Africa's Sun City resort until apartheid fell and white people and black people enjoyed equal rights. And we are right to refuse to play in Israel until the day comes – and it surely will come – when the wall of occupation falls and Palestinians live alongside Israelis in the peace, freedom, justice and dignity that they all deserve." ~ Roger Waters, Pink Floyd

“Our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians” ~ Nelson Mandela



leaflet (front)



 

Banner design



Small text on banner (near childs' shroud):
One-year-old baby Noha Mesleh
killed along with 15 others in an
Israeli targeted strike on a UN school
in Beit Hanun, Gaza Strip, 24th July 2014


Small text on banner (at bottom):
Figures for Palestinian children killed by Israel between Sept 2000 to Sept 2014, are sourced from Addameer: Prisoner’s Rights and Support Group, B’Tselem: the Israeli Information Center for Human Rights in the Occupied Territories, Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Jerusalem Media and Communications Center, LAW: the Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment, Palestinian Center for Human Rights, Palestinian State Information Service, as compiled and collated by the 'Remember these Children' project which lists details of each death including name and age of the child and circumstances of their death. For 2014, up to date figures released by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) have been used. Total number of Palestinian children killed by Israel over 14 years is 2057, which translates to one child killed every 59.7 hours.















Video :



Video courtesy Mr Alex Seymour


Photos published 'live' on twitter and facebook from the protest:


Previous Campaigns on Cirque du Soleil - 2014

http://inminds.com/article.php?id=10625



4th January 2014


4th January 2014


26th January 2014


26th January 2014


26th January 2014


26th January 2014

 

Previous Campaigns on Cirque du Soleil - 2012

Cirque du Soleil faces criticism prior to performances in Israel


Tadamon, a Montreal-based collective, issue an open letter asking Cirque du Soleil to cancel performances planned for August in Tel Aviv

Ati Metwaly, Thursday 26 Jul 2012

src: http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/5/35/48707/Arts--Culture/Stage--Street/Cirque-du-Soleil-faces-criticism-prior-to-performa.aspx



Art work by Palestinian artist Nidal Elkhairy
to accompany letter issued by Tadamon! to Cirque du Soleil.

On their website, Tadamon describe themselves as a collective that “works in solidarity with struggles for self-determination, equality and justice in the ‘Middle East’ and in diaspora communities in Montreal and beyond.”

The Canadian group that describes the policies of Israel as "colonisation of Palestine" expresses its support for the July 2005 coalition of Palestinian civil society organisations asking for a global boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement against Israel. The international boycott of cultural exchange with Israel is led by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI), launched in Ramallah in April 2004 by a group of Palestinian academics and intellectuals, since 2005 part of the BDS movement.

In early July, Tadamon issued an open letter to Cirque du Soleil, a Canadian and world-renowned circus arts and street entertainment company, asking them to respect the cultural boycott of Israel. The group is asking Cirque du Soleil to reconsider its upcoming performances of Alegría in Tel Aviv, planned to take place between 8 and 18 August.

The open letter states: “It is not uncommon for internationally renowned artists such as Cirque du Soleil to be invited to Israel. You may not be aware, however, that by performing in Israel, well-known artists provide credibility to, and indirectly endorse, the actions and policies of the Israeli government. In fact, the Israeli government is actively and openly pursuing a policy to attract artists to Israel in an attempt to whitewash its own violations of international law and the apartheid laws it imposes on Palestinians.”

“In order to stay true to its stated principles, Cirque du Soleil must recognize that performing in Israel today disrespects the Palestinian call for a cultural boycott of Israel that aims at ending Israel’s violations of Palestinian human rights,” the letter continues.

A number of organisations and individuals have also expressed concerns regarding the Cirque de Soleil's plans. The Palestinian Circus School sent a letter to the general management of Cirque du Soleil calling on it not to perform in Israel.

“We do not take lightly calling for Cirque du Soleil, or any circus for that matter, to not perform in Israel, especially since we ourselves are totally committed to the art of circus and are committed to bringing the circus everywhere we can,” the letter states. “However, for circus to be faithful to its art form, we are also unrelentingly committed to human rights. Thus, we write to request that Cirque du Soleil reconsider its planned performance in Israel, and join other artists from around the world who have called on you to support human rights and the right of all people to be free from military occupation.”

The tour of Cirque du Soleil across the Middle East has included shows in Amman, Jordan, at the end of June. Saltimbanco, the iconic performance of Cirque du Soleil, gathered thousands across four days though illicited mixed reviews. Many in Amman spoke against August's scheduled shows in Tel Aviv.

Prior to the Amman shows, when Friends of Jordan Festivals (FJF), a non-profit organisation, bought tickets to distribute among under-privileged children, one organisation rejected the free tickets, in response to the planned performances in Tel Aviv.

Not all agree. In his analysis of the Cirque du Soleil Middle East tour and Jordan’s support for the BDS campaign, Sami Jitan of The Electronic Intifada quotes Abdul-Wahab Kayyali, a senior associate at a Jordanian business intelligence magazine, as saying: “Good cultural products have a human quality, appealing to all races, genders and nationalities. Culture is exceptional at exhibiting heterogeneity and displaying it. In reality, politics shouldn’t factor into which shows Friends of Jordan Festival brings to Amman … Seeing it as the fault of Cirque du Soleil is not the right paradigm.”

Mixed feelings were apparent in Doha, where Saltimbanco was performed at the beginning of July, enthralling some and polarising others.

The news of Cirque du Soleil's schedule Tel Aviv shows has led to wide discontent among pro-Palestinian activists. The recently launched Facebook group “Boycott Cirque du Soleil show in Israel. قاطعوا عرض سيرك دوسوليه في إسرائيل" has started gathering members from the Arab and international arena expressing their support for a cultural boycott of Israel and disappointment with the circus’s planned shows.

For the time being, Cirque du Soleil's plans to perform in Tel Aviv remain unchanged. From Israel, Alegría, a show that according to the Cirque du Soleil is “A baroque ode to the energy, grace and power of youth” will travel to Greece and Turkey in September and Italy in November. In parallel, other shows of Cirque du Soleil are on tour across the world, mainly in the North and South America, Europe and Australia. For the time being, there are no plans for Cirque du Soleil to perform in Egypt.

Tadamon! open letter to Cirque du Soleil

src: http://www.tadamon.ca/post/10258

Dear Cirque du Soleil,

We are a Montreal-based collective working in solidarity with the Palestinian people and are writing to you concerning your upcoming performances of Alegría in Tel Aviv, Israel in August 2012.

It is not uncommon for internationally renowned artists such as Cirque du Soleil to be invited to Israel. You may not be aware, however, that by performing in Israel, well-known artists provide credibility to, and indirectly endorse, the actions and policies of the Israeli government. In fact, the Israeli government is actively and openly pursuing a policy to attract artists to Israel in an attempt to whitewash its own violations of international law and the apartheid laws it imposes on Palestinians.

As criticism of the Israeli military occupation of Palestinian lands and Israel’s human rights abuses against the Palestinian people increases, so the efforts undertaken by the Israeli government to mobilize artists to perform in Israel via the Brand Israel initiative.

We would like to encourage you to join other prominent artists such as Elvis Costello, Cat Power, and Gil Scott-Heron in refusing to serve as a cover for Israel’s racist policies against Palestinians by cancelling your performance in Israel.

The cultural boycott of Israel is led by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel – PACBI. This initiative is part of the broader movement for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israeli apartheid initiated in 2005 by over 170 Palestinian civil society organizations including women’s groups, artists’ organizations, and trade unions. They call for a boycott of Israel until Israel respects Palestinian human rights and international law. The movement is inspired by the successful academic and cultural boycotts of apartheid-era South Africa and is intended to encourage artists and cultural workers to speak out against Israel’s apartheid policies.

The Cirque du Soleil Global Citizenship initiative states that Cirque du Soleil believes “that it is still possible to build a better world and that we can be responsible global citizens.” We certainly agree and, in this case, we consider that respecting the Palestinian call for BDS, which aims to secure Israel’s respect for international law and human rights standards, would be a responsible decision. Furthermore, the Cirque du Soleil official statement on global citizenship outlines the circus’ aims to “[treat] its employees, partners, customers and neighbours with respect, as it does the environment, laws and cultures of every place it goes.”

In order to stay true to its stated principles, Cirque du Soleil must recognize that performing in Israel today disrespects the Palestinian call for a cultural boycott of Israel that aims at ending Israel’s violations of Palestinian human rights.

Palestinians make up 20% of the population of the state of Israel. Palestinians living in the West Bank and Gaza have been living under a brutal military occupation for more than 40 years. As Enuga S. Reddy, Director of the U.N. Centre Against Apartheid, wrote in 1984 about South African artists, “they need to be persuaded to stop entertaining apartheid, to stop profiting from apartheid money and to stop serving the propaganda purposes of the apartheid regime.” During the international campaign for a boycott against apartheid South Africa, artists were, for example, discouraged from performing at concerts at the Sun City resort, as shown in the video for the 1984 hit track Sun City by Artists United Against Apartheid.

In 2010, 500 artists from Montreal, the home of Cirque du Soleil, signed a collective letter in support of the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement. Signatories included Québecois cultural figures like Richard Desjardins and Gilles Vigneault. This letter built on a long-standing tradition of Montreal artists linking with struggles for environmental and social justice. Montreal artistic engagement with struggles for human rights at home and internationally is well established and is an essential part of the artistic identity of this city.

Given the very visible role that Cirque du Soleil plays internationally as a cultural ambassador of Québec and Canada, we appeal to you to respect the Palestinian call, which is supported by many progressive Israeli activists, for BDS.

art work accompanying this letter is by Palestinian artist Nidal Elkhairy in Amman.

Sincerely,
The Tadamon collective
Montreal, Québec
www.tadamon.ca
info@tadamon.ca
514-664-1036

Letter from Jordanian Popular Boycott Movement (May 2012)

src: http://shalabieh.wordpress.com/2012/05/20/cdscancelisrael/

Dear Cirque Du Soleil,

Date: May 2012

“Washing one’s hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless means to side with the powerful, not to be neutral”―Paulo Freire

As Jordanians and as conscientious citizens of the world, we are appalled to learn that Cirque du Soleil is scheduled to perform in Tel Aviv this August. We are strong advocates of the arts and of cultural exchange, but the choice of Cirque du Soleil to entertain those who commit crimes of war and against humanity is shameful.

As often neglected by mainstream media, Zionist militias (such as the Haganah) started arriving in Palestine back in 1917. Through land-theft, ethnic cleansing, displacement of native people, terrorizing innocent civilians, and the distortion of natural terrain, what is referred to today as the “State of Israel” was created. At present, this so-called State grew to become more brutal, and continues to rob our land, massacre our people, appropriate our cultural heritage, and commit what is now known as the crime of apartheid. This is not a matter of opinion or perspective; it is an issue of historical events and documented facts.

Since the establishment of this colonial entity and until this day, our people have resorted to various forms of resistance, be it armed or non-violent, organized or popular. For us, to resist is to exist. Boycott strategies are but one form of peaceful resistance that we choose to implement. We believe that artists have a responsibility towards what is righteous, as art should not stand neutral and indifferent towards injustice; this is why more than 500 artists in Montreal alone have decided to boycott. We ask you to join them.

Under what you call the Global Citizenship section of your website, you state that “Ever since Cirque du Soleil had the resources to pursue its dreams and perform around the world, it chose to become involved in communities… Concerned with the future, Cirque du Soleil turned its attention and resources to global issues… Cirque du Soleil wants above all to take its place in society as a good citizen, with all the duties and responsibilities that go with citizenship”.

A “good citizen” does not side with those who commit genocides. Your participation there will help them in promoting themselves as peace lovers; this so-called State has mastered the game of “criminal-record laundry” using the arts and culture, and you will be contributing to that.

We urge you as humans and as artists to take a stand against entertaining those who have and continue to commit various forms of atrocities. This is not a political position that we are asking you to take, but one of justice and human dignity. Take the stand that so many freedom fighters have taken before, cancel your show in Tel Aviv.

Should Cirque du Soleil decide to boycott, we will be your strongest promoters in Jordan and the region, but if you choose to go ahead as planned, then we will be obliged to launch a boycott campaign against the event in Jordan, and we will urge other boycott movements around the world to do the same.

Finally, and despite your decision, we ask that you share this letter amongst members and artists in your group, for it is their right to be aware of what they are taking part in.

Sincerely,

The Jordanian Popular Boycott Movement




Source: www.inminds.com


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