Israel, free speech, and the Oxford Union

Avi Shlaim, The Electronic Intifada, 19 November 2007
The Oxford Union is one of the world's most illustrious debating chambers and a bastion of free speech. It was founded in the nineteenth century to uphold the principle of free speech and debate in England at a time when they were being severely curtailed.

Recently, however, the Union failed to live up to its lofty ideals. A debate was scheduled for 23 October on the motion "This house believes that one-state is the only solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict."

Professor Ilan Pappé, Dr Ghada Karmi and I agreed to speak for the motion. Norman Finkelstein, the American-Jewish academic, Lord Trimble, the Northern Irish politician, and Peter Tatchell, the gay rights activist, accepted the invitation to speak against the motion.

In the end the debate took place without any of the scheduled speakers after an ugly and acrimonious, American-style row over the make-up of the panel.

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