Cultural boycott by the Netherlands and Belgium: More than 300 institutions will not work with Israeli organizations

More than 300 museums, arts and cultural organizations in the Netherlands and Belgium announced that they have initiated a cultural boycott and will not work with Israeli institutions.

The declaration, signed by 302 organizations from the Netherlands and Belgium, stated that all Israeli institutions and companies would be culturally boycotted due to the genocide in Gaza and the continued occupation of the West Bank.

"As members of the Dutch and Belgian cultural sectors, we do not want to remain indifferent to the war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Palestinian people, which are recognized by all competent institutions," the statement said.

The statement noted that the decision to implement a cultural boycott was made following long-standing calls from Palestinian artists and Palestinians, and that a cultural boycott would be imposed on the State of Israel and Israeli institutions and companies.

The statement emphasized that the boycott was not directed at Jews or Israelis, but at those complicit in human rights violations against Palestinians.

302 INSTITUTIONS AND 878 ARTISTS SIGNED

It was reported that 302 museums, arts and cultural organizations in the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as 878 individual artists, signed the declaration.

Among those participating in the boycott are prominent institutions such as the Maastricht Bonnefanten Museum, the Ghent Museum of Fine Arts, the Netherlands Film Festival, the Holland Opera, the Flemish Royal Theatre, and figures such as Marlene Dumas, Tom Lanoye, David Van Reybrouck, Ramsey Nasr, and Sinan Çankaya.

SUPPORT FROM SECTORS

The statement stated that churches, mosques, educational institutions, libraries and cultural heritage sites in Gaza were targeted, as were journalists, humanitarian workers, healthcare workers and artists.

The statement explained that the lives of Palestinians in the West Bank and Jerusalem are becoming increasingly impossible, and emphasized that this is only the latest phase of a policy that has systematically oppressed and exiled Palestinians for decades.

The statement noted that voices against Israel's genocide have risen in recent weeks and that five countries, including the Netherlands, have refused to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest if Israel participates.

The statement, which recalled that 5,000 people in the cinema world had previously announced that they would no longer work with Israeli institutions, and that more than 400 artists had joined the "No Music for Genocide" protest and blocked their own music from streaming platforms in Israel, stated that the decision to implement a cultural boycott was based on the past experience of a cultural boycott that is believed to have contributed to the collapse of apartheid in South Africa.

The statement underlined that the boycott decision was not taken lightly, and that the cultural sector aims to make the world a better place and therefore cannot act as if nothing has happened.

The statement read, "A cultural boycott will not be enough to stop the genocide and occupation. Therefore, we call on the sports sector, the academic world, economic institutions, and politics to also sever ties. Only together can we force Israel to comply with international law."