Scherpe brief van Manfred Gerstenfeld aan Sidsel Wold

[Sidsel Wold, correspondente voor de Noorse Staatsradio NRK, reisde enkele weken geleden naar Israel voor een interview met Manfred Gerstenfeld*. Wold wiste vervolgens het oorspronkelijke interview en zond een ruim drie minuten bijelkaar gefantaseerd interview uit waarbij het voor de luisteraar niet altijd duidelijk was wie wat en naar aanleiding van welke opmerking of vraag beweerde. Opzettelijk? Gerstenfeld schreef een scherpe brief; over de ethiek van de journalistiek en wat hij wel zei.]

8 april 2010

Dear Sidsel,

You informed me that you lost the text of my interview with you and that you have broadcast another text which you call an “interview” with me, a copy of which you have sent me.

I gave the text of this so-called “interview” with me to a Norwegian acquaintance of mine to transcribe and translate, (for full text, see below).

What emerges is that this so-called “interview” is, in fact, a mix of the following three elements:

a) some quotes of mine, where I speak for a very short period;
b) several statements which you attribute to me, a substantial number of which I never made and are your inventions;
c) your own remarks which, to different extents, it is unclear to the listener whether they are yours or mine.

The Ethics Code of the Society of Professional Journalists states that journalists should “Test the accuracy of information from all sources and exercise care to avoid inadvertent error. Deliberate distortion is never permissible.” Your text flagrantly breaks these rules.

Examples of false quotes attributed by you to me:

I did not say that all Norwegian bishops are out to get Israel with the exception of one. I could not say that as I have read about the position of four bishops in total, three of who are against Israel.

I did not specifically name any Israeli NGOs which spread hatred of Israel. This subject is the specialized domain of NGO Monitor and I did not enter into details on this subject. As far as I know NGO Monitor does not claim that all the organizations you mention are spreading hate of Israel. The insertion of the names, in what are supposedly quotes of mine read out by you in the interview, are falsifications. You inserted the names of the organizations on your own initiative.

I did not say that most of the journalists and academia are out to get Israel. Indeed, many journalists who deal with Israel are anti-Israeli and in the academia there are key figures and others who are extreme anti-Israelis.

I did not say that the aim of these anti-Israelis is to hit the Jews. Their aim is to hit Israel.

I did not say that Norway is credible. What I said is that Norway has “the image of being credible”, which is something radically different.

You say in the broadcast text: "He believes that those who criticize Israel today are anti-Semites and that Norwegian elites are the worst of them all. Yes, Norway is the spearhead of the world when it comes to disseminating of Jew-hatred, illegitimate anti-Israeli criticism, he believes." This is a radically false construction made by you which has nothing to do with what I believe. You have manipulated a variety of texts, which you attribute to me, and on the basis these manipulations you falsely construct my “beliefs.”

When you lost the tape you had a number of honest options:

1. not to broadcast the interview;

2. try to contact me in Norway which was not all that difficult. You could have called my secretary or my home for my contact details;

3. accurately quote texts from my book Behind the Humanitarian Mask, Israel and the Jews, The Nordic Countries, Israel and the Jews, a copy of which I gave you.

You chose a fourth option: to produce a constructed text which contained a large number of fallacies, air them during a short broadcast, and attribute them to me. I now wish be given equal air time, in which only my words will be broadcast, in answer to questions without any independent comments by you.

If I do not receive a satisfactory answer from you before 11 April 2010, I will feel free to take any steps I deem necessary.

As this correspondence concerns an item which was broadcast and was aired in the public domain, I do not consider the contents confidential.

Yours sincerely

Manfred Gerstenfeld

ENGLISH TRANSLATION OF WHAT WAS BROADCAST

Manfred Gerstenfeld: All studies show anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism almost entirely overlap. Now of course it is very bad to say that you are against the Jews after the Holocaust, so you have found an escape clause to be against the Jews without saying that you are against the Jews, and you say “I am against Israel”.


Sidsel Wold: Manfred Gerstenfeld was born in Austria, grew up in Holland and emigrated to Israel in 1968. He believes that those who criticize Israel today are anti-Semites and that Norwegian elites are the worst of them all. Yes, Norway is the spearhead of the world when it comes to the disseminating of Jew-hatred, illegitimate anti-Israeli criticism he believes.

Today the Norwegian translation of his book from 2008 Behind the Humanitarian Mask, is being released. He writes that, quote: “One gains an impression that Norway represents that which is good in the world. Norway is at the top of the world when it comes to freedom of the press, the absence of corruption, and is one of the countries which gives most development aid to poor countries per capita. But the idyll stops there, for behind this impressive façade or mask, Norway is an ugly country, Gerstenfeld believes.

Norway’s elites, especially Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, Education Minister Kristin Halvorsen, all the bishops, except bishop Ole Christian Torme, most of the journalists and academia are out to get Israel with the sole purpose of hitting the Jews. Because Norway is credible this means that other governments will listen to Norway and take the Norwegian position seriously.

Therefore the Israel-critical Norway is an especially dangerous country for Jews and for Israel, according to the Austrian-born Israeli.

Gerstenfeld believes it is unacceptable that Norway, like several other European countries, finances organizations which are pioneers in spreading hatred against Jews, according to Gerstenfeld. These organizations are for example B’Tselem, Peace Now, Gisha, Committee against Torture, Rabbis for Human Rights, Yesh Din and several other Israeli human rights organizations which work for the Palestinians under the occupation.

When Gerstenfeld’s book is published in Norway today, he will perhaps achieve a debate about anti-Semitism in Norway, and a new debate on where the boundaries are between anti-Semitism and necessary criticism of the politics of the state of Israel.

Under the Netanyahu government, a wind of McCarthyism is blowing over Israel. All Jews or Israelis who do not agree with Netanyahu's government are branded “self-hating Jews”. If the critic is not Jewish, they are branded as anti-semites. A simple tactic to stop all undesired political debate.

NORWEGIAN TRANSCRIPT:

Manfred Gerstenfeld: All studies show anti-Zionism and anti-Semitism almost entirely overlap. Now of course it is very bad to say that you are against the Jews after the Holocaust, so you have found an escape clause to be against the Jews without saying that you are against the Jews, and you say “I am against Israel”.

Sidsel Wold: MG er født i Østerrike, vokst opp i Holland og emigrerte til Israel I 1968. Han mener at de som kritiserer Israel i dag er antisemitter og at norske eliter er de verste av dem alle. Ja, Norge er verdens spydspiss når det gjelder spredning av jødehat, urettmessig anti-Israelsk kritikk, mener han.

I dag kommer den norske oversettelsen av hans bok fra 2008 Behind the Humanitarian Mask. Han skriver at, sitat ”Man får et inntrykk av at Norge representerer det som er godt i verden. Norge ligger på verdenstoppen når det gjelder pressefrihet, når det gjelder fravær av korrupsjon og er et av de landene som gir mest bistand til fattige land per innbygger. Men der stopper idyllen, for bak denne imponerende fasaden eller masken er Norge et stygt land, mener Gerstenfeld.

Norges eliter, særlig utenriksminister Jonas Gahr Støre, utdanningsminister Kristin Halvorsen, alle biskopene, ja unntak biskopen Ole Christian Torme, de fleste journalistene og akademina er ute etter Israel med det ene mål å ramme jødene. Fordi Norge har troverdighet betyr det at andre regjeringer verden over vil lytte til norge og ta den norske posisjonen på alvor.

Derfor er det Israelkritiske Norge et spesielt farlig land for jøder og for Israel ifølge den Østerrikisk fødte Israeleren.

Gerstenfeld mener at det er uakseptabelt at Norge, i likhet med flere andre Europeiske land, finansierer organisasjoner som er pionerer i å spre hat mot jøder i følge Gerstenfeld. Disse organisasjonene er for eksempel B’Tselem, Peace Now, Gisha, Committee against Torture, Rabbis for Human Rights, Yesh Din, og flere andre Israelske menneskerettighetsorganisasjoner som jobber for palestinerne under okkupasjonen.

Når Gerstenfelds bok utkommer i Oslo i dag vil han kanskje oppnå en debatt om antisemitisme i Norge, og en ny debatt om hvor grensene går mellom antisemittisme og nødvendig kritikk av staten Israels politikk.

Under Netanyahus regjering blåser det en vind av McCarthyisme over Israel. Alle jøder eller Israelere som ikke er enig med Netanyahus regjering stemples som selvhatende jøder. Om kritikerne ikke er jøder, ja så stemples de som antisemitiske. En enkel taktikk for å stoppe all uønsket politisk kritikk.

*Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld is chairman of the Board of Fellows of the Jerusalem Center for Public affairs.
Zie ook: The Anti-Jewish Riots in Oslo.