The Center for Information and Documentation on Israel (CIDI) which is financed by Jewish organizations and individuals in Holland and by the Jewish Agency, has been accused of opportunism by Jewish circles here in its recent publication of a “Black Book” on the Arab boycott of Israel.
The tract, written by a CIDI aide, Ronny Naftaniel, sharply criticized Dutch firms for alleged compliance with Arab boycott demands and charged that The Netherlands government was lax in enforcing anti-boycott measures.
But Jewish circles say that while the charges are true, the CIDI publication is being used opportunistically as a political weapon of the left-wing opposition against the governing coalition of Liberals and Christian Democrats. The circles noted that Arab boycott practices went unopposed for years while the Labor-controlled government held office without left-wing parliamentarians raising any questions with the government. The questions suddenly came, they said, as soon as the CIDI charges were published.
CIDI has been turning to left-wing parties for support of Israel. But in view of the current controversy, The Netherlands Zionist Federation is expected to ask the Jewish Agency to reduce its financial subsidy to the group. CIDI was criticized in the current issue of the Dutch Jewish weekly, Nieuw Israelitisch Weekblad. In response, Harry Van Den Bergh, a Labor Party foreign affairs specialist, announced that he will discontinue writing for the weekly.
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