Israel Matzav: 45% tax on foreign donations to anti-Israel NGO's approved

Sunday, December 15, 2013

45% tax on foreign donations to anti-Israel NGO's approved

The Ministerial Committee for Legislation has approved, by an 8-4 margin, a bill that would place a 45% tax on foreign donations to anti-Israel NGO's. The decision has been appealed by 'Justice Minister' Tzipi Livni, meaning that another vote in the committee will have to be taken. Bills that are approved by the Committee have a good chance to become law because they are presumably backed by the governing coalition.

The law is a joint initiative of MK Ayelet Shaked (Jewish Home) and MK Robert Ilatov (Yisrael Beytenu) and its purpose is "reducing the involvement of foreign political entities in Israeli democracy, which is carried out through financial support to NGOs whose actions or goals deviate grossly from the limits of democratic discourse," according to the bill.

The bill, once enforced, will impose a 45% tax on foreign donations to seditious NGOs.

Groups affected by the tax would have to meet one of the following criteria: calling for boycott, divestment, or sanctions (BDS) against Israel or Israeli citizens; calling for the prosecution of Israeli soldiers in international courts; denying that Israel is a Jewish democratic state; incitement to racism; or supporting an armed struggle by an enemy nation or terror organization against Israel.

Ronen Shoval, Chairman of grassroots Zionist student organization Im Tirtzu, had sent a strong letter to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu urging him to support the law earlier this week.

In his letter, Shoval brought a quote from former Supreme Court president Meir Shamgar, who expressed his displeasure regarding the financing of NGOs by foreign countries. Shamgar stated in 2012, "I think that support of political bodies by foreign governments is something that should intimidate any person who believes in true democracy," and called foreign funding for organizations that are meant to influence the government "abnormal."

Shaked, who initiated the bill, stated that "it would be too easy to take the bait and listen to statements which claim that this law violates democracy in Israel."

"In fact, any person with healthy reasoning and a clear understanding knows that the opposite is true. In a civilized, democratic country there are choices which reflect the will of the people and portray, through voters' decisions, the state's outlook," she continued. "It is inconceivable that a minority of extremists who don't wish to give a 'mandate' to Israel, and participate in criminal acts of subversion against the state by financial means from foreign benefactors, will also receive tax breaks."

"Undermining the sovereignty of the government is tantamount to failure to respect the will and decision of the people," Shaked declared. "High taxes on foreign money to organizations that incite against IDF soldiers and incite to racism are the minimum that the state can and should do for itself."

Howls of protest coming from Washington, Brussels, London, Paris, Amsterdam and Berlin in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1....

Labels: Ayelet Shaked, Israeli Knesset, NGO funding, NGO's