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Al-Ahram Weekly 2 - 8 September 1999 Issue No. 445 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 2 - 8 September 1999 Issue No. 445
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Opinion Focus Culture Features Profile Travel Living Sports People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Burger blaze
By Rasha Saad
This week the Arab League celebrated victory after pushing the fast-food chain, Burger King, to close down a branch it opened recently in a West Bank Jewish settlement on the grounds that settlements are illegal in occupied Palestinian territories.
"The closure of the West Bank franchise of Burger King is a victory for international legitimacy and human rights," Mohamed Sobeih, the Palestinian representative to the Arab League, told Al-Ahram Weekly.
The Arab League hailed the closure as "the result of Arab and Islamic pressure." Mohamed Zakariya Ismail, Arab League assistant secretary-general said the step would draw the attention of Israel and the West to the fact that settlements exist illegally on occupied territory and not legally under Israeli sovereignty.
On Thursday, Burger King ordered its Israeli agent to take the company's name off the store which opened in June following weeks of protest campaigns launched by US-based Arab and Muslim organisations.
For its part, the Arab League said that its 22 member states were scheduled to vote at their foreign ministers meeting on 12 September on whether to boycott Burger King branches in all Arab countries.
The move to close down Burger King's branch in the West Bank settlement of Ma'ale Adumim was taken by an organisation known as American Muslims for Jerusalem (AMJ). The organisation later received the support of 10 other US-based Arab and Islamic organisations.
Right-wing Israelis demonstrate against the closure of Burger King restaurant in the West Bank on Sunday. Protesters distributed leaflets calling for the boycott of the fast-food chain
(photo: AFP)Following the opening of the franchise in Ma'ale Adumim, the biggest settlement in the West Bank, AMJ sent a letter to Burger King questioning the company's decision and asking it to respect international law which bans building settlements in territories occupied by force.
Sobeih said the US State Department was against the opening of the restaurant and called for its immediate closure. "European countries were even firmer. They not only rejected the opening of the restaurant but are boycotting goods manufactured in Jewish settlements."
According to Sobeih the issue was of great significance to the Palestinians. "Opening a franchise in the occupied West Bank was a trial balloon for the Arabs to see how they would react. If the Arabs had not objected to such a violation, then the way would have been open for other companies to take similar action," Sobeih said.
Burger King has 40 outlets in Saudi Arabia, 31 in Kuwait, six in the United Arab Emirates, four in Oman and three in Qatar. All would have been forced to close down if the Arab League had voted for a boycott.
However, Burger King not only said it had no interest in taking sides in the Arab-Israeli peace process but also accused Rikamor, the Israeli franchising company which opened the branch in the settlement, of misleading it by claiming that the franchise would be located in Israel. "We were misled by the franchise," said a spokesman for Burger King in Israel. "Unfortunately, this led to a breach in our trusted relationship with our franchise. That is why we have taken action to cancel the agreement over this restaurant."
Israel did not take the closure lightly. Ma'ale Adumim's mayor warned of a counter-boycott. "We will do everything to fight it... appeal to the government, appeal to Jewish organisations... not to give in to this pressure."
Rikamor's managing director also attacked the closure. "I have ordered the Rikamor management in Israel to oppose this decision by every legal means that Israeli law provides," a press statement said.
In a related development, US Muslim groups wrote to the Walt Disney Company last week to protest against a planned exhibit in October called "Jerusalem, the capital of Israel." AMJ called on Walt Disney World to guarantee that the exhibit would not recognise Jerusalem as the capital of the Jewish state. "We are concerned and would like to review the exhibit before it starts," said Khaled Turaani, AMJ's executive director.
Israel has declared Jerusalem as its "eternal and indivisible" capital, a move which is not recognised by the international community since East Jerusalem was among the territories occupied by Israel in the 1967 war. Palestinians insist that East Jerusalem is the future capital of their independent state.
Both the Arab League and US Muslim groups warned that the Walt Disney Company could face a boycott over the Jerusalem exhibit. Sobeih said the issue of Jerusalem was sensitive and that Disney should not be biased against the Palestinians and side with the party (Israel) that does not respect international law. "It is not acceptable that people hide behind art when dealing with political issues. This is not a question of art, but about dealing with the political issue of Jerusalem which provokes Muslims and Christians alike," he said.
Sobeih told the Weekly that the issue of Disney would be discussed during September's meeting of Arab foreign ministers. He did not exclude the possibility that an agreement would be reached on an Arab boycott.
