Commentary — The hypocrisy speaks for itself. Please read the news article below and then look at the statements from the leading Jewish “human rights organization” the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).

Go home or go to jail: Israel pressures African migrants to leave

Israel is offering illegal immigrants $3,500 and a one-way ticket home as it begins to crack down on refugees, who face prison if they don’t take up the deal. Rights groups are appalled at the move, saying Israel should be doing more to protect them.

Israel says the tough move is necessary to send a message to migrants that making the journey is not worthwhile in the first place. As deterrents it has built a steel fence along the border with Egypt, houses migrants in a detention camp in the middle of a desert, and has stopped issuing work permits to deter would-be migrants

Israel was founded by refugees and continues to welcome Jews from around the world who wish to relocate there. During the 1990s over a million Jews from the former Soviet Union crossed the welcome mat.

Jews from Ethiopia have also looked to settle in Israel, however, they have not had an easy time of things in trying to start a new life.

READ MORE: Ethiopian Jews march in anti-racism protest in Haifa

On Tuesday, hundreds of Ethiopian Jews rallied peacefully against the discrimination and racism they claim they are experiencing. This followed a national outcry after a video emerged of an Israeli man of Ethiopian descent being beaten by police.

Approximately 135,500 Ethiopian Jews live in Israel, and more than a third of them – over 50,000 – were born there.

However, it would seem they are fortunate in comparison to their African neighbors who are not of the Jewish faith. Over the last six years, Israel has a dismal rate of accepting refugees from Eritrea. Despite the fact 300,000 asylum seekers from the country in the horn of Africa have been offered refugee status around the world, Israel has accepted only four people.

Aside from making it hard for potential refugees to get to Israel, the country is also giving those already there incentives to leave.

A government program has offered those without legal papers the chance to return home with $3,500 in cash, the option of going to a third country, or spend an indefinite time in an Israeli prison.

Over the past two years, over 9,000 Africans have taken up Israel’s offer and left. Before the crackdown began African workers could regularly be found around Tel Aviv doing menial jobs, such as washing dishes and cleaning hotel rooms which Israeli’s would not touch.

“It is a form of coercion, but it is not forced deportation,” said Sigal Rozen, who works as the public policy director for an Israeli human rights group called Hotline for Refugees and Migrants. However, Rozen was adamant, “Israel should do more,” the Washington Post reported.

She added that Sudanese refugees who had fled bloodshed and civil war in their home country “are now waiting in line to go back.”

Those who opt to stay in Israel face a tough and desolate life, as they are not allowed to work. Housed in the Holot detention center in the middle of the Negev desert, they are more than an hour from the nearest large settlement. Although they are allowed out during the day, they have to return by nightfall or risk being sent to the prison next to the detention facility.

Despite the desperate circumstances the refugees face, many will never contemplate returning to their countries of origin. On the contrary, they dream of being able to travel to Europe to start a new life.

“Being beheaded by ISIS [the Islamic State] or sinking on a boat is scary,” said 28-year-old Mutasim Ali, who arrived in Israel in 2009 from the Darfur region in Sudan. He has spent the past year in the detention center. “But you can’t really stay here, wasting your life, doing nothing,” he told the Washington Post.

It has been reported that Israel has been in negotiations with African nations to accept more refugees, with the media speculating that Israel could offer these countries technology, money or contracts if they accept asylum seekers who are trying to settle in Israel.

 

Now look at the ADL’s statements:

As an organization with a long and proud tradition of defending civil liberties for all, ADL has in recent years taken a lead role in exposing the virulent anti-immigrant and xenophobic rhetoric that has risen to the surface as part of the national debate over immigration.  ADL speaks out against discrimination and bigotry and advocates a meaningful and substantive policy that honors America’s promise as a nation of immigrants. The League has: Shined light on the atmosphere of hate that has surrounded the debate among right-wing extremists and anti-immigration groups; Issued reports on the co-opting of the issue by extremists and hatemongers; Opposed policies that are discriminatory or encourage racial profiling; Encouraged relationships between the immigrant community and local law enforcement; Advocated for comprehensive immigration reform; Partnered with Hispanic and other immigrant groups at the local and national levels; Re-issued A Nation of Immigrants, John F. Kennedy’s classic essay celebrating the immigrant experience in America. The following is a reference guide to ADL’s reports and online resources:

REPORTS:Arizona: The Key Players in the Anti-Immigrant Movement Rally in Support of Arizona’s New Immigration Law Will Feature Extreme Elements of the Anti-Immigrant Movement (2010) Border Vigilante Leader and Two Others Charged with Murder of Arizona Man and Nine Year-Old Daughter (2009) White Supremacists Promote ALIPAC and Take Action on its Behalf (2009) Brenda Walker and Dan Amato Inject Anti-Immigrant Fervor into the Blogosphere (2009) California Anti-Immigrant Leader Joe Turner Begins Job for San Bernardino County (2009) North Carolina Anti-Immigrant Leader William Gheen Seeks National Prominence (2009) Immigrants Targeted: Extremist Rhetoric Moves into the Mainstream (Updated, September 2008) The Ku Klux Klan Rebounds With New Focus on Immigration (2007) Extremists Declare ‘Open Season’ on Immigrants; Hispanics Target of Incitement and Violence (2006) Anti-Hispanic Video Games Spread On Internet(2006) Racist Groups Exploit Immigration Issues in Effort to Promote Anti-Hispanic Agenda (2005) Neo-Nazi Leads Recruitment Drive For New Border Militia (2004) Armed Anti-Immigration Groups in Arizona Share Ties to White Supremacists (2003) IN THE COURTS: ADL’s amicus brief in the 9th Circuit case U.S. v. Arizona ADL Files Brief Opposing ‘Misguided’ Arizona Immigration Law (6/22/10) ADL Urges Appeals Court To Hold Hazleton Anti-Immigrant Ordinance Unconstitutional (4/22/08) Hazleton Illegal Immigration Ordinance Overturned(7/26/07) SPEECHES: ADL Remarks: Press Conference on Arizona Immigration Bill (4/23/10) http://www.adl.org/Civil_Rights/Press-Conference.asp Senator Kennedy Issues Call For Meaningful Immigration Reform (5/1/07) The Immigration Debate: Extremists on the Attack Remarks by Abraham H. Foxman, ADL National Director (4/24/06) Remarks by Cecilia Muñoz, Vice President for Public Policy, National Council of La Raza (4/24/06) POLICY STATEMENTS: ADL Adopts Resolution to Oppose Lawmakers’ Efforts to Deny 14th Amendment Citizenship Rights(02/14/11) Resolution Citing Fair Treatment of Immigrants Passed by California State Legislature (08/30/07) L.A. Area Organizations Issue Declaration For Human Rights For Immigrants (12/13/06) ADL Calls for Comprehensive Immigration Reform(2/15/06) Resolution on Immigration and the Role of Local Law Enforcement (2/8/03)

 

Finally, look at the ADL’s statements about Israel: 

Israel

Israeli Public Sees U.S. as Loyal Ally The Israeli public has a strongly positive attitude toward the United States and continues to perceive the U.S. as a loyal ally of Israel, according to a new ADL and BESA Center poll of Israeli public opinion. The poll found nearly 70 percent of Israelis have a positive attitude toward the U.S. and just as many believe that it is and will remain a loyal and unwavering ally of Israel. . RECENT ARTICLES • ADL letter to Secretary Leon Panetta regarding “Iron Dome Support for Israel”(03/28/12) • ADL Letter to Harvard: ‘One State’ Conference(02/24/12) • Background On The 2011 Gaza Flotilla(06/24/11) • Prime Minister Netanyahu Address to U.S. Congress (05/24/11) • ADL Reaction to President Obama’s Remarks on the Middle East (05/23/11) • Hamas Charter: Selected Excerpts (05/13/11) • Hamas-Fatah Reconciliation: The ADL View(05/10/11) • Hamas in Their Own Words (05/02/11)