New Zealand Cafes Ban Israelis Following 2009 Hamas-Israel War

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Second cafe takes stand against Israel

Israelis are calling on tourists to boycott New Zealand after a second cafe owner said Israeli nationals were not welcome.

The owner of Invercargill's Mevlana Cafe caused a stir last week after refusing to serve two Israeli customers as a protest against Israel's bombing of Gaza.

Now Kaikoura cafe Strawberry Tree has put up a sign saying Israeli customers were not welcome.
Other Kaikoura business owners posted signs saying diners of any nationality were welcome.
Strawberry Tree owner Shane Cavanagh said while he would not ask Israelis to leave they were not welcome in his restaurant.

The sign was taken down last week and replaced by a death toll from the latest conflict, which has killed more than 1200 Palestinians and 13 Israelis.

Kaikoura Mayor Kevin Heays told the Dominion Post he was "extremely upset and angry" with the sign and leading Israeli website ynetnews.com had been inundated with messages calling for Israeli tourists to boycott New Zealand .

One message included the Strawberry Tree's address and phone number with the message: "Please call the owner and say 'Hi from Israel'," the newspaper reported.

Mr Heays posted his own comment on the site, promising to "closely scrutinise" the bar owner's licence.
"I am taking legal and police steps to have the sign removed and I will be looking into making a complaint to the Human Rights Commission."

Mr Heays said he posted an apology to show the protest did not reflect the general view of the community.
"I've yet to speak to anyone who is in support of the public stand that he's making," he said.

http://nz.news.yahoo.com/a/-/top-stories/5268523/second-cafe-takes-stand-israel/
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If the business was in the United States the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and later legislation (state and federal) would prohibit them from enacting this kind of discrimination. Is there any similar legislation in New Zealand?
 
Now, can some one please tell me exactly how many Israelies will be going to NZ Caf?s? I am sure that the EDF are quaking in their boots at not being able to get a 'cuppa' in NZ.

And exactly how much butter or Lamb is being imported into Isreal?

What a farce.
 
At this point it seems less about the fact that the cafes are banning those from Israel and more about the topic of discrimination.
 
There are very, very few people in NZ from Israel - in fact I'd be amazed if there were any apart from the consulate staff this time of year.
 
Cobol74 said:
There are very, very few people in NZ from Israel - in fact I'd be amazed if there were any apart from the consulate staff this time of year.
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If NZ is like here we actually have a lot of people frmo Israel
 
I don't know how many Estonians live in Orlando, but if I had a problem with Estonia...I wouldn't ban Estonians from my establishment. Not only is it massively stupid, it's surely against the law.
 
I don't agree with Israel or much of what it has done since the new state was established, but this is just stupid.

First, Israeli people have nothing to do with this conflict... it's a bunch of cold, psychotic politicians and military on both sides doing this with total disregard for the humanitarian effects.

Second, by classifying and controlling what people can and can't do because of their race, you are no better than the Israeli government trying to oppress the Muslims of the West Bank and Gaza. Or any better than the Nazis whose actions was the trigger for the founding of Israel.

Meh, this guy must be one of these stupid types who react without actually thinking about their consequences and their actions. If this restaurant owner had an ounce of sense he'd easily see this kind of move only sets back the Muslim cause and causes more friction between them and the Jews.
 
The one hope for peace was Rabin and the Oslo accords.

"On 4 November 1995 Rabin was assassinated by Yigal Amir, a radical right-wing Orthodox Jew who opposed the signing of the Oslo Accords and believed he was saving the country from a dire fate. The shooting took place in the evening as Rabin was leaving a mass rally in Tel Aviv in support of the Oslo process. Rabin was rushed to the nearby Ichilov Hospital, where he died on the operating table of blood loss and a punctured lung."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yitzhak_Rabin

How they get back to that situation is anybody's guess. No time soon tho'.
 
Fire up the F-16s and Super-Cobras lads, Auckland's next!
 
nomix said:
This is a piece of poor judgement. Just like Freedom fries.
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Not really. Changing the name of something it quite different than banning a group of people because of their nationality.
 
jetsetter said:
Not really. Changing the name of something it quite different than banning a group of people because of their nationality.
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Both are intented to insult, offend or at least annoy or inconvenience a certain nationality.

There is a big difference between changing the name of a product and actively banning a certain group, sure, but if you strip it to the bare bones it is roughly the same idea.

Although how he'll know who is Israeli and who isn't is a question. Passport checks at the door? Listening close to their coffee orders for accents?
 
There is a big difference between changing the name of a product and actively banning a certain group, sure, but if you strip it to the bare bones it is roughly the same idea.
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In the United States one is against the law and the other is not. This is why I asked if there was any legislation in New Zealand that covered the issue.
 
jetsetter said:
In the United States one is against the law and the other is not. This is why I asked if there was any legislation in New Zealand that covered the issue.
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Human Rights act, 1993 (under Unlawful Discrimination), here.

Prohibited grounds of discrimination
(1) For the purposes of this Act, the prohibited grounds of discrimination are?...(g) Ethnic or national origins, which includes nationality or citizenship:



...

Provision of goods and services

(1) It shall be unlawful for any person who supplies goods, facilities, or services to the public or to any section of the public?
(a) To refuse or fail on demand to provide any other person with those goods, facilities, or services; or
(b) To treat any other person less favourably in connection with the provision of those goods, facilities, or services than would otherwise be the case, by reason of any of the prohibited grounds of discrimination.


I assume this is the kind of thing you're referring to? I've no desire to read any more legalese, so I assume it is.
 
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Then it appears that the cafes are indeed breaking the law.
 
jetsetter said:
Not really. Changing the name of something it quite different than banning a group of people because of their nationality.
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It's part of the same mentality. "We disagree with you, so we cut you off."

Remember the US resturants pooring out French wine?

It's the same mentality, even if you probably wouldn't see people getting thrown out of resturants because they were French.
 
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