Lebanese BDS campaign targets Armin van Buuren

Lebanon's chapter supporting the international boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign of Israel has called for a boycott of Armin van Buuren's concerts scheduled to be held in Beirut this weekend.

Samah Idriss of the Campaign to Boycott Supporters of Israel (CBSI) said a protest has been organized at the entrance of Biel – the venue of Buuren's performance – on Friday at 9.30pm.

Lebanese activists have targeted Buuren due to several concerts he performed in Israel.

"One cannot perform in Israel and say what's going on does not concern me," Idriss said.

BDS campaigners across the world are aiming to increase Israel's international isolation due to its continued apartheid and occupation of the Palestinians.

Artists and musicians scheduled to perform in Israel are frequently lobbied by BDS campaigners to cancel in solidarity with the plight of the Palestinians.

"Art should not be a matter of entertainment and collecting money. It should adopt a moral position. Ignoring [Israeli] crimes, the occupation and the apartheid is whitewashing these crimes," Idriss said.

CBSI has launched a Facebook group calling for a boycott of Buuren's performances in Lebanon, with the hope of attracting at least 50 people to the protest on Friday night.

Idriss said the protest is not aimed at harassing patrons or organizers, but simply to "raise awareness" of Israel's apartheid policies against the Palestinians.

"We're not trying to harass anybody, we're not trying to impose our will on anybody. It's a way of expressing our opinion," he said.

Campaigners sent a letter to Buuren and his Lebanese host, MixFM, several months ago, informing Buuren of Israeli crimes against the Palestinians and Lebanon since 1948, and urging the Dutch DJ to cancel his event in Lebanon, Idriss said.

"We told Armin what Israel has been doing since 1948 in Lebanon, and what it still does in terms of infringing on Lebanese sovereignty by sea, land or air, and the cluster bomblets that are planted everywhere until this day in all parts of the south," Idriss added.

The campaign activist claimed that the Buuren boycott call had the support of "tens of political parties in Lebanon."

"We don't think Lebanon is just a station for him (Buuren) to make profit," Idriss exclaimed, adding that the DJ "has to choose between performing in Israel, and performing, not just in Lebanon, but throughout the Arab world."

"We hope that Arab countries where van Buuren might visit in the future will also consider boycotting him," he said.

Neither Buuren nor MixFM have responded to CBSI's letter or call for boycott.

While Idriss hopes Buuren will cancel his event in Lebanon at the last minute, he "personally doubts it."

(Al-Akhbar)