Dayenu: NZ Jews Against The Occupation has condemned the use of government funding for the New Zealand Jewish Council’s Annual Report on Antisemitism in New Zealand in 2025. The report was produced through a $60,000 grant from the Ministry of Ethnic Communities’ Ethnic Communities Fund, which is intended to improve social cohesion in New Zealand.

“Examining antisemitism is a worthwhile cause, but this report deliberately seeks to confuse the real threat of antisemitism with political opposition to the genocidal actions of the Israeli state,” says Avigail Allan, Dayenu co-founder.

“We condemn the use of government funding for a report that uses extremist language like labelling the occupied West Bank as ‘Judea and Samaria’, a term used by those seeking to justify the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people.

“The New Zealand Government has a long-held opposition to the illegal Israeli settlement of the occupied West Bank. Why then is the Government using a fund meant to promote social cohesion to instead promote illegal settlements and ethnic cleansing?

“We are also deeply concerned that the New Zealand Jewish Council and its affiliated group, the New Zealand Jewish Community Security Group, uses a definition of antisemitism that wrongly conflates criticism of Israel and Zionism with antisemitism.

“In the same breath, the Jewish Council condemns both the vile racism of neo-Nazis and legitimate academic critiques of Israeli colonisation. By mixing up these very separate issues, the Jewish Council not only attempts to shield Israel from criticism, but also diminishes the very real threat of antisemitism in Aotearoa.

“Jews in Aotearoa are less safe because of the Jewish Council’s constant muddling of the New Zealand Jewish community with Israel. If anyone else tries to conflate New Zealand Jews with the actions of the Israeli state, they would rightfully condemn it as antisemitism.

“Antisemitism is a serious issue and the Jewish community deserves responsible and evidence-based reporting on racism towards Jews. The government should not be farming this work out to extreme groups” says Allan.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Ethnic Communities Fund

The NZ Jewish Community Security Group Charitable Trust received $60,000 from the Ministry of Ethnic Communities in April 2025 to produce “Annual Analysis and Reporting on Anti-Semitism in Aotearoa New Zealand”.

https://www.ethniccommunities.govt.nz/funding/ethnic-communities-development-fund/projects-we-have-funded-in-the-past/april-2025-successful-grants

The purpose of the Ethnic Communities Fund is to “contribute to improving New Zealand’s social cohesion and supporting the development of established and emerging communities”.

The fund explicitly requires political neutrality, though the examples focus narrowly on political party activity.

https://www.ethniccommunities.govt.nz/funding/ethnic-communities-development-fund/about-the-fund/ethnic-communities-development-fund-policies

New Zealand government position on Israeli settlements

MFAT says this about New Zealand’s position on Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories: “New Zealand has consistently opposed the establishment of Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories [Gaza, the West bank, and the Golan Heights] and has long held the view that the settlements are illegal under international law.”

See the Occupation and Settlements FAQ:

https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/middle-east/israel-hamas-conflict

Judea and Samaria

The terms Judea and Samaria refer to ancient Biblical kingdoms in the area that is now commonly referred to as the West Bank. The West Bank was annexed by Israel from Jordan in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. The Israeli government adopted the name “Judea and Samaria” for the West Bank after that war but the term only entered common usage when Menachem Begin was elected prime minister in 1977. Begin was described by the British government as the “leader of a notorious terrorist organisation” after his bombing of British officials in the King David Hotel in 1946. Begin had a Biblical vision of Israel and declared that “between the [Mediterranean] Sea and the Jordan River there shall only be Israeli sovereignty".

Generally, preference for one term over the other indicates the speaker's position on the Israeli political spectrum. Left-wingers, who view the territory as Palestinian and want evacuation of settlements through a peace agreement, prefer "West Bank". Right-wingers, who believe that the territory should be a permanent part of Israel, advocate the usage of "Judea and Samaria".

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Judea_and_Samaria_Area

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Menachem_Begin

Definition of Antisemitism

The NZ Jewish Council uses that International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance working definition of antisemitism.

The IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism conflates anti-Zionism with antisemitism. Antisemitism is the hatred of Jews or the Jewish religion. Zionism is a project of ethnic nationalism. Zionism should not be a protected belief as it conflicts with human rights and equality. The IHRA Definition is being used to censor criticism of Israel and deter supporters of Palestine. The IHRA Definition misdirects attention away from the very real antisemitism around us. It is not used by any government agency in New Zealand. Kenneth Stern, the author of this definition, has since urged that states and institutions do not adopt this definition.

https://holocaustremembrance.com/resources/working-definition-antisemitism

https://knightcolumbia.org/content/a-bad-deal-why-using-the-ihra-definition-of-antisemitism-on-campus-is-incompatible-with-academic-freedom-and-students-right-to-open-inquiry

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