AIJAC/Rambam Programs
 AIJAC/Rambam Programs(Deep state recruitment network)   | |
|---|---|
| Formation | 2002 |
| Subpage | •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2004 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2005 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2006 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2007 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2008 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2009 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2010 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2011 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2012 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2013 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2014 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2015 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2016 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2017 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2018 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2019 •AIJAC/Rambam Programs/2023 |
| The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) arranges a large number of junkets "fact-finding trips" to Israel for selected journalists, politicians, political advisers, government officials, trade union officials, student leaders, and academics. Includes similar programs. | |
The Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) arranges a large number of junkets "fact-finding trips" to Israel for selected journalists, politicians, political advisers, government officials, trade union officials, student leaders, and academics thorugh its Rambam Israel Fellowship Program[1][2] There are a number of associated programs doing very similar things, not all of them arranged by AIJAC, for example the Australia Israel Leadership Forum, the NSW Jewish Board of Deputies Journalists Mission, Australia-Israel Chamber of Commerce and etc. For practical reasons, these programs are listed here under the heading Rambam Programs.
While some of the participants are known, the programs are secretive, and the majority of participants are not public knowledge.
“The hold of the Israel lobby over Australian politicians is based on two facts: first, donations to the political parties from the Jewish community leadership; second, paid trips to Israel extended to every member of parliament and journalists. From the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council (AIJAC) over 700 trips alone. This political influence is particularly noticeable with the Victorian ALP Right and deserves some examination by journalistic sleuths, who seem reluctant to touch the subject. No other community, in my experience, treats politicians as their poodles, even when making a political case...”
Bob Carr (2018) [3]
Overview
Participation includes "air/ground transport, accommodation, meals and other associated costs".[4] According to Australian Jewish journalist Antony Loewenstein, the week-long Rambam program included meetings with prominent Israeli politicians such as Ehud Barak and Benjamin Netanyahu, a tour of the Israeli West Bank barrier, and brief meetings with Palestinian leaders in Ramallah. [5]
Some Participants
The first Rambam participants were a group of young political leaders who undertook a week-long program of activities in July 2003. The second Rambam mission consisted of a five-member Coalition parliamentary delegation who visited Israel in December 2003. The third Rambam mission in February 2004 was a bipartisan parliamentary delegation consisting of Australian Labor Party Senators Stephen Conroy (Victoria), Linda Kirk (South Australia), Ursula Stephens (New South Wales), and Liberal Members of Parliament Steven Ciobo, Sophie Panopoulos, and Andrew Southcott. More recently, in 2018, Senators Stirling Griff (Centre Alliance) and Kristina Keneally (Labor) attended, along with other politicians, as well as journalists, including Sharri Markson and James Campbell.[6]
AIJAC Rambam journalist participants have included The Herald and Weekly Times editor in chief Peter Blunden and journalist John Ferguson, the Australian Financial Review 's Ben Potter and Robert Bolton, The Age 's chief editorial writer John Watson, The Courier-Mail 's Denis Atkins, the Special Broadcasting Service's Sally Watson, the Sydney Morning Herald 's Louise Dodson, and Channel Ten's John Hill[7]
The blog Middle Eastern Reality Check lists the known participants by year.
References
- ↑ https://aijac.org.au/about-aijac/
- ↑ Reich, Chanan (2004). "Inside AIJAC - An Australian Jewish Lobby Group". In Levey, Geoffrey; Mendes, Philip (eds.). Jews and Australian Politics. Brighton: Sussex Academic Press. pp. 198–214. ISBN 1-903900-72-7.
- ↑ Run for Your Life, page 180
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20180806145437/https://ausgov.info/interests.php?reps=stirling+griff
- ↑ Loewenstein, Antony (2006). My Israel Question, page 221
- ↑ https://www.jewishnews.net.au/rambam-journos-report-back/51094
- ↑ Loewenstein, Antony (2006). My Israel Question, page 220
