ANT KATZ

In 2012 Continental Outdoor Media, after coming under pressure from the Israeli lobby (according to BDS), removed several Palestine solidarity billboards put up in Gauteng by BDS-SA and the Palestine Solidarity Alliance (PSA). The Palestine solidarity billboards graphically, but questionably – see below), explained the Israeli “occupation” of Palestine.

Inside the Court BDS say they requested a special full day allocation for the matter, “BDS-SA & Other vs Continental Media & Other” was made. The request for a full day allocation was made in part due to the complexity of the issue.

“The request is currently being considered by the Judge President of the High Court and the matter is expected to be heard later this week,” says BDS’ Muhammed Desai. BDS is being represented pro bono by the Legal Resources Centre.

Creamer Media’s POLITY.org.za reported fully on the parties who were at the protest: Supporters of BDS South Africa including members of the Freedom of Expression Institute (FXI), the Right2Know Campaign, Media Review Network (MRN), South African Students Congress (SASCO), Congress of South African Students (COSATU), ANC Youth League, Congress of South African Students, Young Communist League, Zimbabwe Communist League various other organizations held a successful “Freedom of Expression” and solidarity picket outside the Johannesburg South Gauteng High Court. The freedom of expression picket was in support of BDS South Africa in its court matter with Continental Outdoor Media.

BDS campaigner, Mthunzi Mbuli, said after the picket: “We as BDS South Africa thank everyone who came out to the freedom of expression picket today and supported BDS South Africa and the Palestine Solidarity Alliance …This court matter is also important because it sends a clear message to the Israeli lobby … including organizations like the SA Jewish Board of Deputies and the SA Zionist Federation.”

Continental Outdoor Media’s Sharon Bawden, executive assistant to Barry Sayer (Executive Chair) and Bazil Lauryssen (CEO), tols Jewish Report that “we cannot discuss this matter as it is sub judice and until the case has been heard and resolved we have no further comment.” 

RIGHT: Protest outside court on Monday 19 May

Continental did issue a formal comment, however (see full statement below), in which they say: “With regard to the display of advertising for the Boycott Divestment Sanctions organisation (BDS), Continental Outdoor Media welcomes the fact that the matter of displaying advertising for this organisation is entering the court process. Continental Outdoor Media … harbours no political affiliation and nor is it qualified to adjudicate sensitive political copy without the facility of a qualified editorial department with political editors.”

BDS’ ‘Disappearing Palestine’ maps

SA Jewish Report Online posted a related story LAST OCTOBER in which we referred to BDS South Africa using the “Disappearing Palestine” maps on a very public billboard campaign last year. BDS went one step further in their deception, wrote website MyShtetl at the time in a story headlined: BDS-SA’s BIG LIE! “As if it wasn’t enough to use the text of the message to project a falsehood,” said MyShtetl, “BDS-SA was not happy to use series of maps used by Palestinian solidarity groups globally.”

LEFT: BDS South Africa ran a billboard campaign using the Palestinian maps last year – but left out the crucial one

“They simply removed one of the four maps – the key one – deciding in their wisdom to test SA’s laws on truthful advertising one bit further by presenting another falsehood,” wrote the website. 

RIGHT: BDS-SA had removed the crucial 1947 UN-proposed partition plan map to ensure that the original US advertising campaign was deemed to be “factually inaccurate” by Ron Meier, a director of the independent and authoritative Anti-Defamation League.” Meier also accused BDS of counting Arab citizens of Israel among the “Palestinian refugees”.

Continental’s formal comment:

 “Billboard Advertising for the Boycott Divestment Sanctions organisation (BDS)

“With regard to the display of advertising for the Boycott Divestment Sanctions organisation (BDS), Continental Outdoor Media welcomes the fact that the matter of displaying advertising for this organisation is entering the court process. Continental Outdoor Media is a privately owned billboard advertising company which harbours no political affiliation and nor is it qualified to adjudicate sensitive political copy without the facility of a qualified editorial department with political editors. Consequently it welcomes direction from the courts on the display of this advertising or any other advertising of a political nature not provided by a registered South African political party. The company also welcomes the court’s directive on who should adjudicate such copy should the courts decide such display is acceptable under any party’s right of free political speech or for any other reason the courts deem appropriate.

“The matter remains sub judice.”

Sharon Bawden, executive assistant to Barry Sayer (Executive Chair) and Bazil Lauryssen (CEO)