MER-C Presidium: Boycotting Products Affiliated with Israel is Part of Humanitarian Diplomacy

Jakarta, MINA – The Presidium of Medical Emergency Rescue Committee (MER-C) Dr. Henry Hidayatullah said that boycotting products affiliated with Israel is part of humanitarian diplomacy for Palestine.

Henry conveyed this when he was a speaker at the 11th Anniversary of Indonesia Halal Watch and the Launching of the Presentation of the Results of the Knowledge, Attitude and Effectiveness Survey of the Fatwa of the Indonesian Ulema Council Number 83 of 2023 Concerning the Boycott of Israeli-Affiliated Products in Jakarta on Tuesday.

“Product boycotts are part of humanitarian diplomacy, because we hope that by boycotting these products, losses will occur, so that weapons supplies will decrease and at least aggression will stop,” said Henry.

He said that MER-C itself had carried out this humanitarian diplomacy effort by establishing an Indonesian Hospital in the Gaza Strip, with the support of the Indonesian people.

“We founded this hospital and became the Indonesian Hospital, to show the world that the Indonesian people are with the Palestinian people, with the hope that Palestine will be independent. “This is humanitarian diplomacy,” he said.

The Indonesian Hospital, which was officially handed over to the Palestinian people in January 2016, suffered serious damage due to the Israeli attack last October. However, MER-C is committed to immediately making repairs when the situation allows.

Furthermore, Dr. Henry said the public still needs regulations derived from the MUI fatwa regarding the boycott of Israeli-affiliated products, namely creating a list of these products. because currently people are identifying the products they are boycotting, including MER-C.

However, according to him, this fatwa has had a positive impact by creating wider awareness among the people to buy alternative products and creating the potential to produce products like the products that were boycotted.

Henry also called for consistency in continuing to promote this boycott, because so far the boycott is still temporary. This is not only the consistency of the MUI but also the consistency of society in general. He also asked for similar steps from the government.

“The whole world has shouted but Israel has not budged, it continues to carry out its aggression. “Therefore, throughout our lives we must dedicate ourselves to Palestine, as Bung Karno (Indonesia’s First President) stated, while the Palestinian people are not yet independent, the Indonesian people are with the Palestinian people,” he said. (T/RE1/P2)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)