Originally published in the Blogs of "The Times of Israel," May 27, 2023; subsequently published in German translation in "Israel Heute," June 18, 2023.
Thanks for reading and commenting. There was a bill in the Knesset some time ago to tax foreign donations to Israeli NGOs heavily. But it was tabled after intense pressure from western European governments. I hope it gets brought up again at some point although for now that seems unlikely considering everything else on Israel’s plate.
I began my career in the NGO world so I have experienced that dysfunctional unreality of so many of their activities. People are so seduced by the dream of being the "good guys" that they don't look at the big picture. They just try to appeal to their donors the way actors are just trying to appeal to the awards committee rather than real people.
Would it be possible for Israel to ban ngo's that purposely flout it's laws?
Thanks for reading and commenting. There was a bill in the Knesset some time ago to tax foreign donations to Israeli NGOs heavily. But it was tabled after intense pressure from western European governments. I hope it gets brought up again at some point although for now that seems unlikely considering everything else on Israel’s plate.
What a pity. I cannot imagine how those Western European governments can justify such obvious malicious meddling in a democratic country’s business.
I began my career in the NGO world so I have experienced that dysfunctional unreality of so many of their activities. People are so seduced by the dream of being the "good guys" that they don't look at the big picture. They just try to appeal to their donors the way actors are just trying to appeal to the awards committee rather than real people.