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Israeli tourism posters banned by watchdog over controversial map
ASA censures adverts for misleadingly implying that West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights were part of the state of Israel
By Mark Sweney
A tourism campaign depicting the areas of the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights as part of Israel has been banned by the advertising watchdog following hundreds of complaints.
The poster campaign, run by the Israeli Government Tourist Office, ran with the headline “experience Israel” with a picture of a boy snorkelling with dolphins. The ad featured a map of Israel that included the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights.
The Advertising Standards Authority received complaints from 442 members of the public, as well as the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and Jews for Justice for Palestinians, that the poster misleadingly implied that these areas were internationally recognised as part of Israel.
The State of Israel Ministry of Tourism, replying on behalf of the IGTO, said the map was a “general schematic tourism and travel map, rather than a political map”. SIMT argued that the complaints were political in nature and not relevant to a tourist ad.
The ASA noted that the ad implied that all areas featured on the map were part of the state of Israel and that the border lines for the contested regions were “faintly produced and difficult to distinguish”.
“We understood that the borders and status of the occupied territories of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights were the subject of much international dispute,” said the ASA in its ruling. “And because we considered that the ad implied that those territories were part of the state of Israel, we concluded that the ad was misleading”.
The ad was banned from appearing in the same form again.
Brian said,
July 15, 2009 at 15:06
you know, it might make sense to keep the map and the “experience Israel” slogan as it is but change the background picture to a bombed or demolished house.
aufzuleiden said,
July 15, 2009 at 15:44
Considering that many people would be hard pressed to find the regions in question on a globe, or in an atlas (with an index, mind you), I truly doubt that this will solve any problems in Israel – though the perception of what is true and correct is certainly something that should be enforced and encouraged whenever possible.
It is unfortunate that something as innocuous as a tourist map can end up being used as a device for propaganda; thinking back to when I learned about ‘world geography’ in school, and particularly in high school, the borders of Israel were always considered to be those that included Gaza, the West Bank, and all of the ‘settled’ areas that are so strongly contested today. Of course, that was back … oh – never mind – that was a while ago. Suffice it to say, it seems as though my geography teachers were not immune to the political pressures of the day, nor were they willing to take a stand against the Zionist colonialism taking place on the other side of the world. We never even considered what was taking place in Israel outside of the ‘terrorist’ acts that were being committed by the PLO under the guidance of Arafat.
The saddest part, I suppose, is that there are hundreds of students who went through those classes who have a completely distorted view of the situation in the middle east as a result of the laziness of the teacher. Rather than taking a few moments to analyze the situation, asking – perhaps – why the people committing the terrorist acts were so upset that they were willing to commit such unthinkable acts they were instead dismissed as ‘fanatics’ – just as they are today.
While it is true that it is difficult to negotiate with terrorists it is also true that you can see, without that much difficulty, the root causes of what has driven many of them to such acts of desperation (I am not writing as an apologist – merely as a proposition of understanding, nothing more). If, after recognizing the problem, something was done to change the situation could you imagine the possibility that the ‘fanatics’ might just become slightly less ‘fanatical’? Perhaps not, but – when a system is corrupt and people are willing to immolate themselves in protest, there is a serious problem that needs to be addressed.
At the same time, suicide attacks are never the answer, just as violence will never accomplish your goals; you may get what you want, but you will never be satisfied with what you have.
The only solution to the map of Israel is an end to the violence and a joining together of the peoples of the land; the land must be healed, all of the innocent lives that were lost in the fighting over the land has left it cursed and open to further attack. The only thing that will prevent this is a true reconciliation between the people.
robertsgt40 said,
July 15, 2009 at 15:49
I’m sure this was just a “small” oversight”. Israel is just thinking out loud.
Orpah Wimberly said,
July 15, 2009 at 21:43
Of course, conquered land is conquered land. No one shows California, New Mexico and Arizona as “occupied territory.” It’s not about the borders as much as it is about how you treat the people within those borders. If Israel was not an apartheid state, no one would care about borders. But Israel is never going to allow equal citizenship to Arabs, Palestinians or anyone else. Israel either has their apartheid state in perpetuity, or they disappear. There doesn’t seem to be a middle ground. Those lines — the cultural ones — have already been drawn. And those are the lines that matter the most.
Maien said,
July 15, 2009 at 23:17
o.k. I’ll admit it.
I have and will likely do so again, corrected with a black permanent marker incorrect paper maps. The work is neat.
People always ask questions. I suggest they learn both sides of the story and of the actual history of events. discussions take place days and weeks later.
They then understand, why I do this.
I love your site, as you continue to bring recognition to the Palestinians.
More people are understanding who, in Occupied Palestine, actually has embraced primitive values and barbaric behaviours.
thank-you for your dedicated work.
Damian Lataan said,
July 16, 2009 at 01:35
I’m surprised the map didn’t include southern Lebanon up to the Litani river as well.
karen_j66 said,
July 17, 2009 at 13:06
a baby step..but nevertheless a step.