Meretz responds to PM’s criticism over West Bank produce bill

Meretz criticizes the prime minister’s call to remove the bill on West Bank labeling, saying the Netanyahu government already labels products exported to EU countries.

“Prime Minister Netanyahu… tied our bill to boycott initiatives threatening Israel, even though our bill was already put on the table two Knessets ago, and deals with products marketed inside Israel and not outside it,” Meretz says in a statement on the party’s Facebook page.

The statement continues: “Netanyahu the hypocrite also said that ‘whoever labels products is bound to label people.’ Even if we set aside for a minute the fact that the person who describes the voting rights of 20% of Israel’s citizens as a threat against the country should not be the person to preach about labeling people. It is a simple fact that the Netanyahu government on its own (!) labels products exported to Europe and manufactured beyond the Green Line even today (!!), as part of its trade agreements with the European Union.

“It is unclear why the prime minister is so scared that Israeli consumers receive the same information European consumers get when they buy ‘Made in Israel,’ but if the PM really wants us to remove the bill — here’s an idea: Start negotiations for a permanent agreement to end the occupation….”