The Anne Frank Fonds Basel and New Israel Fund (NIF) have signed a partnership agreement which will come into effect in the coming year. As part of the new partnership, the Anne Frank Foundation will make new grants to organisations supported by NIF to advance their work toward equality and justice.

What a difference a day makes. Even by Tuesday, Prime Minister Netanyahu was backtracking from his deal with the UNHCR to settle people seeking asylum in Israel and the West.

Overnight, Prime Minister Netanyahu announced a deal with the UNHCR that would see people seeking asylum in Israel be re-settled in Israel or the West, rather than deported to Africa.

The story of Pesach – and the lessons and values we draw from the story of Exodus – is at the heart of the values that connect many of us to NIF.

The following op-ed was written by NIF Australia Vice-President Steven Glass and published in the Australian Jewish News on Wednesday 14 February 2018.

Thanks to almost 50 donors in Australia and New Zealand, we made $10,000 grants to two Israeli non-profits working with refugees last week.

The sustained Israeli government pressure on refugees has taken a new turn: asylum seekers are now being forcibly deported to Rwanda.

Our position hasn’t wavered: We don't support the global BDS movement and we don't agree with the organisations blacklisted by the Israeli government on many issues. But we don’t have to agree with them to know that banning them from visiting Israel is just wrong.

We know that it’s profoundly anti-democratic to discriminate against those who advocate for nonviolent strategies just because the government doesn’t agree with their views. Banning political opposition is the policy of autocracies, not democracies.

The Netanyahu government's Entry Law, which is a travel ban that uses blacklists and litmus tests to bar visitors from entering Israel based on their beliefs, flies in the face of the democratic principles enshrined in Israel's declaration of independence.

Next week, Israeli singer Achinoam Nini touches down in Australia. Some people in the Jewish community don’t want her to perform here. They’re angry she encourages dialogue with Palestinians, works to realise the two-state solution, and supports social justice and human rights groups, including NIF.

For them, supporting this work is disloyal to Israel. They are urging people to boycott her performances

But we know better. We know that this work highlights the best side of Israel.

We know how harmful the BDS movement is because it shuts out the voices most strongly promoting a peaceful solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

It takes a particular brand of hypocrisy for members of the Jewish community who oppose BDS to encourage the boycott of an Israeli artist.

We need to make sure they’re not successful in shutting out Achinoam.

We’re proud to partner with Temple Beth Israel to bring Achinoam to Australia, and we’re grateful that the Israeli Embassy have shown their support.

I hope you’ll take one of these actions to show yours:

1. Buy a ticket to one of Achinoam’s events:

• Concerts in Melbourne: Wednesday 15 November & Wednesday 16 November at Temple Beth Israel (use the code WEEKENDNOA for an 18% discount)
• Concert in Sydney: Monday 20 November at Camelot Lounge
• Conversation and performance in Sydney, hosted by NIF: Tuesday 21 November at Bondi Pavilion

2. Write a letter to the editor of the Jewish News: We should be encouraging Israeli artists to come to Australia, perform their music, and share their culture. We need to call out those who support the boycott of Israeli artists, whoever they are.

3. Share this with your friends on Facebook – Let’s get the word around that Israelis who are working for peace and social justice have our support.

I hope to see you at one of Achinoam’s events next week.

This op-ed was published by Graham Kaplan and Bec Sharp, two of our 2017-18 Naomi Chazan Fellows, in the 13 October edition of the Australian Jewish News.