Three members have resigned from the board of Brussels culture house Bozar over the appearance of Israeli conductor Lahav Shani
Last autumn, the announcement of a concert featuring Shani at the Ghent Festival of Flanders caused a great deal of controversy and ultimately led to its cancellation. Shani was thought not to have spoken out clearly enough against the Israeli government’s violence in Gaza. As a result, the Ghent Festival of Flanders cancelled his appearance with the Munich Philharmonic.
The festival cited Shani’s role as principal conductor of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra and said there was insufficient clarity “regarding his stance towards the genocidal regime in Tel Aviv”.
We believe we absolutely cannot agree to the booking of people who do not explicitly speak out against the tragedies unfolding in the Middle East
Christophe Slagmuylder, director of Bozar, announced this month in De Standaard that Shani was welcome in Brussels and that a concert was planned for next year featuring the Munich Philharmonic.
One of the three board members resigning in protest at that statement is minister of state Jos Geysels of Flemish green party Groen. This afternoon, actor and filmmaker Mohamed Ouachen also announced his resignation from the Bozar board.
Political choice
“Lahav Shani is not just any conductor,” he posted on social media. “He is the music director of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, a country whose actions have been labelled as genocide by Amnesty International and as apartheid by the International Court of Justice.” Ouachen believes that inviting Shani is a political choice in the current geopolitical context.
Geysels and Els Silvrants-Barclay also no longer wish to be part of the board of directors. They informed the board at the end of April that they were resigning from their posts.
Earlier, Inge Hermans of the socialist trade union ACOD Cultuur expressed her dissatisfaction with Shani’s appearance. “We believe we absolutely cannot agree to the booking of people who do not explicitly speak out against the tragedies unfolding in the Middle East,” she said on VRT NWS.
“Meanwhile, the conflict in the Middle East is escalating. The whole world is in turmoil and there is no broader reflection taking place.”
