WELCOME FROM THE ZF CHAIRMAN Dear friends, Thank you for joining us for this year’s Balfour Lecture our annual opportunity to commemorate one of the most important milestones in Zionist history. Just a few years short of a century ago, Lord Arthur Balfour forwarded on his correspondence to the Zionist Federation, publicly affirming the commitment of the British government to the re-establishment of a Jewish homeland. We come together tonight to celebrate both that correspondence - the Balfour Declaration - and Israel itself. But we know that to celebrate them is not enough. We are all aware that we have to be prepared to defend them too. In the last few months we have once again seen innocent Israelis under attack. But the physical threats in our homeland are echoed, amplified and even justified by the ideological attacks abroad. The undeniable bias against Israel - as revealed by the countless media reports that have portrayed Palestinian terrorists as the victims of violence, as opposed to the perpetrators of it - is a challenge that we must face up to. And the campaign to censor any Israeli representation in this country is matched only by the campaign to whitewash those who would do us harm. How can it be that Jewish artists, scientists and politicians are threatened with boycotts, and yet Hamas and Hezbollah flags are flown freely outside Number 10? The ZF is here to stand up to these threats and say that enough is enough. The ZF sees both the Balfour Declaration and Israel itself as part of our heritage, a heritage that we are determined to defend, promote and celebrate. But we can’t do it without your help. So please, if you can, support our invaluable work. Thank you, and enjoy the evening!
Paul Charney, ZF Chairman
ZF BALFOUR LECTURE SPEAKER 2015 ALAN DERSHOWITZ Professor Alan Dershowitz is one of the most famous Israel advocates alive today, celebrated both for his storied legal career and his unrelenting support for the Jewish state. Showing a prodigal talent for legal issues from a young age, Dershowitz made history at Harvard University by becoming its youngest ever full professor of law at only 28. He has been involved in many high profile cases, including the OJ Simpson trial, and authored several books based on his experiences. But it is his powerful contributions to the field of Israel advocacy that have shown him to be arguably the most able champion of the Jewish state since Abba Eban. He has brought all of his scholarly wisdom and court-room pugnacity to bear on this issue, challenging the delegitimization of Israel long before the term had even been coined. It is a huge honour and privilege to be hosting Professor Dershowitz tonight at the Balfour Lecture, and we are sure you will enjoy what will no doubt be an exceptional evening.
IN CONVERSATION WITH BARONESS RUTH DEECH Baroness Ruth Deech is a British academic, lawyer and bioethicist who has sat as a Crossbench peer in the House of Lords since 2005. Having studied law at St Anne’s College, she was a tutorial fellow there between 1970 and 1991 until she was elected principal, a position she retained until her retirement in 2004. Her many and varied other positions have included: serving as a Senior Proctor of Oxford University; being appointed as a Governor of the BBC; and becoming the first Independent Adjudicator for Higher Education. We’re delighted that Baroness Deech, one of the most distinguished and high-profile supporters of Israel in the UK, has agreed to take part in tonight’s conversation with Professor Dershowitz.
ZF EVENTS ACROSS 2015 A SELECTION OF SNAPSHOTS FROM SOME OF MANY EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES WE’VE ORGANISED THIS YEAR Business Breakfast, May 2015 Business Breakfast, May 2015
Israel’s May 20152015 Israel’s6767Birthday, Birthday, May
Lobby Day,February February 2015 Lobby Day, 2015
Science 2015 ScienceDay, Day,January January 2015
Legal February 20152015 LegalTour TourofofIsrael, Israel, February
Young Leadership to Israel, June 2015 Countering ‘The Trip Siege’, July 2015
GalaAnnual Dinner,Gala A Tribute to Shimon Peres May 2015 ZF Dinner, May 2015
Crossing the March 20152015 Crossing theLine, Line, March
Countering ‘The Siege’, July 2015
ZF National Speaker Tour , October 2015
Israel Advocacy Training Day, Cardiff, July 2015
Annual Israel Seminar, October 2015