Benjamin Law resigns from Sydney festival board over Israeli embassy sponsorship - The Guardian
Sydney festival board member Benjamin Law has resigned following the festival’s refusal to terminate a $20,000 sponsorship deal with the Israeli embassy.
In a statement issued by the festival on Friday afternoon, author and screenwriter Law said:
“Today’s decision to leave the board is mine alone. I am only comfortable departing now because I have every confidence in the remaining board directors for the process ahead, and I remain an ardent fan and supporter of Olivia Ansell’s vision of a reactivated and dynamic Sydney.”
Law is expected to release a full statement at 9am Saturday.
The festival’s announcement of Law’s departure was signed off by the board’s chairperson, David Kirk, who acknowledged that the festival had “faced unprecedented challenges this year”, specifically from Covid-19 and the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.
“This has put significantly increased pressure on all members of the board, the staff, and most importantly artists,” Kirk’s statement said.
Dozens of artists have pulled out of the 2022 Sydney festival over the $20,000 Israeli embassy sponsorship of the Sydney Dance Company production of Decadance, a work devised by Tel Aviv choreographer Ohad Naharin.
On Thursday, Kirk admitted in an interview with the Guardian that the board had been unaware of the sponsorship deal, brokered by festival management in July last year, until the festival program was published in late November with the Israeli embassy logo.
“It was just a miss,” he told the Guardian, adding he regretted the distress to artists that the sponsorship decision had caused.
Kirk ruled out the suggestion either himself or festival director Olivia Ansell should resign over the issue, which subjected many artists to pressure on social media either because they had decided to join the boycott, or because they had decided to continue with their scheduled performances.
Kirk said normal processes had been followed, but those processes would be reviewed independently in the wake of the controversy.
On Friday Kirk thanked Law for his service, describing him as “an insightful and much valued member” of the board since joining in 2020.
“As we’ve worked through the complexities of this year’s festival, he’s been a considered and constant voice as we collectively arrived at our position,” Kirk said.
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source: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/jan/14/benjamin-law-resigns-from-sydney-festival-board-over-israeli-embassy-sponsorship
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