British Publisher, Citing Academic Boycott, Won't Sell Book to Israeli University By HAIM WATZMAN
Jerusalem
St. Jerome Publishing, in Britain, has refused to sell a book it publishes to an Israeli university, as part of the company's boycott of Israeli academic institutions.
St. Jerome, an academic publisher specializing in translation studies, is owned by Mona Baker, a member of the faculty of the University of Manchester. In June, Ms. Baker dismissed two Israeli scholars from the boards of academic journals published by St. Jerome. (See an article from The Chronicle, July 5.)
Mina Teicher, vice president for research at Bar-Ilan University, said that the university had ordered a copy of an introductory translation-studies book called The Map, by Jenny Williams and Andrew Chestman. In response, the university received a letter from St. Jerome stating that, because of the actions of the Israeli government, the publisher could not supply the book to an Israeli institution.
Ms. Teicher said that the university had responded with a letter stating that it would no longer order books from St. Jerome.
She said that the university had not encountered any similar action from any other publisher.
"I hope this phenomenon does not spread," she added.
A spokesman for St. Jerome confirmed that the press was not selling books to Israeli institutions, citing the academic boycott declared by some critics of Israel's military actions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
The university had ordered the book at the request of Miriam Shlesinger, who was dismissed by Ms. Baker from the editorial board of The Translator: Studies in Intercultural Communication. Ms. Shlesinger said that she had obtained the book through other channels.
Mr. Chestman, co-author of the book and a member of the English department at the University of Helsinki, did not respond directly to an e-mail message asking him whether or not he agreed with his publisher's boycott policy.
"I shall personally give a copy of the book to an Israeli colleague later this month," he wrote in reply. "But I condemn Israeli policy in Palestine."