Stop That Train congratulates the Committee “For a Pizzarotti-Free Naples!” for the work done to mobilize citizens in support of the Campaign and in establishing dialog with the local administration in order to encourage it to take a stand on the issue.

In re-launching the press release from Naples, we call on all local administrations to endorse the “Pizzarotti-Free Cities” campaign and pass similar resolutions against Pizzarotti, until it ceases involvement in projects in violation of international law.

http://stopthattrain.org/?p=599

PRESS RELEASE

NAPLES STANDS FOR PALESTINIAN RIGHTS
THE CITY COUNCIL CONDEMNS THE PARTICIPATION OF PIZZAROTTI IN THE TEL AVIV-JERUSALEM RAILWAY

On February 13, 2012, the City Council of Naples, Italy voted and approved by majority the motion presented by Council Members Fucito (FDS), Vasquez (N è t), Moxedano (IdV), Borriello (SEL), Fiale (PD) which “expresses moral and political condemnation of Pizzarotti & C for the firm’s participation in the construction of the A1 Jerusalem-Tel Aviv “. The new high-speed rail line, which is reserved “for the exclusive use of the Israeli population, runs for 6.5 km through the occupied West Bank, resulting in the confiscation of private property in the Palestinian villages of Beit Iksa and Beit Sourik, including agricultural land recognized by the Israeli Supreme Court as a ‘key resource for subsistence’ of the community.”

Therefore, “the A1 railway is in violation of International Humanitarian Law and International Treaties on Human Rights, including the Fourth Geneva Convention, particularly Article 53 which prohibits ‘[a]ny destruction by the Occupying Power of real or personal property belonging individually or collectively to private persons, or to the State, or to other public authorities, or to social or cooperative organizations…except where such destruction is rendered absolutely necessary by military operations’, in this case the destruction is the result of construction of permanent infrastructures inaccessible to the local population.”

With this symbolic act and commitment, the City Council has shown responsibility in acting for peace and justice, even within the narrow limits of local administrations, where, however, the increasingly pervasive ramifications of political choices condemned by international law are established and sustained and the responsible institutions lack the willpower to apply sanctions and stop them. Recently, the UN passed another nine resolutions with regards to Israel’s lack of respect for international law, but without any consequences.

The motion passed was also in response to citizens and organizations of civil society that for months mobilized for the campaign “For a Pizzarotti-Free Naples!” and collected signatures on a petition to exclude Pizzarotti from future contracts until its actions, in Italy and abroad, are in compliance with laws in defense of human rights, and specifically Palestinian rights. The Naples campaign is part of a larger campaign on a national and international level, for more information see: www.stopthattrain.org.

The decision of the Naples City Council is based on human rights and follows the example of the City Council of Rho (Milan), Italy as well as Deutsche Bahn, the German railway company, that withdrew from the A1 project in March 2011 on the recommendation of the German Ministry of Transport.

The City Council of Naples is, in fact, the second to have acted on the call from the national Stop That Train campaign to urge Pizzarotti to withdraw from the latest Israeli project to colonize the West Bank and, ultimately, indirectly force out the Palestinian civilian population. In fact, on November 30, 2011, Rho City Council approved a similar motion. Both measures commit the city councils to notify Pizzarotti & C. SpA of the contents of the motions passed.

The text also commits the Mayor and City Council of Naples “to consider the possibility of inclusion in the Rules for participation in tenders for the execution of municipal public works (…) a clause which excludes from participation companies and economic entities operating in violation of human rights and/or in violation of international law; and to include in all contracts of any kind, the mandatory clause ‘that the contract will be canceled if the contracting firm is involved in clear violation of international law and conventions.”

Thus, the Naples City Council gave new substance to their recognition of the State of Palestine, which first and foremost necessitates a stop to the continual erosion of the land on which it exists by the occupying power, Israel.

The Council also took the opportunity presented by this specific case to expand its commitment to international civilian vigilance through the ordinary acts is called upon to carry out.

We are proud of the Naples City Council, which demonstrated its capability to act on instances of respect for international law to protect the rights of the Palestinians that we brought forth to the Council.

We are satisfied with the fruitful dialogue we have established with the Council, while respecting each other’s roles.

We thank the entire City Council, who, in various ways, contributed to an act of international responsibility. We thank all Councilors who, through the motion on the A1 Tel Aviv-Jerusalem high-speed rail line and the involvement therein of Italian firm Pizzarotti, wished to reiterate our city’s commitment to peace, which can only flourish with justice. Going beyond mere words, the City Council, aware of the tangled web linking everyday actions of local administrators with international dynamics, has taken a bold position in relation to its responsibilities, converging with the commitment of many citizens of Naples who mobilize for the recognition of the rights of the Palestinian people and demand an end to occupation, colonization and apartheid.

Campaign “For a Pizzarotti-Free Naples!”

Notes

The Italian Coalition Stop That Train, comprising some 90 organizations, national and international, including Israel, as well as local groups throughout Italy, calls for the immediate withdrawal of Pizzarotti & C. S.p.A. from the Israeli project for the A1 railway.
http://stopthattrain.org

The A1 project and involvement of Pizzarotti are detailed in the report prepared by the Coalition of Women for Peace – Israel, Crossing the Line: The Tel Aviv-Jerusalem Fast Train
http://www.whoprofits.org/sites/default/files/Train%20A1.pdf

Text of the motion approved by the Naples City Council [in Italian]
http://stopthattrain.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/ordine-del-giorno-su-Pizzarotti-C..pdf

Press release “Rho City Council approves resolution condemning Pizzarotti ”
http://stopthattrain.org/?p=521

Original Link: http://stopthattrain.org/?p=599

Commemorating Land Day, the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) invites people of conscience around the world to unite for a BDS Global Day of Action on 30 March 2012 in solidarity with the Palestinian people’s struggle for freedom, justice and equality and for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) against Israel until it fully complies with its obligations under international law.

Let’s showcase our BDS successes through creative actions and media efforts and mobilize for the World Social Forum Free Palestine in November 2012.

First launched at the World Social Forum in 2009, the BDS Global Day of Action on 30 March coincides with Palestinian Land Day, initiated in 1976, when Israeli security forces shot and killed six Palestinian citizens of Israel and injured many in an attempt to crush popular protest against ongoing theft of Palestinian-owned land. Thirty-six years on, Israel continues to entrench its regime of occupation, colonization and apartheid and intensify its grave violations of the basic rights of Palestinians everywhere, whether those living under occupation, citizens of Israel, or the majority of the Palestinians, the refugees.

In the past year we have continued to witness a historic outburst of people power motivated by the desire for justice and freedom from tyranny and corporate greed. There is renewed belief in popular struggles as a means to achieve human emancipation and empowerment. Ordinary people have bravely stood up to the decades-old regimes of the Arab region, overcoming their fears and challenging their longstanding subjugation. Largely inspired by the Arab popular upheavals and earlier, similar uprisings across Latin America, people across the world have vocally “occupied” the centers of corporate exploitation or otherwise mobilized to demand social justice and an end to devastating wars. The ‘Arab Spring’ has given new impetus to the ongoing struggle against imperial hegemony in the global south and a new reach for the alternatives to neoliberalism. The global 99% are further uniting and connecting their struggles for justice, rights and dignity.

In this spirit of shared struggle, we invite Palestine solidarity activists and all those active in social justice and human rights causes worldwide to use this day of action to launch a far reaching mobilization effort towards the upcoming World Social Forum Free Palestine to be held in Porto Alegre, Brazil, in November 2012 and to take action to highlight and develop the key campaigns of our global movement.

The Forum will provide a unique space for discussion of a unified global strategy to uphold the inalienable rights of the Palestinian people, including the right to self-determination and end Israeli violations of international law.

Ideas for action

The BDS Global Day of Action is an opportunity to showcase the achievements of our diverse and global movement through visible and creative actions. The BNC calls on supporters of Palestinian rights to focus on developing thoroughly researched, broad based and strategic BDS campaigns that are based on the three operational principles of the movement: context-sensitivity, gradualness and sustainability.  Developing such a long-term vision is essential for the growth and sustainable success of the movement.

With these criteria in mind, the BNC suggests the following forms of action for this BDS Global Day of Action:

1. Organize a visible and creative protest, flash mob or action that promotes an existing long-term campaign to a new audience;

2. Prepare outreach meetings or events or media initiatives that seek to bring BDS to new audiences;

3. Launch mobilization initiatives for the WSF Free Palestine, to be held in late November in Port Alegre, Brazil. Consider announcing the formation of national, regional or sector mobilizing committees and to start public and media outreach. The mobilizing committees for the WSF Free Palestine serve to mobilize and to discuss how to use this opportunity to strengthen local solidarity efforts and provide them with global reach and exposure. More information here.

4. Where possible, use the Global BDS Day of Action as a launching pad for new BDS campaign initiatives;

5. Call on governments to implement incremental sanctions against Israel, by heeding the call from Palestinian civil society for a military embargo on Israel or by suspending free trade agreements or other agreements;

6. Publicize, promote and make use of the recently published report issued by EU heads of mission to occupied Jerusalem calling for preventing and discouraging “financial transactions in support of [Israeli] settlement activity.” This can be accurately interpreted as a call for a ban on colonial settlement products from entering the EU market and for effective measures against all actors implicated in Israel’s colonization of East Jerusalem and the rest of the OPT.

Join the BDS Global Day of Action on Land Day, 30 March 2012!

For information on how to join this global event and how to develop ongoing BDS action in your country, organization and network, please contact the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) at: bdsdayofaction@bdsmovement.net.

We’ll be highlighting all of the day’s actions on the bdsmovement.net website, so please send any information about planned actions ahead of time to bdsdayofaction@bdsmovement.net.

On the day itself, let’s all use Twitter hashtag #bds to promote our actions and don’t forget to follow @bdsmovement to follow the action as it unfolds!

For further inspiration:

BDS Global Day of Action 2011 press release
BDS Global Day of Action 2010 press release

Last fall, the Conservative government announced plans to expand the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA), a set of policies that serves to further legitimize Israeli occupation and apartheid, and deepen Canadian corporate and state involvement in Israeli racism and colonialism.

CIFTA, which took effect in January 1997, covers geographical areas over which Israel maintains military control (the West Bank and Gaza), and does not respect internationally-recognized borders. As such, it effectively legitimizes Israeli territorial control over all of Palestine. Furthermore, a portion of the trade covered in CIFTA (particularly in the agricultural sector) is the result of illegal settlement activity and production in industrial zones in the West Bank settlements. A failure to distinguish between Palestinian goods produced in the occupied territories reinforces the colonial logic that such production is Israeli economic activity, and arguably provides support for the expansion of its colonies.

In Canada, both state and corporate support for Israel has increased dramatically. Since January 1997, CIFTA has eliminated tariffs on all industrial products manufactured in Canada and Israel as well as reducing or eliminating duties on various agricultural and fisheries products. During this period, trade between Canada and Israel doubled from $507 million in 1996 to $1.4 billion in 2010, according to the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. 1

Israel’s status as an apartheid state -defined under the 1973 International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid as “establishing and maintaining domination by one racial group of persons over any other racial group of persons and systematically oppressing them” -has been affirmed across countless legal and political spheres. 2

Most recently, the Russell Tribunal on Palestine Cape Town session – an International People’s Tribunal created by a large group of citizens involved in the promotion of peace and justice in the Middle East – concluded that “Israel’s rule over the Palestinian people, wherever they reside, collectively amounts to a single integrated regime of apartheid.” 3 4 5 As such, the further expansion of CIFTA serves to increase Canadian involvement in Israeli racism and colonialism, and increasingly legitimize Israeli apartheid and occupation.

The expansion of CIFTA comes at a time where other free trade and investment agreements with Israel are coming under pressure from civil society and legal experts around the world. One such FTA is the European Union-Israel Association Agreement (EUIAA). Established in June 2000, the EUIAA opened the door for the export of illegal settlement products, and more broadly supporting and legitimizing the illegal occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem. This has been accomplished by allowing settlement products or goods originating from the occupied territories to be labeled as Israeli, in a clear violation Palestinian rights.

In March 2010, in response to this trade agreement, the Court of Justice of the European Union ruled that settlement products shouldn’t receive preferential customs duties exemptions under the EUIAA. 6 7

Although Israel initially refused to cooperate in identifying whether goods came from settlements, it conceded by identifying products’ origin by use of a postal code (recognizing that the EU does not have the capacity to check if all the goods are allocated the correct customs status). Similarly, CIFTA lacks any mechanisms to prevent Canada from providing similar preferential trade treatment to settlement products.

Furthermore, the European Union bends its own rules and laws to accommodate Israel’s ongoing violation of international law. In fact, Article 2 of the EUIAA states that the relationship between Israel and the EU is based on a mutual respect of international law and human rights. However, Israel’s violation of international human rights and utter disdain for the international community continues. On July 9, 2004, The International Court of Justice ruled that the Apartheid Wall is illegal under international law. 8 9

If the relationship between Israel and the EU (within the context of the EUIAA) is based on a mutual respect of international law and human rights, and Israel continues to be an egregious violator of both, why has the agreement not been suspended?

The proposed expansion of the Canada Israel Free Trade Agreement will broaden the scope of the agreement to cover new areas, particularly in the realm of science and technology. In an October 10, 2010 Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada (DFAIT) press release, former International Trade Minister Peter Van Loan explained: “there are a great many opportunities for cooperation between Israel and Canada when it comes to the commercialization of science….Canada and Israel can be even more effective partners in the areas of technology collaboration, research and development, and innovation commercialization.” 10

This statement points to the means by which the expansion of this FTA reaffirms Canadian state and corporate complicity in Israeli research and development that supports the illegal military occupation. Through state-subsidized research and development funding and lower tariffs, CIFTA allows Canadian and Israeli companies to profit heavily. MTI Engineering Ltd., an Israeli company, for instance, received subsidies for naval surveillance research, and was awarded major contracts for the Israeli Ministry of Defense 11. Such technology is used to deny basic freedom of movement for Palestinians through technologies that are used for surveillance of Palestinians to enforce the illegal blockade of the Gaza strip, and to surveil Palestinians along the apartheid wall, in the West Bank.

The expansion of CIFTA must also be viewed within the context of the Conservative government’s growing support for Israeli apartheid. After their election victory in 2006, Harper and the Conservatives have been one of Israel’s strongest international allies. In 2006, the Conservatives strongly backed the Israeli attack on Lebanon, and moved quickly to support the 2008/2009 war on Gaza as well as the ongoing military siege on the Gazan people. Not only has the Canadian government supported Israeli war crimes, but it has gone so far as to publicly celebrate them.

Yet even as the Conservative majority government continues to vigorously support Israeli apartheid politically and economically, community groups, trade union, and solidarity activists in Canada have responded to the 2005 call made by over 170 Palestinian civil society organizations for a comprehensive campaign to isolate Israeli Apartheid through Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS).

In recent years, support for the BDS movement has grown decisively across Canada. Many trade unions including the CSN-CCMM in Quebec, the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW), The New Brunswick Federation of Labour, and the Prince Edward Island Federation of Labour are now actively supporting the movement. Active campaigns for divestment from companies involved in the military occupation of the West Bank and Gaza strip are growing at Carleton University and University of Toronto. This grassroots campaign for Palestinian freedom has also been publicly backed by over 500 artists in Montreal 12, and over 400 hundred university and college faculty members across Canada. 13

Dismantling the Canada Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA) is a key step for all who support the Palestinian liberation struggle, as the bilateral trade agreement codifies Canadian complicity and support for Israeli apartheid.

Please join us in demanding an end to all economic and political support for Israeli Apartheid and those Canadian and Israeli corporations who profit off of the continued systemic colonialism, racism and apartheid regime imposed upon Palestinians.

To support our call for an end to the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement and its further expansion, you can:

1. Urge your organization to send a letter or statement to the Department of Foreign and International Affairs opposing CIFTA and its planned expansion, or write one yourself:

Trade Negotiations Consultations (Israel)
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada
Trade Policy and Negotiations Division I (TPE)
Lester B. Pearson Building
125 Sussex Drive, Ottawa, ON K1A 0G2
Fax: 613-944-3214
Email: consultations(at)international.gc.ca

2. Sign on to this Tadamon! statement by emailing: info(at)tadamon.ca

3. Contact your local Member of Parliament and demand the Canadian Israeli Free Trade Agreement be suspended. You can find your local Member of Parliament by searching here

4. Urge your organization, union, student union, or community group to join the growing campaign for Boycott Divestment and Sanctions called for by 170 Palestinian organizations or get involved in existing campaigns for BDS in your local city or town.

statement endorsed by

Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW)
Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid – Toronto
Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid – Winnipeg
Boycott Israeli Apartheid Campaign – Vancouver
Independent Jewish Voices – Canada
Regina Solidarity Group
Coalition for Justice in Palestine – UQAM
Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights (SPHR) – Concordia
Palestinian and Jewish Unity (PAJU) – Montreal

for more information about the campaign

Boycott Divestment and Sanctions -Boycott National Committee in Palestine
www.bdsmovement.net

Palestinian Grassroots Anti-Apartheid Wall Campaign
www.stopthewall.org

Palestinian Campaign for the Academic & Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI)
www.pacbi.org

for more info on Tadamon!
info(at)tadamon.ca | 514 664 1036

———————————————-

[1] http://www.international.gc.ca/trade-agreements-accords-commerciaux/agr-acc/israel/index.aspx?lang=en&view=d

[2] http://www.jus.uio.no/english/services/library/treaties/02/2-10/crime-apartheid.xml

[3] http://www.russelltribunalonpalestine.com/en/sessions/south-africa/south-africa-session-%e2%80%94-full-findings/cape-town-session-summary-of-findings

[4] http://www.russelltribunalonpalestine.com/en/

[5] For more information about Israel’s apartheid practices, visit :  http://www.divestmentproject.org/apartheid_laws.shtml

[6] http://www.bdsmovement.net/2010/bnc-welcomes-landmark-eu-court-ruling-calls-for-intensifying-grassroots-bds-666

[7] http://curia.europa.eu/jcms/upload/docs/application/pdf/2010-02/cp100014en.pdf
[8] http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/131/1671.pdf

[9] http://www.stopthewall.org

[10] http://www.international.gc.ca/media_commerce/comm/news-communiques/2010/330.aspx?lang=eng&view=dand
[11] http://www.ciirdf.ca/_files/file.php?fileid=filezNzoJLvoun&filename=file_1_Innovative_Surveillance_System_Boat_Monitoring_Bilingual_Oct6_2009.pdf
[12] http://www.tadamon.ca/post/582
[13] http://www.caiaweb.org/committees/faculty-for-palestine/

Original Link: http://www.tadamon.ca/post/9814

Students Against Israeli Apartheid – Regina (SAIA) is pleased to announce that a motion was passed at the University of Regina Student Union AGM to support the Palestinian call for boycotts, divestments and sanctions (BDS) as a means of pressuring Israel to comply with international and human rights law. This resolution is a huge first step towards the full divestment of the University of Regina from companies complicit with the human rights violations currently taking place in Palestine. Plans are already in motion for SAIA, together with the University of Regina Student Union (URSU) and other members of the community, to begin investigating URSU’s portfolio for companies that support or profit from Israeli war crimes, as well as collectively launching an education campaign on campus about the issue.

SAIA would like to thank everyone who came out to vote for the resolution and all those who have been supporting and organizing around this issue within the community. There will be a lot of work to do before the end of the school year – if anyone is interested in joining the group please feel free to contact us at saiauofr@gmail.com. Thanks for all the support!

Sincerely,

SAIA Regina

RESOLUTION TO JOIN THE GLOBAL MOVEMENT IN SUPPORT OF PALESTINIAN RIGHTS

February 1, 2012

WHERAS Israel is currently in defiance of over 30 UN Security Council Resolutions pertaining to its illegal military occupation of Palestine and is in flagrant violation of international humanitarian law under the Geneva Conventions, as affirmed by the International Court of Justice in 2004;

WHEREAS Israel systematically obstructs Palestinian students’ right to education through military checkpoints and roadblocks, the illegal apartheid wall, and the frequent closure of cities, routinely preventing thousands of students and teachers from reaching their schools and universities;

WHEREAS on July 9, 2005, 171 Palestinian organizations called upon people of conscience around the world to implement a global campaign of boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) against Israel, similar to those applied to South Africa in the apartheid era;

WHEREAS students around the world, from York to Concordia, Carleton, UC Berkeley, McGill, the University of Toronto and New York University have been at the forefront of this global movement by campaigning for divestment of university funds from companies that support or profit from Israel’s illegal occupation and systematic denial of Palestinian human rights;

BE IT RESOLVED THAT the University of Regina Student Union:

Recognize that the right to education is a fundamental human right that is basic to human freedom;

Join student organizations around the globe by endorsing the 2005 call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions from Palestinian civil society;

Commit to identifying and divesting from companies that support or profit from Israeli war crimes, occupation and oppression;

Affirm that students have a vital role in supporting struggles for social justice, and stand in solidarity with Palestinians’ struggle for self-determination and freedom.

Original Link: http://reginasolidaritygroup.com/news/saia-response-to-agm/

Original Link: http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/nora/bds-proposal-wins-big-occupy-oakland

As 2012 begins, a French activist looks at the short history of the French BDS movement, which mobilized in the wake of the Israeli assalt on Gaza, Operation Cast Lead. 

French BDSers on the march

The birth of a movement (January 2009 – June 2009)

Up until 2008, the 2005 call for boycott, divestment, and sanctions [BDS] against Israel that had been issued by the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC) was debated and argued in France, but it was only an option on the French political activist scene. The war on Gaza, in the winter of 2008-2009, was the major event that mobilized supporters of the boycott and silenced the critics. So far, the mobilization in France during major Israeli attacks had seemed primarily emotional, but the war on Gaza [Operation Cast Lead] was a turning point in awareness. It helped activists understand the Oslo Accords policy and the “peace process” as nothing but a means to continue the occupation and building settlements.

After the emotional shock [of Cast Lead], [people were willing to make a strong committment and to unite behind the cause], especially in neighborhood communities (suburbs of large French cities), including Muslims and youth, girls and boys. Those relatively new players will play a key role in building the BDS movement and in the type of actions and directions that will be taken.

Because of the war crimes, the target was immediately identified as the State of Israel, and its breaking the law, in agreement with the BNC call, and actions started spontaneously. The first supermarket actions were organized by EuroPalestine in Paris, then spread out all over France, organized by local committees. Internet (including videos posted on youtube) has helped a lot in disseminating information and modes of intervention, but also for recruiting people to join the actions. It is in the streets and during those actions, where activists from different organizations blended together with many unorganized people, that the French BDS movement has emerged.

At that point, the largest coalition for Palestine in France was the CNPJDPI (Collectif national pour une paix juste et durable entre Palestiniens et Israéliens), that was born after the Oslo process, around the “two state solution” and that had mobilized against Israeli aggressions since 2002, including against the [separation barrier] or the [closure of Gaza]. But misgivings began to appear in the CNPJDPI about the type of BDS to implement.

In order not to limit the political significance of the Palestinian BDS call, or to slow down the movement that had emerged in the streets, a handful of associations (CCIPPP (Campagne Civile Internationale de Protection du Peuple Palestinien), GP (Génération Palestine), GUPS (Union Générale des étudiants Palestiniens) and UJFP (Union Juive Française pour la Paix) gathered to coordinate the movement on a national level. At the end of June 2009, they wrote a call and a charter, and the Campagne BDS France (BDSF) was born.

Two attitudes towards the BDS call

The significance of the BNC call is not so much in the actions it advocates than in the claims for the fundamental rights of the three components of the Palestinian people, in contrast with the Oslo “peace process”. Those rights are not reducible to the end of colonization, and they are incompatible with the existence of a Jewish State which practices apartheid, as was just confirmed by the Russell Tribunal for Palestine. Therefore, the nature of the State of Israel becomes the central issue that determines the positions about BDS and about boycott in particular. Two sides make up the French landscape on BDS:

On one side, colonization is identified as the central cause of the Palestinian problem, and the creation of a Palestinian State within the borders of 1967 (with Jerusalem as its capital) as the solution. This side is strongly represented in the CNPJDPI. It is heterogeneous and composed of Zionist leftist, non-Zionist and even some anti-Zionist organizations. By conviction, or by fear of being called anti-Semites, some of these organizations refuse to target the State of Israel or to publicly criticize it. They advocate a strict boycott of the “settlement products”, or the boycott of “all products” merely because of lack of traceability, thus obscuring the link between the colonies and the colonial nature of the State.

On the other side, those who share the strategic vision of the BNC call–[which includes, among other things, the right of return for Palestinian refugees]–and who work with the European BNC representatives, are mostly gathered in BDSF. From the beginning, their banners and T-shirts clearly display “Boycott Apartheid Israel”.

By respecting the diversity of positions among its organizations and by its efficiency, BDSF was able to increase the dynamism of the whole movement (including among some committee members and activists of the first side!). A very flexible network, BDSF has become the main strength of the larger BDS movement in France.

Two organizations involved in the solidarity with Palestine have decided to develop their own BDS campaigns. After contributing to the creation of BDSF, EuroPalestine has chosen to conduct its activities independently. AFPS (Association France Palestine Solidarité), which advocates the boycott of settlement products only, is nevertheless campaigning against Sodastream and it has also filed a suit against Veolia (with the Palestinian Authority), for its participation in the Jerusalem light rail.

We nevertheless emphasize that all sides of the BDS movement have united and rallied to lead an exemplary battle to defend all the activists that were sued for their participation in BDS actions.

The French BDS Campaign (2009-2012)

The first period was focused mainly on the boycott of Israeli products (Ahava, Agrexco…) and events (book fairs, weapon fairs…), or collaborating businesses (Dexia, Veolia…), in Paris or the rest of France, the main national target being the French supermarket chain “Carrefour”. New fronts have since be opened, in particular in the cultural field.

We cannot mention BDS in France without mentioning the work of the Coalition against Agrexco (CCA) of which BDSF has been a partner all the way. The CCA had immediately grasped the importance of making it a European struggle, and it has been a laboratory of BDS and of international solidarity. As the first great BDS battle in France and in Europe against an Israeli company, it had the merit of “relocating” international solidarity that is usually exogenous (we are in solidarity with Palestinians over there), into actions against a target that is over here, in France and in Europe. This battle was led together with the BNC who was instrumental in refocusing the struggle against the company as a whole (products being the way to get to the broader target). This battle also showed that the agricultural question, which includes questions of land, water and methods of production, goes well beyond food, and that it was at the heart of environmental and economical problems of our time. Finally, the CCA imposed an unprecedented symbolic defeat to the Israeli colonial ideology.

The future of the French BDS movement: new issues and challenges

Because the 2005 BNC call is addressed to civil societies around the world, one is tempted to only hear the message that is intended to us. But this call is also the result of an intense Palestinian work without which it would have been impossible. It reveals the existence of a Palestinian civil society that includes political movements, religious and social groups that stand against the occupation and apartheid. A civil society that, noting the failure of the Oslo “peace process”, has been able to [find new strategies], aiming at the recognition and realization of the fundamental rights of the three components of the Palestinian people. It has also laid the groundwork for a possible reorganization of the Palestinian political landscape, refocused on these fundamental rights. If we want to be in line with this emerging Palestinian civil society, and not just with one or another of the mainstream Palestinian political movements, we cannot ignore these changes.

The creation in June 2009 of the “Campagne BDS France” was the first political and practical response to these transformations. An answer widely validated today by 37 national and 19 local committees. Our responsibilities are all the more important, and we have to answer the following questions:

- How can we carry out actions for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel in all fields, together with the broader French civil society, celebrities and institutions in France?

- How can we strengthen the links with the BNC, with Boycott from Within, and with other international campaigns?

- How can we articulate, in a pedagogical way, the claim for the fundamental rights of the three components of the Palestinian people, within our BDS actions?

- How can we convince all the solidarity movement with Palestine in France of the centrality of the BDS strategy, the necessary reorganization around it, and how can we find connections between the current different levels of commitment in BDS?

These are the issues and exciting challenges for the BDS campaign in France in early 2012.

For more information, see BDS France.

Original Link: http://www.alternativenews.org/english/index.php/topics/economy-of-the-occupation/4104-short-history-of-bds-in-france

Nothing could be further from the truth.

In fact, we are coming together to push forward an inclusive movement that supports nonviolent action to promote the human rights of the Palestinian people, because only full respect for these rights can lead to peace. Today, millions of Palestinians live without basic rights under Israeli rule. This intolerable situation is at the root of problems that affect the whole world.

People everywhere, whether they consider themselves “pro-Israel” or “pro-Palestinian” or both, want to see justice and peace. Yet, in recent years, the U.S.-brokered peace process has seen failure after failure.

Amid election-year politics, President Obama and his Republican rivals are pledging ever more unconditional support for Israel, even as Israel openly flouts U.N. resolutions and U.S. policy by building Jewish-only settlements on Palestinian land and depriving Palestinians of their rights, including hundreds of children who languish in Israeli military prisons.

There’s no chance that the United States will use the billions of dollars it gives Israel in aid as leverage to compel an end to these practices and respect for Palestinian rights. So should we just give up?

The answer from Palestinian civil society is a clear “no.” All of us can play a role in ending this terrible situation and securing equal rights for Palestinians rather than superior rights for Jewish Israelis.

In 2004, the International Court of Justice in the Hague, Netherlands, ruled that the wall Israel built across Palestinian lands in the occupied West Bank was illegal and was aimed at confiscating more land. Frustrated by the inaction of governments, 170 Palestinian civil society organizations, including labor unions, student groups, and cultural and social organizations, came together to issue the Palestinian call for Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) on Israel in 2005.

Modeled explicitly on the tactics used to help end apartheid in South Africa, Palestinians urge that Israel be sanctioned until it respects Palestinian rights and international law in three specific ways: an end to the occupation of all Palestinian lands seized by Israel in 1967; full equality for Palestinian citizens of Israel; and full respect for the rights of Palestinian refugees.

This call doesn’t prescribe a specific political solution – for example, a single democratic state, or a two-state solution – but it recognizes that full rights have to be at the core of any resolution. And implementing these rights does not threaten any legitimate rights of Israelis, unless one considers discrimination against Palestinians simply because they are not Jews to be a “right.” In just the same way, granting full legal and political rights to African Americans in the United States did not threaten any legitimate rights of white citizens.

The all-too-frequent claim that the BDS goal is to “destroy Israel” or “incite violence” – rather than win rights – or that it is motivated by “anti-Semitism,” is just as offensive and simplistic as saying that participants in the Montgomery bus boycott wanted to “destroy Alabama” and simply “hated white people.”

And just like that celebrated bus boycott, BDS is not an end in itself; it is a tactic designed to bring about change. As Archbishop Desmond Tutu wrote in support of a divestment effort on behalf of Palestinian rights, “We could not have won our freedom in South Africa without the solidarity of people around the world who adopted nonviolent methods to pressure governments and corporations to end their support for the apartheid regime. Faith-based groups, unions, students, and consumers organized on a grassroots level and catalyzed a global wave of divestment, ultimately contributing to the collapse of apartheid.”

But let us remember that in the 1980s, not everyone supported sanctions on South Africa. President Ronald Reagan and British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher were strongly opposed to sanctions and insisted on “constructive dialogue” that went nowhere, just like the U.S.-brokered Middle East peace process. What helped turn the tide in the United States was a young member of Congress who broke ranks with Reagan to support boycott and sanctions on the apartheid regime. His name was Newt Gingrich.

Tragically, Gingrich today notoriously contends that the Palestinians are an “invented people” – a way of suggesting they have no rights, and certainly no claim to the land they’ve tended since long before Israel existed.

As the growth of such extremist rhetoric diminishes the chances for a constructive U.S. role, it is all the more important that we as citizens take action. That’s what our conference is about, and everyone who shares a belief in human equality is welcome to attend.

Ali Abunimah is the author of One Country: A Bold Proposal to End the Israeli-Palestinian Impasse. The BDS conference is scheduled for Friday to Sunday at the University of Pennsylvania.

Original Link: http://articles.philly.com/2012-01-29/news/30676106_1_palestinian-rights-human-rights-jewish-israelis

The Jewish National Fund has designated Sunday 5th February as ‘Green Sunday’, when it encourages people to donate money to ‘plant trees in Israel’.  The JNF claims to have environmental objectives.  Don’t be taken in.  The JNF’s tree planting is a cover for ethnic cleansing.

The JNF exists to acquire land in Israel/Palestine for the sole use of Jewish people.  For more than 100 years, the JNF has been complicit in expulsions of Palestinians from their homes, the destruction of their villages and prevention of the return of refugees – by planting trees over the remnants of the destroyed homes.

Environmentalists are asked to use the opportunity of the JNF’s ‘Green Sunday’ to take a stand against this greenwash, when ethnic cleansing masquerades as environmental action.  Don’t support the JNF’s ‘Green Sunday’, but publicly denounce the JNF.

Environmental groups throughout the world are adding their support to the international call from Palestinian civil society to Stop the JNF.

Don’t support the JNF’s ‘Green Sunday’. Instead, use the opportunity to:

- Endorse the call against the JNF
- Read the Open Letter to Environmentalists by Eurig Scandrett
- Read the testimony from Friends of the Earth Palestine
- Protest the JNF’s presence at environmental events such as Rio+20 this year
- Help the ecological rehabilitation of Palestine by planting a tree in Palestine
- Find out more about the JNF’s greenwash from the e-book Greenwashing Apartheid: The Jewish National Fund’s Environmental Cover Up
- Take action – get involved in Stop the JNF through www.stopthejnf.org and by emailing info@stopthejnf.org
- If you are involved in environmental justice, contact us at environment@stopthejnf.org

Original Link: http://www.stopthejnf.org/actionalerts_5feb2012.html