Boycott Israeli Products - links for campaigners

Twinning is about highlighting the humanitarian plight of the Palestinians in our twinned communities. Although we are not about boycott campaigns, many groups actively support boycott campaigns in protest at Palestinian farmers being unable to sell their goods, having their lands seized for "security reasons" or to build Jewish only towns on their lands.

Terms like “boycott” (by individuals) and “sanctions” (by Governments) are often used loosely and interchangeably to refer to a variety of strategies to apply moral and economic pressure. There are three main strands - sanctions, divestment and boycott - and the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions (ICAHD - www.icahd.org/eng, www.icahduk.org) provides a useful definition in their call for selective sanctions:

(1) Sanctions, defined overall as “penalties, specified or in the form of moral pressure, applied against a country guilty of egregious violations of human rights, international law and UN resolutions, intended to bring that country back into compliance with international norms.” Since they must be imposed by governments, regional associations (such as the EU or SEAC) or the UN, the power to actually apply sanctions falls outside of civil society. Nevertheless, governments can be prodded in that direction – and the “prodding” itself constitutes an important form of conscious-raising and moral pressure.

(2) Divestment, the withdrawal of investments in companies doing business with the offending country or directly involved in violating human rights and international law;

(3) Boycott, the voluntary refraining from purchasing the products of the offending country or allowing its companies, institutions, representatives or even professionals from participating in international intercourse.

Wow! An amazing response from an Israeli estate agent selling houses in an illegal settlement, in reply to a letter of complaint.

Boycott campaigns
	association-belgo-palestinienne.be	-
-	apjp.org	Architects and Planners for Justice in Palestine (APJP) is an independent international pressure group of design professionals. We are seeking international support for an ethical and just practice for our professions in Palestine and the Occupied Territories. We oppose the building of such projects as the illegal settlements, check points, settler–only highways and above all the Separation Wall.
	bigcampaign.org	UK based boycott Israeli Goods campaign
	boycottmovement.net	-
	bds-palestine.net	-
-	bds-info.ch	Swiss Boycott Group
	boikottisrael.no	'Boycott Israel' was initiated by a group of Palestine sympathizers in February 2001. We were many that had had enough of the scandalous and hostile policy towards the Palestinians, a line of politics that led to the Al-Aqsa intifada that broke out in September 2000. A lot of people in Norway participated in the demonstrations and campaigns, but we feel it is necessary to take it one step further.
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	boycottisrael.co.uk	Set up for two main purposes: - To help people who want to boycott produce from Israel and illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank and Gaza, by providing sources of information about companies, products etc. - To act as an educational resource... many people have not the foggiest idea of the war crimes, human rights abuses and flagrant breaches of international humanitarian law that are regularly committed by the Israeli Government and its armed forces (the IDF) in the what remains of Palestine.
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	bricup.org.uk	British Committee for the Universities of Palestine
	divest-from-israel-campaign.org	-
	inminds.co.uk (boycott-brands) Poster - baby Poste - children	-
-	israels60thbirthday.com	Excellent source of information regarding events for the 60th Anniversary of Israel's founding.

	jai-pal.org	-
	oxfam.org.uk	-
	pacbi.org	-
	divestmentproject.org	-
	catdestroyshomes.org	-
	stoparmingisrael.org	The Stop Arming Israel was set up in July 2006 to campaign for an end the UK arms trade with Israel.
	sustaincampaign.org	Stop U.S. Tax-funded Aid to Israel Now! SUSTAIN is a non-hierarchical, grassroots organization committed to supporting and sustaining the Palestinian movement for justice, human rights and self-determination. The United States government supports Israeli violations of Palestinian national and human rights militarily, economically, and ideologically. The most tangible form of this support is the massive tax-funded aid that goes to Israel. We are committed to building a campaign against US military and economic aid to Israel so that U.S. tax-dollars do not support the abuse of human rights.
	ucdivest.org	University of California Divestment
	nowall.org.uk	War on Want
Israeli groups in favour of boycotts of one sort or another
	seruv.org.il	Courage to Refuse - Israeli army members
	refusersolidarity.net	Refuser Solidarity Network
-	shministim.org	SHMINISTIM - Israeli Youth Refusal Movement
	boycott-occupation.mahost.org	Israeli Citizens for BDS In support of Boycott Divestment and Sanctions on Israel to End the Occupation
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Anti Boycott groups - worth visiting to find out what their arguments are
	academics-for-israel.org	Amazing comments on index page. Useful links under "News Letters". Quote "The perpetrators of this “ new “ anti-Semitism are the Palestinian and Arab political leadership, Islamic fundamentalists, political opportunists, neo – Nazis, extreme fascists, parts of the media, Arab influenced international institutions and self hating Jews." - Manfred Gerstenfeld"
	adl.org	Anti Defamation League. "The immediate object of the League is to stop, by appeals to reason and conscience and, if necessary, by appeals to law, the defamation of the Jewish people. Its ultimate purpose is to secure justice and fair treatment to all citizens alike and to put an end forever to unjust and unfair discrimination against and ridicule of any sect or body of citizens." ADL Charter - October 1913
	bicom.org.uk	Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre.
	engageonline.org.uk	Engage - useful forum arguments. "We are a resource for the monitoring and the critique of left and liberal antisemitism"
	stoptheboycott.org	The main anti boycott campaign. Clearly well funded. Set up by the Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre (BICOM) and the Fair Play Campaign Group. They launched a cross-communal campaign to fight moves for an academic boycott by the University and College Union (UCU) and other manifestations of anti-Israel boycotts. The campaign kicked off with full-page advertisements in The Times and The Guardian on 13 June 2007.

The EU Preferential Trade Agreement with Israel allows it to export its products to EU countries easily.

Supermarkets

- www.asda.co.uk

- www.morrisons.co.uk. Customer Service Department, Wm Morrison Supermarkets plc

J41 Industrial Estate, Carr Gate. Wakefield. WF2 0XF

Tel: 01924 870000 and ask for the Customer Service Department.

- www.sainsburys.co.uk

- www.tesco.com

- www.waitrose.com

2007 - the sentences in BOLD are the Estate agents response

Dear Ms Levine,

I was deeply disturbed to see your advertisement in Haaretz recently, advertising the sale of houses for English -speaking people in Maale- Adumin and other colonies.

'COLONIES' IS A CURIOUS CHOICE OF WORD INDEED. MAALEH ADUMIM IS A SUCCESSFUL QUALITY OF LIFE JEWISH COMMUNITY BUILT ALONG THE RIDGES OF CONTIGUOUS HILLS THAT WERE ABSOLUTELY UN- POPULATED BEFORE AND AFTER 1967. I TOURED THIS AREA IN 1971 AND SAW AS MUCH WITH MY OWN EYES. I DOUBT YOU WILL FIND ANYONE CREDIBLE WHO EVEN ATTEMPTS TO DISPUTE THIS FACT.

You must know that this land is Palestinian land and does not belong to you or the Israeli Government to build on.

ACCORDING TO THE INTERNATIONAL LEGAL DOCUMENTATION I HAVE STUDIED, ISRAEL'S RIGHT TO THIS LAND IS EQUAL TO OR BETTER THAN THE COMPETING CLAIM OF ANY OTHER SOVEREIGN ENTITY.

This land you are building on/selling houses on, is very stricly within the Palestinian side of the Green Line determined as the boundary between Palestine and Israel in 1967.

PALESTINE IS NOT A STATE. SURELY YOU KNOW THIS, WHICH LEADS ME TO ASK WHY YOU WOULD INTENTIONALLY STATE OTHERWISE? BOUNDARIES ARE BETWEEN STATES AND THERE IS NO BOUNDARY IN THIS AREA. THERE ARE CEASEFIRE LINES AND AD HOC DEMARCATIONS OF THAT NATURE, ALL OF WHICH HAVE DEFINITIVE INTERNATIONAL LEGAL DEFINITIONS, ALL OF WHICH ARE SUBJECT TO FINAL NEGOTIATIONS AND DECISIONS.

The International Court of Justice and the UN have both declared the building of Jewish Settlements on Palestinian land to be illegal.

THE HITLER-STALIN PACT, THE MUNICH AGREEMENT, EVEN TODAY'S TACIT GLOBAL PERMISSION TO THE INSANE IRANIAN REGIME TO ACQUIRE NUCLEAR WEAPONRY ALL ENJOY(ED) INTERNATIONAL BLESSINGS. IF YOU BELIEVE THAT THE UNITED NATIONS IS A FONT OF MORAL STANDARDS, I IMAGINE THAT WOULD SAY IT ALL. ISRAEL LIVES IN A REAL WORLD WITH REAL SECURITY ISSUES, AND THE CREATION OF MAALEH ADUMIM IS ESSENTIAL TO SECURING AND PROTECTING THE CITIZENS OF THIS NATION. SOME INDIVIDUALS DON'T REALLY VIEW THE SAVING OF JEWISH LIVES AS A PARTICULARLY HIGH VALUE. SAD, ISN'T IT? MANY NON-JEWS VOWED AFTER THE HOLOCAUST THAT IN A WORLD IN WHICH SIX MILLION JEWS WERE SLAUGHTERED, NOT ONE MORE MUST BE ALLOWED TO BE MURDERED. A SMALL MINORITY REACTED: WHY DIDN'T HITLER FINISH THE JOB? WHICH SIDE DO YOU IDENTIFY WITH?

Before the State of Israel was declared in 1947, all this land belonged to the Palestinians, who were driven from their villages and over 400 villages ethnically cleansed and destroyed. The people who survived and rightfully own this land have lived wretched lives in the many refugee camps in and around Palestine.

JUST OUT OF CURIOSITY, WHY DIDN'T YOU MENTION THE ROLE AND CLAIMS OF JORDAN, THE COUNTRY THAT ACTUALLY CONTROLLED THIS AREA? I SUSPECT BECAUSE YOU ARE EITHER IGNORANT OF THE HISTORY AND ITS FAR- REACHING IMPLICATIONS OR CYNICALLY CHOOSE TO PICK AND CHOOSE YOUR 'INFORMATION' FOR DEMAGOGIC PURPOSES. YOU ALSO NOT UNSURPRISINGLY FAIL TO MENTION THE RIGHTS AND CLAIMS OF 600,000 JEWS WHO FLED ARAB COUNTRIES, ABANDONING BILLIONS OF DOLLARS OF INDIVIDUAL AND COMMUNAL PROPERTY. ISRAEL DID NOT SHUNT THEM INTO PATHETIC REFUGEE CAMPS TO BE PARADED ACROSS THE WORLD STAGE DECADES LATER AS POLITICAL PAWNS...WE LOVINGLY ABSORBED THEM INTO OUR FLEDGLING SOCIETY AT GREAT SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC COST. OF ALL THE MANY SAD POPULATION EXCHANGES WHICH HAVE OCCURRED IN THE PAST CENTURY (I.E., INDIA AND PAKISTAN), HAVE YOU EVER ASKED YOURSELF WHY IT HAS BEEN ONLY SOME OF THE PALESTINAIANS WHO FLED WHO HAVE NOT BEEN ALLOWED TO RESETTLE IN NEW SOCIETIES...ONLY THEM! OR WHY THE HALF-MILLION PALESTINIANS WHO IGNORED THEIR LEADERS' EXHORTATIONS AND STAYED IN ISRAEL ARE TODAY ENJOYING THE HIGHEST STANDARD OF LIVING OF ARABS IN ANY MIDEAST COUNTRY, ENJOYING LONGER LIFE SPANS AND LOWER INFANT MORTALITY RATES AND PARTICIPATING IN THE ISRAELI DEMOCRACY (WITH ELECTED REPRESENTATIVES FREELY ELECTED IN THE PARLIAMENT).

Surely those people should be given their land back and have the right to return to their own villages and houses. It is shameful and sinful that you and your company are profitting from the illegal eviction and displacement of innocent people.

SINFUL? THAT RELATES TO A SPECIFIC KIND OF TRANSGRESSION. THE BIBLE RATHER CLEARLY--FOR ANYONE WILLING TO READ IT--COMMANDS THE JEWISH PEOPLE TO COME TO AND LIVE IN THE LAND OF ISRAEL, PRECISELY MENTIONING THE AREA OF MAALEH ADUMIM AS PART OF THAT ETERNAL HERITAGE. TO DO ANYTHING OTHER THAN REBUILD THIS AREA FOR THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL'S HABITATION WOULD BE THE SIN, UNLESS YOU REJECT THE VALIDITY OF THE BIBLE PRIMA FACIE.

THERE IS A SPECIFIC KIND OF MENTALITY WHICH SINGLES OUT ISRAEL AND JEWS FOR A SPECIAL KIND OF CRITICISM. IT IS CALLED ANTI-SEMITISM. IT DISTORTS HISTORICAL FACT, IGNORES TRADITIONAL JUDEO-CHRISTIAN VALUES AND ULTIMATELY SEEKS TO DENY TO THE SMALL REMNANT OF JEWS WHO SURVIVED HITLER THE ABILITY TO FULFILL THEIR MISSION OF SURVIVAL IN THE ONLY LAND THEY CHOSE THROUGH OVERWHELMING HISTORICAL AND MORAL TRADITION TO LIVE IN, ISRAEL. I RESPECTFULLY CHALLENGE YOU TO SEARCH YOUR SOUL AND DETERMINE IF IT IS INFECTED BY THIS PATHOLOGY OF HATRED FOR THE JEWISH PEOPLE. I CAN THINK OF NO OTHER REASON WHY YOU WOULD IGNORE THE FACT THAT 22 WEALTHY INDEPENDENT ARAB STATES EXIST FOR THE SOLUTION OF THE PALESTINIANS, INCLUDING JORDAN WHICH WAS PART OF THIS TERRITORY AND TODAY HAS A MAJORITY PALESTINIAN POPULATION.

Useful web site: www.boycottisrael.co.uk. Comprehensive links page