PSNA is congratulating the Invercargill City Council
which this afternoon voted to end procurement of goods or
services from companies profiting from illegal Israeli
settlements on Palestinian land.
Invercargill is the
seventh local body to pass similar motions sanctioning
Israel. (Christchurch, Nelson and Palmerston City Councils,
Environment Canterbury and Environment Southland are the
others, while Wellington has banned investment in Israeli
government bonds)
“Thank You Invercargill,” says
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa Spokesperson Rinad
Tamimi “You represent the best of New Zealand. You have
stood up while our government sits on its
hands.”
“Palestine will remember your simple but
significant stand for Palestinian human rights just as it
will remember the complicity of the New Zealand
government.”
Today’s motion ends the Council’s
purchase of goods or services from companies on a United
Nations Human Rights Council list which support illegal
Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory.
Mayor Tom Campbell moved a motion to oppose
the Palestine Solidarity motion. But seven councilors in a
row spoke against his motion and in favour of sanctioning
Israel.
Campbell’s motion was decisively lost and
the resolution was voted in as council policy.
“The
greatest problem in Israel/Palestine is that Israel has
never been held to account for its war crimes against
humanity and the crime of genocide being live-streamed from
Gaza,” Tamimi says.
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“By itself, the Invercargill
resolution won’t force Israel to give Palestinians equal
rights, but it is an important step for this country to
apply BDS (Boycotts, Divestment and Sanctions) to Israel as
requested by Palestinians civil society.
“PSNA
expects more councils to have similar votes in the coming
weeks.”
The ICC debate can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/live/S_kxm-2l-4U?si=fO-iHzONHlVeYt3I&t=1217
