نسخة للطباعةSend to friendPDF version

Israeli Organizations Call on _**_Norway_**_ to Divest from the Israeli
Occupation_*

/“We, Israeli organizations …, call upon the Norwegian people to join us
in our efforts and to stop investing in the Israeli occupation of
Palestinian territory"./ Twenty different Israeli organizations send an
appeal to the Norwegian people to withdraw Norwegian national pension
fund’s investments in all Israeli and international corporations which
are involved in the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.(see
the full letter below, and also in:
http://coalitionofwomen.org/home/english/articles/norway-fund)

In an unprecedented way, a wide array of Israeli civil society and
grassroots organizations has sent a letter to the Norwegian Pension
Fund, addressed to its Council on Ethics, urging it to support their
efforts for a just peace and equality in Israel/Palestine by divesting
from all companies involved in the Israeli occupation.

These Israeli organizations include feminist organizations and community
centers, peace and human rights organizations, comprised of Jewish and
Palestinian women and men, organizations concerned with civil rights and
equality within the state of Israel and organizations dedicated to
ending the occupation of Palestinian territories, to the benefit of all
people living in Israel/ Palestine.

This appeal follows and expands a previous call on the Norwegian fund,
by two Palestinian West Bank villages

and eleven other organizations

from around the world to divest from Africa-Israel
, an Israeli
corporation involved in building Israeli settlements on occupied
Palestinian land.

But Africa-Israel is not the only settlement-builder on the fund’s
investment portfolio
. As
shown by a recent report
by Who Profits from
the Occupation research, at least 30 other
companies have a continuous involvement in the occupation: some build
illegal Israeli settlements or provide vital services to them; some
provide specifically designed equipment for the surveillance and
repression of Palestinian population through restrictions of movement
and collective punishments; some exploit Palestinian labor and natural
resources.

The examples listed also include international corporations such as the
Belgian Bank Dexia
, which finances
Israeli illegal settlements’ municipalities by long term loans, or the
Mexican Cemex and the
German HeidelbergCement
, both giant
construction materials’ suppliers that own and operate Israeli plants
and quarries on occupied land, and thus both contribute to the Israeli
illegal colonization of Palestinian lands, and exploit the Palestinian
nonrenewable natural resources, for the needs of the Israeli economy and
in violation of international law.

The letter is framed as a general appeal to the Norwegian people,
mentioning the Norwegians’ “long-standing commitment to peace, justice
and democracy” in Israel/Palestine, and presenting the current
investment in corporations that “support and maintain the Israeli
occupation” as contradicting the Norwegian governments’ own policies, as
well as the pension fund’s own ethical guidelines
,

which preclude investments in companies involved in gross violations of
human rights or humanitarian principles. Copies have been sent to
Norwegian civil society organizations, ministers and parliamentarians.

For more information, please contact: Dalit Baum, The Coalition of Women
for Peace, (972) 54-7767651, smamit_d@yahoo.com

*_____________________________________________________
_*

*_THE FULL LETTER:_*

May 14, 2009

The Council on Ethics
Norwegian Government Pension Fund
Government of Norway

Dear Members of the Council on Ethics,

We, Israeli organizations, comprised of Jewish and Palestinian women and
men and dedicated to building a just peace and to promoting human rights
and equal civil rights in Israel/Palestine,
Call upon the Norwegian people to join us in our efforts and to stop
investing in the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory.

It has come to our attention that the Norwegian governmental Pension
Fund, as of December 31^st 2008, is heavily invested in corporations
whose activities continuously support and maintain the Israeli
occupation, in violation of international human rights and humanitarian
law. These companies, both Israeli and international, build illegal
Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory or provide
vital services to them; provide specifically designed equipment for the
surveillance and repression of Palestinian population through
restrictions of movement and collective punishments; or take part in the
illegal exploitation of Palestinian nonrenewable natural resources for
the needs of the Israeli market.

We see the Norwegian Pension Fund’s investments in these corporations as
contradicting the Norwegian government’s commitment to international
law, the Norwegian people’s long standing commitment to peace, justice
and democracy in our region, and the Pension Fund’s own ethical
guidelines. We therefore urge the Council on Ethics to remove from the
fund’s investment portfolio all corporations that support and maintain
the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory.

Thank you,

*The Coalition of Women for Peace*
coalitionofwomen.org

*Al- Tufula Center*
www.altufula.org

*Bat Tzafon for Peace and Equality *

*Children of Abraham*
http://groups.google.com/group/bnei-avraham?hl=en

*Hacampus Lo Shotek*

*Hithabrut - Tarabut *
www.tarabut.info

*Humans without Borders – Assisting Medical Accessibility*
http://humanitywithoutborders.ning.com

*Israel** Social TV*

www.tv.social.org.il

*Kayan – Feminist Organization*
www.kayan.org.il

*MachsomWatch – Women against the Occupation and for Human Rights *
www.machsomwatch.org

*Mossawa** **Center**, the **Advocacy** **Center** for Arab Citizens in
**Israel*
www.mossawacenter.org **

*New Profile*

www.newprofile.org

*Ta’ayush, Jewish Arab Partnership*

*The **Alternative** **Information** **Center*
www.alternativenews.org

*The Israeli Committee for Residency Rights (ICRR)*

*The Israeli Committee against House Demolitions *
www.icahd.org

*Women against Violence*
www.wavo.org

*Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, **Israel** Section*

*Yesh Gvul*

www.yeshgvul.org

*Zochrot*

www.nakbainhebrew.org

CC: The Prime Minister of Norway, the Minister of Finance, Parliamentarians

*_Appendix:_*

Examples of corporations on the Norwegian Pension Fund’s investment
list, which support and maintain the Israeli occupation.

*A.* Corporations on the investment list which are involved, on an
on-going basis, in the construction of housing and infrastructure for
illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied territory:

1. *Africa Israel (Israel)
* – The company has
been involved in the construction and sale of housing projects,
infrastructure and apartments in multiple Israeli settlements throughout
the West Bank, through its subsidiary Danya Cebus
and through its
real estate agencies' network Anglo-Saxon
.

2. *Alstom (France)
*– Through its
Israeli subsidiary Citadis Israel - builds the Jerusalem light rail
project, which is designed to connect Israeli settlements with Jerusalem.

3. *Dexia (Belgium)
*– Through its
subsidiary, Dexia Israel, the bank provides long term loans and
financial services to municipalities of Israeli settlements in the West
Bank.* *

4. *Housing and Construction Holdings (Israel)
*– Through its
subsidiaries Solel Boneh and Shikun Ovdim, the company builds housing
projects in many West Bank settlements. The company is also a major
shareholder of Otzma Pereg
(80%), an air
conditioning systems factory which is located in an industrial zone in
the occupied West Bank.

5. *Jerusalem Economy (Israel)
* – Develops and
rents out Israeli industrial and commercial spaces in the occupied
territory directly and through its subsidiary Industrial Buildings
Corporation .

*B*. Corporations on the investment list which own and operate Israeli
production or service centers in the Israeli West Bank settlements:

1. *Assa Abloy (Sweden)
*– Owns Mul-T-Lock
, an Israeli locks'
company with a factory in a settlement industrial zone in the West Bank.

2. *_Emblaze (_**_Israel_**_)_* – Through its subsidiary, Formula
Systems , owns
Matrix , that
operates an offshoring software services center in an Israeli settlement
in the West Bank.

3. *Frutarom Industries (Israel)
* – Owns a food
additives' plant in Mishor Edomim settlement industrial zone in the West
Bank.

4. *_Makhteshim-Agan Industries (_**_Israel_**_)_* – Partially owns
(25%) Fibertech , a
fiberglass pipes' plant which is located in an Israeli settlement in the
occupied West Bank.

5. *Unilever (Netherlands)
*- Owns (51%) the
company Beigel and Beigel
, which is a baked
goods' factory in an Israeli settlement industrial zone in the occupied
West Bank.

*C*. Corporations that own and operate Israeli industry in the occupied
West Bank, while exploiting non-renewable Palestinian natural resources
for the needs of the Israeli market:

1. *Cemex (Mexico)
*– The
company's subsidiary Readymix Industries
(Israel), operates
three plants in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, provides
concrete elements for various construction projects in the occupied West
Bank, and partners in an Israeli quarry for aggregates in the West Bank.
These aggregates are used in the Israeli construction industry. Thus,
the company is complicit in the exploitation of non-renewable
Palestinian natural resources to the benefit of the occupying power.

2. *HeidelbergCement (Germany)
* – Through Hanson
Israel - owns
three plants in West Bank settlements and one Israeli aggregates quarry
in the occupied West Bank. These aggregates are used in the Israeli
construction industry. Thus, the company is complicit in the
exploitation of non-renewable Palestinian natural resources to the
benefit of the occupying power.

3. *Veolia Environnement (France)
* – Operates
regular bus lines in Israeli settlements, on Israeli-only roads in the
West Bank. Further, the company has been contracted to operate the
Jerusalem light rail project, which is designed to connect Israeli
settlements with Jerusalem. Through its subsidiary Veolia Environmental
Services (Israel), the company owns and operates the Tovlan Landfill in
the occupied Jordan Valley, using captured Palestinian natural and land
resources for the needs of Israeli settlements.

*D*. Corporations involved in the supply of specifically-designed
equipment for the repression and control of the occupied Palestinian
population:

1. *Caterpillar (USA)
* - This company's
specifically-designed militarized D9 bulldozers are used by the Israeli
army as weapons against Palestinian population and property. The
company's tools have been used in demolitions of Palestinians' houses in
the occupied territory, and in the construction of the separation wall
and settlements on Palestinian land.

2. *Elbit Systems (Israel)
*– One of the main
subcontractors for electronic detection systems in the separation fence
and the seamline barrier for the Israeli Ministry of Defense. The
company also develops and supplies UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) to
the Israeli army, which are used for military attacks, civilian
surveillance and targeted assassinations in the West Bank and Gaza.

*This list is based on research by “Who Profits from the Occupation”
, that has detected 31 companies on the
Fund’s investments’ list which have been involved in the occupation of
the Palestinian territory.
For the full list see: http://www.whoprofits.org/Newsletter.html?nlid=41*