RSS Feeds
The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil,    but because of the people who don't do anything about it    
Occupation magazine - Activism

Home page  back Print  Send To friend

Dublin city council votes to support BDS, call for expulsion of the Israeli Ambassador
Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC)/ The Irish Examiner

It`s seems this news is about Dublin City Council`s #BDS vote is wildly
popular, and there`s a little too much traffic on our website and it`s gone
down temporarily - so here`s the full statement for those who haven`t seen
it already.


* DCC commits to discontinue contracts with HP and DXC, and calls for
expulsion of Israeli Ambassador The Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign
(IPSC) tonight warmly welcomed the vote by Dublin City Council to formally
support and endorse the Palestinian-led Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions
(BDS) movement for freedom, justice and equality. The motion, voted for
tonight by a majority of Councillors, also commits the council to
discontinue all business contracts it has with Hewlett-Packard (HP) and its
spin-off DXC Technology due to these companies’ provision and operation of
“much of the technology infrastructure that Israel uses to maintain its
system of apartheid and settler colonialism over the Palestinian people.” In
a separate motion, the council voted to call on the Irish government to
expel the Israeli Ambassador.

IPSC Chairperson Fatin Al Tamimi praised the motions saying, “speaking as a
Palestinian and a Dubliner I’m so proud that the local government of my
adoptive the city has voted to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian
people’s struggle for freedom, justice and equality. It is wonderful that
Dublin City Council will now become part of the global Boycott, Divestment
and Sanctions (BDS) movement called for by Palestinian civil society. It is
particularly welcome that the council chose to focus on Hewlett-Packard and
its spin-off DXC, as these companies have been profiteering from the violent
oppression of Palestinians and illegal colonisation of their land.”

Ms. Tamimi thanked the Council for their principled stance, even in the face
of interference by the Israeli Embassy: “I would like to sincerely thank all
the councillors who voted in favour of the motion, in particular People
Before Profit Councillor John Lyons for moving the motion on BDS. It is
concerning that, once again, officials of the Israeli Embassy sought to
attempt to interfere in Irish democracy by writing to the Lord Mayor
demanding he block the motion from even being discussed. I, therefore, thank
the Lord Mayor for of Dublin Mícheál Mac Donncha (Sinn Féin) for his support
for the motion and refusing to accede to the demands of the Israeli
Ambassador. I also thank the councillors who moved and voted for the motion
supporting the expulsion of the Israeli Ambassador – showing that the
majority of Dublin’s councillors do not welcome this professional apologist
for war crimes and human rights violations.”

Ms Tamimi concluded, saying that: “BDS is the most effective way for
international supporters of Palestinians rights to put pressure on the
Israeli state to end its decades of colonial oppression of my people. It is
especially poignant that this motion was passed as we approach the 70th
anniversary of the Nakba, the violent dispossession of two third of the
indigenous Palestinians in 1948 – a dispossession that continues to this
day, and which most recently has seen the murder of some 30 unarmed
Palestinians in Gaza as they protest for their Right of Return mandated
under international law. I would urge all people who care about the rights
of Palestinians to get active in the BDS movement in Ireland and join
organisations like the Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign, Academics for
Palestine, Students for Justice in Palestine, Trade Union Friends of
Palestine, Sadaka, and others to help Palestinians achieve freedom. Finally.
we would urge other councils around Ireland to emulate Dublin by adopting
similar motions in support of the rights of the people of the Palestine.”

Notes:

The full text of the motion is:

“Since its violent establishment in 1948 through the ethnic cleansing of
more than half of the indigenous people of Palestine, the state of Israel
has denied Palestinians their fundamental rights and has refused to comply
with international law; noting also that Israel continues to illegally
occupy and colonise Palestinian land, discriminate against Palestinian
citizens of Israel, imposes an inhumane blockade and siege of Gaza and
denies Palestinian refugees the right to return to their

homes, this City Council fully supports and endorses the Palestinian-led
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement for freedom, equality and justice
and commits itself to discontinue all business contracts it has with
Hewlett-Packard, both HP Inc. (PCs and printers), and Hewlett Packard
Enterprise for business and government services, as well as the HP spin-off
DXC Technology as HP and DXC provide and operate much of the technology
infrastructure that Israel uses to maintain its system of apartheid and
settler colonialism over the Palestinian people.”

Report on the The Irish Examiner
to-support-economic-sanctions-against-israel-836549.html

Links to the latest articles in this section

Stop considering – Recognize Palestine Now!
US involvement in the Gaza carnage: Protests in Tel Aviv - and in Boston, Chicago, and Los Angeles
Back home on the Gaza Border - and the terrible war still goes on