Occupation: the
action or state of being occupied by military force. (1)
~~~
“The Israeli occupation of the OPT (Occupied Palestinian
Territories) is illegal both intrinsically and
extrinsically.” “Sovereignty and title in an occupied
territory are not vested in the occupying power.” “Under contemporary international law, and in
view of the principle of self-determination, sovereignty is vested in the
population under occupation.” “The occupying power is entrusted with the
management of public order and civil life in the territory under control. In
view of the principle of self-determination, the people under occupation are
the beneficiaries of this trust. The dispossession and subjugation of these
people violate this trust.” “Occupation
is temporary. It may be neither permanent nor indefinite.” (2)
~~~
“A United Nations independent expert today called on the
world body’s General Assembly, as well as civil society, to take action against
Israeli and international businesses that are profiting from Israeli
settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory.
“My main recommendation is that the businesses highlighted
in the report – as well as the many other businesses that are profiting from
the Israeli settlement enterprise – should be boycotted, until they bring their
operations into line with international human rights and humanitarian law and
standards,” the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the
occupied Palestinian territories, Richard Falk, said in a news release issued
as he presented a report on his work to the Assembly.
Highlighting the activities of companies such as Caterpillar Incorporated of the United
States, Veolia Environment of France, G4S of the United Kingdom, the Dexia
Group of Belgium, Ahava of Israel, the Volvo Group of Sweden, the Riwal Holding
Group of the Netherlands, Elbit Systems of Israel, Hewlett Packard of the USA,
Mehadrin of Israel, Motorola of the USA, Assa Abloy of Sweden, and Cemex of
Mexico, the Special Rapporteur noted that a wide range of Israeli and
international businesses are involved in the establishment and maintenance of
the Israeli settlements.
“All Israeli settlements in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, have been established in clear violation of international law,” said Mr. Falk.
“Yet today Israeli settlements control over 40 percent of
the West Bank and between 500,000 and 600,000 Israeli citizens are living in
Palestinian territory,” he added.” (3)
~~~
Sources:
(1) Paraphrased from Google’s definition of the word, “occupation.”
(2) ‘Illegal Occupation: Framing the Occupied
Palestinian Territory,’ Berkeley Journal of International Law: http://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1299&context=bjil
(3) ‘UN independent expert calls for
boycott of businesses profiting from Israeli settlements,’ UN
News Center: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=43376#.VP4T3OHVo_g
~~~
More Information:
Caterpillar’s
Corporate Complicity:
Christmas themed
Boycott Caterpillar meme offers additional documentation:
~~~
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on why we boycott Israel please check out the posts at this link:
Boycotting is the
right thing to do! Here is our complete
boycott list:
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