Call from Gaza-Based Palestinian Student Blocs: Intensify BDS campaigns against apartheid Israel

Besieged Gaza, Occupied Palestine – We, organizations that make up the majority of the Palestinian student sector, call upon our peers and student organizations and unions around the world to mobilize against Israel’s policies of occupation, colonization and apartheid in Palestine.

The Israeli Occupation forces together with armed-to-teeth settlers are deliberately killing and maiming innocent children and youth. These premeditated policies of collective punishment and racism against the Palestinian people require now more than ever voices of solidarity and humanity to be heard in Palestine and across the world. We, therefore, urge you to intensify the #WaveSolidarityBDS initiated by the Palestinian BDS National Committee (BNC).[1]

In light of Israel’s ongoing, yet unanswered crimes, we would like to reiterate our commitment to the call made by the Palestinian Students’ Campaign for the Academic Boycott of Israel (PSCABI)[2] which is based on the 2004 call issued by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI)[3], and the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) call of 2005[4]. Because the BDS movement has grown relentlessly and threatened its regime, Israel has made it absolutely clear that it is fighting the BDS movement externally and internally. We are aware of some attempts made by some marginal organizations and individuals to sabotage the tide of one of the most effective non-violent tools against Israel’s multi-tiered system of oppression.

As in the global BDS movement that was so effective in ending the apartheid South African regime, we urge people of conscience to join the BDS call made by over 170 Palestinian organizations in 2005. As in South Africa the imbalance of power and representation in this struggle can be counterbalanced by a powerful international solidarity movement with BDS at the forefront, holding Israeli policy makers to account, something the international governing community has repeatedly failed to do.

This boycott is to continue until Israel meets its obligation to recognize the Palestinian people’s inalienable right to self-determination and fully complies with the precepts of international law by:

1. Ending its occupation and colonization of all Arab lands and dismantling the Wall;
2. Recognizing the fundamental rights of the Arab-Palestinian citizens of Israel to full equality;
3. Respecting, protecting and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes and properties as stipulated in UN resolution 194.

We demand boycotts of Israel until it complies with international law, and until justice and accountability are reached. Like the Blacks of South Africa and African Americans, we can never accept compromise on basic human rights.

Signed:

– Fateh Youth Movement

– Mubadara Student Bloc

– Progressive Student Union Bloc

– Student Unity Bloc

– Independence Youth Union

– Union of Students’ Struggle Committees

– Student Struggle Bloc

– Palestinian Students’ Campaign for the Academic Boycott of Israel (PSCABI)

– Herak Youth Center

Notes

[1] –http://www.bdsmovement.net/2015/call-out-turning-the-tide-13444

[2] –http://www.pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=1021&key=pscabi

[3] –http://pacbi.org/etemplate.php?id=869

[4]- http://www.bdsmovement.net/call