In 2005, Palestinian civil society put out a call for boycott, divestment and sanctions, or BDS, as the most politically and morally sound civil resistance strategy for ending the Israeli occupation of Palestine until Israel complies with International Law and Universal Principles of Human Rights. In that initial call, over 170 Palestinian organizations in Palestine and the Diaspora signed. We are organizing this divestment campaign as an expression of solidarity with Palestinians and Israelis who have signed on in support of the Palestinian call. Our expression of solidarity comes in both word and action in this campaign.

Palestinian Civil Society

Calls for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against IsraelUntil it Complies with International Law and Universal Principles of Human Rights
9 July 2005

One year after the historic Advisory Opinion of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) which found
Israel’s Wall built on occupied Palestinian territory to be illegal, Israel continues its construction of the
colonial Wall with total disregard to the Court’s decision. Thirty eight years into Israel’s occupation of
the Palestinian West Bank (including East Jerusalem), Gaza Strip and the Syrian Golan Heights, Israel
continues to expand Jewish colonies. It has unilaterally annexed occupied East Jerusalem and the
Golan Heights and is now de facto annexing large parts of the West Bank by means of the Wall.
Israel is also preparing – in the shadow of its planned redeployment from the Gaza Strip – to build and
expand colonies in the West Bank. Fifty seven years after the state of Israel was built mainly on land
ethnically cleansed of its Palestinian owners, a majority of Palestinians are refugees, most of whom
are stateless. Moreover, Israel’s entrenched system of racial discrimination against its own Arab-
Palestinian citizens remains intact.
In light of Israel’s persistent violations of international law, and
Given that, since 1948, hundreds of UN resolutions have condemned Israel’s colonial and
discriminatory policies as illegal and called for immediate, adequate and effective remedies, and
Given that all forms of international intervention and peace-making have until now failed to convince
or force Israel to comply with humanitarian law, to respect fundamental human rights and to end its
occupation and oppression of the people of Palestine, and
In view of the fact that people of conscience in the international community have historically
shouldered the moral responsibility to fight injustice, as exemplified in the struggle to abolish
apartheid in South Africa through diverse forms of boycott, divestment and sanctions;
Inspired by the struggle of South Africans against apartheid and in the spirit of international
solidarity, moral consistency and resistance to injustice and oppression,
We, representatives of Palestinian civil society, call upon international civil society
organizations and people of conscience all over the world to impose broad boycotts and
implement divestment initiatives against Israel similar to those applied to South Africa in
the apartheid era. We appeal to you to pressure your respective states to impose
embargoes and sanctions against Israel. We also invite conscientious Israelis to support
this Call, for the sake of justice and genuine peace.
These non-violent punitive measures should be maintained 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; and
3. Respecting, protecting and promoting the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes
and properties as stipulated in UN resolution 194.

Source: http://www.bdsmovement.net/?q=node/52