RESULT: UNISON Votes To Boycott Israel!

Last month delegates at the inaugural congress of the UCU voted in favour of a motion calling for the circulation of 'the full text of the Palestinian boycott call to all branches for information and discussion'. Delegates deplored Israel's occupation of Palestine and the violation of Palestinian educational rights by curfews, checkpoints and travel restrictions. Although this is not a direct boycott of Israeli academia, the motion allows a Palestinian voice to be heard. This is a commendable decision made by the delegates at the UCU and highlights the moral stance of British academia.

As a result of this conceded campaign by the UCU, UNISON votes to boycott the Racist, Apartheid regime of Israel! Check out the following article by MPACUK:

http://www.mpacuk.org/content/view/3772/64/

We Brits are known for our tolerance and sense of fair play. When Governments around the world stood by and did nothing about the apartheid in South Africa, it was ordinary men and women who stood against the racist regime. Over time their boycott spread from organisation to organisation, from churches and mosques, schools to universities, and finally the Governments of the World which had turned a blind eye to the injustices could no longer shy away, eventually taking their lead from the people.

UNISON is Britain's biggest trade union with over 1.3 million members. At its Annual Conference on 20th June 2007, the union passed Motion 53 on Palestine, stating that “ending the occupation demands concerted and sustained pressure upon Israel, including an economic, cultural, academic and sporting boycott.”

The motion, which was passed to cheers from the hall, urges Israel to respect the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination and to establish a state in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip with its capital in Jerusalem.

MPACUK commends the decision made at the UNISON conference with their pledge to support Palestine.

This follows hot on the heels of the recent UCU motion to boycott Israel, please see:
- Support the Anti-Apartheid Boycott

We would encourage our readers to contact UNISON to offer their whole-hearted support and to thank them for leading the way in this noble effort.

Only if we the British people work together with our common sense of fair play can we give hope to our fellow men, women and children in the occuppied territories who are living under a brutal occupation. Let the people of Palestine know that they have not been forgotten.

What you can do:

- Contact UNISON thanking them for passing Motion 53 on Palestine.

email UNISION on:
irelations@unison.co.uk
And / Or

'Phone UNISON on:
0845 355 0845