Morally Responsible Investment for peace in israel and palestine

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Morally Responsible Investment for peace
in israel and palestine
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• Its time to re-frame our discussion of the
  Israeli- Palestinian conflict.

This is not an ancient struggle between two
peoples who simply cannot get along.
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It is a struggle about land.
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Its about the transformation of the Holy Land,
where ancient ways of life are still preserved
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.into an endless sea of settlements, shopping
centers and industrial zones for the use of one
ethnic group alone.
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This conflict is about driving Palestinians out
of the Holy Land or confining them in ghettos,
and about a peoples right to resist.
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This is a takeover of land and water by one

ethnic group at the expense of all others.
It is a takeover of land and water by one
group at the expense of all others.
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Its the willful destruction of Palestine and
dispossession of her people.
solo

2000 Camp David
After Completion of the Wall
1947 UN Partition
1967
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But most of all, its about profits.
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The Israeli/Palestinian conflict is sustained
by the flow of weapons and materials to Israel
from companies around the world.

• Companies provide money to elected officials,
  who direct public funds to Israel. Israel uses
  these funds to buy weapons and products from
  companies.

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• The Fourth Geneva Convention forbids an
  occupying power from moving its own population
  into territory it occupies. Israel has moved
  462,000 settlers into Arab East Jerusalem and
  other parts of the West Bank.
• UN Security Council Resolution 242 affirms the
  inadmissability of the acquisition of territory
  by force.
• Many UN Resolutions have called for an end to
  the occupation. Many Israelis, world leaders
  and human rights organizations around the globe
  have called for its end.
• All these have been ignored by Israel.

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Growth in West Bank settler population
500,000
450,000 ___________________________________
_____________________

2007
Settlers in West Bank including East Jerusalem,
which is also occupied land. (original chart
through 2005 from PBS Frontline and ICAHD)
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Construction crews often work round the clock
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Building new settlements throughout the
West Bank.
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They are forever changing the landscape of
Palestine.
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Many settlements begin with outposts. A 2005
Israeli study proved government
support for outposts.
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The study, called the Sasson Report, found

• The housing ministry supplied 400 mobile homes
  for outposts on private Palestinian land.
• The defense ministry approved the positioning of
  trailers to begin new outposts.
• The education ministry paid for nurseries and
  their teachers.
• The energy ministry connected outposts to the
  electricity grid.
• Roads to outposts were paid for with tax money.

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Another study, by the Israeli group Peace Now,
shows that many of these are built
on Palestinian land.
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Other settlements are built on land that has been
confiscated by Israel as state land. This
land also belongs to Palestinians.
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In 2005, there were 12,800 new illegal
settlers in the West Bank.
In 2006, the Settler Population in the West Bank
grew by more than 15,000 -- at a rate 3 times
that of the population inside Israel.
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There are more than 205 Settlements in the West
Bank
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There are 2.4 million Palestinians living In
the West Bank. There are 462,000 settlers living
among them. That means one fifth of the West
Banks population is now Jewish. About one
fifth of Israels population is Palestinian (1.2
million out of 6 million).
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• Two peoples are interspersed throughout the
  area,
• with
• Different rights,
• Different restrictions on movement
• Different water allocation.

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• Each Settlement Means

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Home Demolitions
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Agricultural Demolitions
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Destroyed dreams for Palestinians
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More Israeli-only highways
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.adding to the 700 kilometers of Israeli-only
roads in the West Bank (scroll down)
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More demand for construction equipment
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Destruction of Palestinian Roads
Israeli Road
Palestinian Road
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Added Checkpoints
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Checkpoints are barriers manned by
soldiers/border police, used to control
pedestrian/vehicular access.
More than 500 checkpoints separate Palestinian
villages from each other. Most are inside the
West Bank.
Most checkpoints are between Palestinian towns
and villages.
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Checkpoints make life impossible to plan.
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Employers never know if employees will
make it to work.
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A ten minute trip can take hours.
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Settlements mean more walls
separating villages from
their land.
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These walls separate families and neighbors.
                                                                           
                                                                           
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They are built to protect settlers living
illegally on stolen land, while
confining Palestinians to isolated ghettos.
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These walls and fences are part of a system that
Israeli Jeff Halper calls the Matrix of Control.
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This is the wall around Bethlehem
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Built inside Bethlehem, the wall annexes
fertile land to Israel.
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Settlements Mean Less Water for
PalestiniansIsraelis get 83 of water from the
major West Bank aquifer.Palestinians get 17.
Israelis have 5 times as much water for domestic
consumption (See chart at bottom right.)
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My hostess was an English teacher and her father
is a farmer.
Palestinian families suffer desparate water
shortages.
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Israeli Settlements on Palestinian land have
swimming pools and green lawns.
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Each settlement creates a need for

• More weapons,
• Transportation networks,
• Security systems,
• Construction equipment,
• Support services.

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Companies we invest in provide these.

• Among these are
• ALLIANT TECH SYSTEMS (NYSEATK) Rubber-coated
  bullets.  Fuses for cluster bombs. Guided
  Multiple Launch Rocket Systems.
• BLOCKBUSTER (NYSEBBI) has kiosks in illegal
  settlements on occupied Palestinian land.
• BOEING (NYSEBA) Major supplier of the F-15 Eagle
  and the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter.  Missile
  systems, F-15 software, Apache Helicopters, and
  Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM).
• CATERPILLAR (NYSECAT) Bulldozers and
  construction equipment
• CEMENT ROADSTONE HOLDINGS (CRH) (NYSE CRH)
   Cement for the Separation Wall and settlements
• GENERAL DYNAMICS (NYSEGD) Diesel engine for
  Israels battle tanks.  M60A3 Main Battle Tanks.
  Equipment for F16 Fighting Falcon Jets.  MK-84
  "general purpose" bombs, spares and repair parts
• GENERAL ELECTRIC (NYSEGE) Propulsion system for
  Israel's AH-64 Apache Assault Helicopter, engines
  for a variety of military aircraft, service
  contracts for engineering support and testing.
• GLOBECOMM SYSTEMS INC (GSI) (New York) (NASDAQ
  GCOM) equipment and facilities for communication
  between all branches of the IDF ground forces. 
• ITT CORPORATION (NYSEITT) Intensifier tubes for
  night vision goggles. Previously provided
  battlefield communication radios. 

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• LOCKHEED MARTIN (NYSELMT) is the single biggest
  overseas supplier for the Israeli armaments
  industry.  Arms, missile systems and fighter
  planes.
• MAGAL SECURITY SYSTEMS (NASDAQMAGS) Intrusion
  detection fencing for the separation wall. 
• MOTOROLA (NYSEMOT) Radar systems for security at
  settlements. Cell phone communications system for
  IDF. Fuses for weapons. Has cell phone towers in
  the settlements.
• NORTHROP GRUMMAN (NYSENOC) F-16I Sufa (Storm')
  aircraft radar, fire control radar and the
  Hellfire Missile for Apache helicopters. 
• OSHKOSH TRUCK CORPORATION mobility tactical
  trucks for the Israeli Military more than 900
  armor kits for Israels Medium Tactical Vehicles.
• RAYTHEON (NYSERTN) Patriot, Sparrow, Sidewinder,
  Maverick and TOW missiles. 
• SILICON GRAPHICS (SGI) (NASDAQSGIC) Visual
  system training for Israeli Air Force F-15 and
  F-16 pilots. Graphics system for Helicopter
  Aircrew Weapon Systems Trainer. 
• TEREX (NYSETEX) Medium tactical trucks and
  logistical support to the Israeli army.  Trucks
  used by the Israeli army to mount artillery
  systems. Mobile floodlight towers. Construction
  cranes. Training, service and spare parts.
• UNITED TECHNOLOGIES (NYSEUTX) Blackhawk
  helicopters, engines for Israels F-15 and F-16
  aircraft, fleet management of these engines.

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These companies either 1. have a
presence on occupied land, 2. support the
occupation infrastructure (wall,
settlements, checkpoints) or 3. provide the
Israeli military with weapons or equipment
used against Palestinians in the occupied
territories. Lets look at these one at
a time.
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• ALLIANT TECH SYSTEMS (NYSEATK)
• Supplies the Israeli Occupation Forces with
• Rubber-coated steel bullets,
• Fuses for cluster bombs,
• Guided Multiple Launch Rocket Systems.

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Alliants rubber coated bullets have killed and
maimed peaceful protesters, shepherds,
and children.                                     
                

• A wounded Israeli protester

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• BLOCKBUSTER (NYSEBBI)
• Has kiosks in illegal Israeli settlements on
  occupied Palestinian land. These help provide a
  sense of permanence to settlers. Blockbuster has
  been informed the settlements are illegal and
  refuses to remove its presence in them.

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BlockbusterHas kiosks in at least 3
illegalsettlements on Palestinian land
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• BOEING (NYSEBA)
• Major supplier to Israeli Occupation Forces of
  the
• F-15 Eagle
• F-15 software
• AH-64 Apache attack helicopters
• Missile systems, and
• Joint Direct Attack Munitions (JDAM)

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A Boeing Apache gunship fires at Palestinian
houses in the West Bank City of Nablus, 4/7/02
Photo by Goran Tomasevic/Reuters
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• CATERPILLAR (NYSECAT)
• Sells bulldozers and construction equipment to
  the Israeli military under the Foreign Military
  Sales Program. These are used to destroy homes
  and uproot orchards in the occupied territories.
• An Israeli company, InRob Tech, is providing the
  IDF with robotized Caterpillar equipment that can
  be used to destroy property in the occupied
  territories without endangering a driver.

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Caterpillar
Destroying homes
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Uprooting trees
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• CEMENT ROADSTONE HOLDINGS (CRH) (NYSE CRH)  
• Owns 25 of Israels major cement company,
  Nesher Cement, which provides material for the
  Separation Wall, checkpoints and settlements

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Nesher Cement, partly owned by CRH, provides
material for Israels wall.
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• GENERAL DYNAMICS (NYSEGD)
• Makes diesel engine for Israels M60A3 Main
  Battle Tanks, equipment for F16 Fighting Falcon
  Jets, and MK-84 "general purpose" bombs, spares
  and repair parts. All of these have been used
  against Palestinians in the West Bank.

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General Dynamics

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• GLOBECOMM SYSTEMS INC (GSI) (New York) (NASDAQ
  GCOM)
• Sells Israel equipment and facilities for
  communication between all branches of the IDF
  ground forces. These are the troops that enforce
  the occupation.

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Globecomm Systems

                              
                      
Stock photo from Dreamstime.com
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• ITT CORPORATION (NYSEITT)
• Sells Israel intensifier tubes for night vision
  goggles. Many Israeli attacks on Palestinian
  villages take place at night when people are
  sleeping. ITT previously provided battlefield
  communication radios to the Israeli army. 

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ITT Industries
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• LOCKHEED MARTIN (NYSELMT)
• is the single biggest overseas supplier for the
  Israeli armaments industry.  It supplies Israeli
  occupation forces with arms, missile systems and
  fighter planes.

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Lockheed Martin

F-111.net
F-111.net
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• MAGAL SECURITY SYSTEMS
• (NASDAQMAGS)
• Provides intrusion detection fencing for the
• separation wall, which annexes about 15 of
• the West Bank to Israel.

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Magal Security Systems
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• MOTOROLA (NYSEMOT)
• Provides radar systems for security at
  settlements deep inside the West Bank.
• Provides cell phone communications system for
  Israeli Occupation Forces.
• Provides fuses for Israeli weapons.
• Has cell phone towers in the settlements.

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Motorola
IAI
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• NORTHROP GRUMMAN (NYSENOC)
• Provides Israel with F-16I Sufa (Storm')
  aircraft radar, fire control radar and the
  Hellfire Missile for Apache helicopters. 

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Northrop Grumman
                    
Hellfire Missile
Aircraft Radar
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• OSHKOSH TRUCK CORPORATION
• (NYSE OSK)
• Provides mobility tactical trucks for the
  Israeli military, more than 900 armor kits for
  Israels Medium Tactical Vehicles.

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Oshkosh
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• RAYTHEON (NYSERTN)
• Provides Israel with Patriot, Sparrow,
  Sidewinder, Maverick and TOW missiles, which have
  been used against Palestinians in the occupied
  territories. 

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Raytheon
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• SILICON GRAPHICS (SGI) (NASDAQSGIC)
• Provides visual system training for Israeli Air
  Force F-15 and F-16 pilots.
• Provides graphics system for Israels Helicopter
  Aircrew Weapon Systems Trainer. 

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Silicon Graphics
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• TEREX (NYSETEX)
• Provides medium tactical trucks and logistical
  support to the Israeli Occupation Forces (IDF). 
• Provides trucks used by the IDF to mount
  artillery systems.
• Provides mobile floodlight towers which can be
  used for nightime construction.
• Provides Israel with construction cranes which
  are used for building settlements and the wall.
• Provides IDF training, service and spare parts.

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Terex
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• UNITED TECHNOLOGIES (NYSEUTX)
• Provides IDF with Blackhawk helicopters, engines
  for Israels F-15 and F-16 aircraft, and fleet
  management of these engines.

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United Technologies
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• VEOLIA ENVIRONNEMENT (NYSEVE) 
• Is a partner in a new 500 million light rail
  system designed to link Jerusalem to the illegal
  settlements of the occupied West Bank.  It has a
  contract to operate the system for the next 30
  years.

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Veolia Environnement
Connecting the settlements to Jerusalem
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• VOLVO (NASDAQVOLV)
• Provides bulldozers and construction equipment
  used to destroy Palestinian homes and build new
  settlements.

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Volvo
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Impact of Occupation on Israel

• 1.6 million Israelis lived in poverty last year.
• The military sector is expanding and profiting
  while the domestic economy suffers.
• Generals and politicians get involved with
  American companies and retire rich.
• Many Israelis see a moral decline in their
  society.
• Since 1998, US has phased out its support for
  Israels domestic needs while increasing
  military support. Today, all US aid to
  Israel goes to the military.

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Impact of Occupation on Palestinians

• Impossible to plan daily life
• Interminable waits at checkpoints.
• Difficulty getting to hospitals, doctors, work
• Frequency of attacks on homes, schools,
  businesses, even hospitals.
• Constant fear and humiliation.
• Desperate water shortages.
• Arrest of loved ones imprisonment without trial.
  
• Loss of homes and agricultural land
• Loss of hope.
• For many, loss of faith in nonviolent resistance.

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This endangers Israelis
as well as Palestinians!
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• What can we do?
• Its time to turn words into
• ACTION.

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• Its time for
• DIVESTMENT

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• Divestment can do many things
• (1) It can raise the level of awareness
  about how profitable Israels
• occupation has become for companies
  around the world.
• (2) It can ensure that we as investors are
  not profiting from this.
• (3) It can put companies on notice that
  their support for Israels
• occupation may turn away investors.
• (4) It can stimulate public discussion about
  the realities of
• occupation, which have largely been hidden
  from Americans,
• and can lay the groundwork for changing
  US policy.
• (5) It can provide hope to Palestinians who see
  their freedom
• denied every day.

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What Selective Divestment is NOT It is NOT
divestment from Israel. It is NOT divestment from
Israeli companies. It is NOT divestment from
companies that do business in Israel. What
Selective Divestment IS It IS a decision not to
profit from Israels illegal occupation of
Palestinian land. It involves divesting ONLY
from specific companies that play a documented
role in this occupation. Its a way of stating
we will not make money from practices that
violate our basic values and beliefs. Every
investor has that right.
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Step-by-StepDivestment Guide
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1. Educate your organizations members
about the occupation. Invite speakers who have
been to the occupied territories. If possible,
include Jewish speakers who oppose occupation
(contact Jewish Voice for Peace, European Jews
for a Just Peace), or use DVDs by people who
have been to the region. Provide statements
from Jewish people and organizations condemning
the occupation. This is critical! These are
available at www.unitedmethodistdivestment.com
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2. Learn which companies support the
occupation. Good sources are company reports
by Who Profits and Hoder Investment
Research. http//www.whoprofits.org/, or
apassionforpeace_at_aol.com Also check
www.unitedmethodistdivestment.com and
www.neumc.org/divest. A NEW REPORT
containing 50 public companies is available by
contacting apassionforpeace_at_aol.com
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3. Examine your organizations portfolio to
identify the companies supporting occupation
that are in its holdings. Organizations
may be pension funds, foundations or other
entities that invest on behalf of your group.
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4. Make a list of specifics, including number
of shares, purchase price, current
value, and profits. Shares Purchase Price
Current Value Profit
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5. Add up all profits to determine how
much your organization has earned from the
occupation through these investments.
Publicize this information within your group.

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6. Review your organizations guidelines on
investment. Make a list of any that are
relevant..ie., those that preclude
investment in firms that violate human
rights, or firms that make weapons or
military equipment.
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7. Prepare a letter or petition to
investment managers asking for withdrawal of
the organizations funds from companies
supporting Israels occupation. Distribute
a sample letter and ask individual clergy to
personalize and send to the board requesting a
change in policy.
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• Determine whether any companies you identified
  are already on your organizations list of
  prohibited investments.
• (United Methodists found 3 companies in their
  pension funds portfolio that are on the Do not
  invest list maintained by the same board.)
• Publicize results.

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9. Meet with the Foundation or Pension
Board to see if they will consider
withdrawing these investments, and others that
support the occupation. If the answer is no,
send a letter to all your members with the
meeting results, a list of the groups
investments that profit from the occupation, and
a call to action.
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• Publicize actions taken by your group.
• Even if it is only a committee within your
  organization that approves
  divestment, send out a press
  release. This gives courage to other
  organizations, and hope to Palestinians and
  Israelis working for peace. It also lets Israel
  know that efforts to end the occupation
  have momentum.

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Hajo Meyer, an Auschwitz survivor, has written
there's only one way to call Israel to order.
That is, by a strict regime of
boycott, disinvestment and sanctions from all
nations
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• Many Jewish Israelis are joining in this call.

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as are people of every faith around the world.
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Together we can end Israels occupation
and bring about a just, lasting peace for all.
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Please noteThis powerpoint has been assembled
for educational purposes only. Photographs should
not be used for any purpose other than in the
context of this educational presentation.
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• Photo credits
• Anna Baltzer (www.annainthemiddleeast.com)
• Christoph Goecke (www.chris-on-the-bike.com)
• Jim Johnson (Israeli Committee Against House
  Demolitions (www.icahd.org/)
• Gush Shalom (www.gush-shalom.org/)
• Hannah Mermelstein (International Womens Peace
  Service - (http//www.iwps.info)
• Howard Lenow (American Jews for a Just Peace -
  (http//www.ajjp.org/)
• Christoph Goecke (Ecumenical Accompanier Program
  - www.chris-on-the-bike.com)
• Goran Tomasevic/Reuters
• Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions
  (www.icahd.org/)
• F-11.net (www.F-11.net)
• Applied Research Institute of Jerusalem
  (www.arij.org),
• Empire Cranes, Wilmington, NC
• Haim Gvirtzman
• Captain Chuck Mussi (www.defenseImagery.mil)
• Silicon Graphics
• Defense Industry Daily (www.defenseindustrydaily.c
  om)
• Defense Update (www.defense-update.com)

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• Legal Disclaimer
• The author of this report does not warrant or
  assume any legal liability or responsibility for
  the accuracy, completeness, usefulness of any
  information contained in this presentation, or
  any actions taken in consequence of its use.