Newsletter   27 September 2024



That's why we're demanding that East Sussex Pension Fund [ESPF] divest from companies that are complicit in Israel's war crimes and genocide.

The majority of these companies directly supply the Israeli military forces. They include:

L3 Technologies (£19,628,947) assembled, along with Elbit systems, the Hermes 900 militarised drone that is used against the people of Gaza.

Northrop Grumman (£2,706,258) supplies the Israeli Air Force with the Longbow missile delivery system for its Apache helicopters and with laser weapon delivery systems for its fighter jets. It has also supplied the Israeli navy with Sa'ar V missile gunships.

Lockheed Martin (£2,325,458) provides Israel with F-16 fighter jets.

Raytheon (£260,504) produces bunker buster bombs that have been used by Israel to target civilian homes in Gaza.

The fund has investments in four companies in the United Nations list of companies involved in Israel's illegal settlement industry. This includes Motorola whose equipment is installed in illegal settlements and the apartheid wall in the occupied West Bank, and it is used by the Israeli military, police, and prison service.

This not just a moral and ethical issue. There are serious legal issues involved now that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) affirmed that there is plausible evidence that Israel is committing genocidal acts against the people of Gaza.

In July the ICJ confirmed that Israel's occupation of Palestinian land is unlawful and that it is under an obligation to bring to an end its unlawful presence "as rapidly as possible." It also stated that Israel is "under an obligation to cease immediately all new settlement activities and to evacuate all settlers from the Occupied Palestinian Territory." This means that all illegal settlements must be disbanded.

So while the ICJ - the World Court - orders Israel to stop its genocide and disband its settlements, the ESPF carries on with its complicity - and benefits from it. This must stop.

Recently the Waltham Forest Pension Committee announced that it will start the process of divesting from companies complicit in Israel's war crimes. If Waltham Forest can do this, so can East Sussex.


It's time to increase the pressure on the Council to divest from companies complicit in Israel's war crimes.

Please, as a matter of urgency, send an email to the County Council for the next Full Council meeting. We have prepared a draft letter you can copy and paste into the body of your email. Or you can email your own question. The Council must respond to these questions at their next Full Council meeting, being held on Tuesday 8 October, and include both your question and its response in its minutes.

The deadline for you to email your question is 4pm on Monday 30 September so there's no time to lose.

THE MORE PEOPLE WHO WRITE IN, THE BIGGER PRESSURE ON THE FUND.

Send an email to democratic.services@eastsussex.gov.uk with the following subject line:

Subject line: 'Question for the 8 October 2024 Full Council meeting.'

Text: 'Please find below my question for the Full Council meeting on 8 October 2024:'

INSERT YOUR QUESTION HERE (see below)
YOUR NAME
YOUR ADDRESS
YOUR PHONE NUMBER

Here is a question that can be asked. Feel free to amend or to send any question of your choice that you feel will influence the committee:
_________________________________
Dear Chair

In the past four years there have been numerous letters sent to the full council objecting to the East Sussex Pension Fund's (ESPF) investments in companies complicit in Israel's abuses of human rights and violations of international law. Thankfully, during this time the amount invested in complicit companies by the ESPF has been reduced. It stood at £132 million, but it still stands at £68 million. This is according to the PSC database.

Members of the public in the UK and throughout the world have been appalled at seeing nearly a year of Israeli bombing throughout Gaza. These crimes have resulted in more than 41,000 deaths, the majority are civilians, almost half of them children. Over 70% of buildings and infrastructure have been destroyed, while over 90% of Palestinians in Gaza have been displaced, many multiple times.

Four years after the Pension Fund Committee first raised the issue, the ESPF still has four companies that are in the UN list of companies involved in the illegal settlement industry. It also has more than 20 companies that supply Israel with weapons and military technology. These include L3 Technologies, Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, Raytheon and Rolls Royce.

There has been a growing number of pension funds, public bodies and institutions that have been divesting from companies complicit in Israeli war crimes. Recently the Waltham Forest Pension Committee announced that it will start the process of divesting from such complicit companies. It is updating its ethical investment policy, has started discussions with its asset pooling company the London CIV and has taken legal advice to help it assess its options.

Isn't it time that the East Sussex Pension Fund Committee also took such a principled position?

This is not just a moral question but also a legal one. In January 2024 a landmark ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) - the World Court - affirmed that there is plausible evidence that Israel is committing genocidal acts against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. The ICJ ordered Israel to "take all measures within its power to prevent genocidal acts, including preventing and punishing incitement to genocide." The UK is party to the Genocide Convention and has a binding obligation to employ all means reasonably available to prevent and deter further genocidal acts.

In July the ICJ confirmed that Israel's occupation of Palestinian land and treatment of Palestinians is unlawful and that it is under an obligation to bring to an end its unlawful presence "as rapidly as possible." It also stated that Israel is "under an obligation to cease immediately all new settlement activities and to evacuate all settlers from the Occupied Palestinian Territory."

This month the UN General Assembly echoed the ICJ and overwhelmingly passed the resolution demanding that Israel brings to an end, without delay, its unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. This means that all illegal settlements must be disbanded.

So while the ICJ orders Israel to prevent genocide and to disband its illegal settlements, the ESPF continues in its own complicity and in fact benefits from these violations of international law. It can be argued that the East Sussex Council has a legal responsibility to act now in order to keep within international law.

I therefore request that the ESPF:

Screen for all these complicit companies and pinpoint the ESPF funds in which they are held.

Start a process of divestment from these funds prioritising those that are overweight with arms companies that supply Israel with weapons and military technology, and companies that are involved with the illegal settlement industry.

Yours Sincerely,

Name
_________________________________
Notes

Please CC your email to info@hastingspalestinecampaign.org so that we know that you've sent it.

They will only accept your question if you include your address and phone number, but they won't include these in their minutes.

Please share this widely on social media.

27 September 2024.
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