BCUWU Resolutions on Palestine

News, Updates

https://www.instagram.com/workersinpalestine/ image

TRADE UNION SOLIDARITY WITH PALESTINE

WHEREAS Canada exported over $21 million CAD in military goods to Israel in 2022,
including over $3 million in bombs, torpedoes, missiles, and other explosives;
AND WHEREAS more than 10,000 (update total at AGM) Palestinian civilians have been
killed since October 9, 2023 as the result of the Israeli military’s exercise of overwhelming
and unjustified force;
AND WHEREAS the Israeli government has issued more than 10,000 (update total at AGM)
weapons with no oversight to Israelis living in settlements deemed illegal under international
law;
AND WHEREAS on October 16, 2023 more than 30 Palestinian trade unions, including the
largest labour federation, issued an “Immediate Call to Action” to workers and trade unions
around the world to stop the flow of arms to Israel by immediately:

  1. Refusing to build weapons destined for Israel.
  2. Refusing to transport weapons to Israel.
  3. Passing motions in their trade union to this effect.
  4. Taking action against complicit companies involved in implementing Israel’s brutal
    and illegal siege, especially if they have contracts with your institution.
  5. Pressuring governments to stop all military trade with Israel.
    WHEREAS the members of the BCUWU are engaged in neither the manufacturing nor
    transport industries,
    THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the British Columbia Union Workers’ Union (BCUWU)
    call on labour allies to demand the Canadian government immediately prohibit all
    commercial activity involving the Israeli military/intelligence agencies and contractors
    thereof;
    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the BCUWU bring labour and social justice allies together
    to publicly pressure three arms and military infrastructure companies doing business in
    British Columbia and call on the workers there to honour the Palestinian trade unions’ call to
    action;
    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that all BCUWU affiliates work with union trustees to
    ascertain and report on whether their respective pension plans include investments in
    companies benefitting from operations in the illegally Occupied Territories by the end of
    2024;
    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the BCUWU demand the Canadian Government
    immediately suspend the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA) until amended to
    respect international law which has repeatedly found the settlements in the Occupied
    Territories to be illegal and not part of Israel;
    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the BCUWU authorize the Social Justice and Solidarity
    Committee to strike a working group to realize all aspects of this resolution.

SUPPORTING PEACE AND AIDING VICTIMS OF WAR

WHEREAS a just and lasting peace in Israel-Palestine is not possible without the leadership
and guidance of Jewish organizations willing to stand against apartheid;
AND WHEREAS the civilians of Gaza are in desperate need of medical care;
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the British Columbia Union Workers’ Union (BCUWU)
immediately pledge $3,000 to The Israeli Information Centre for Human Rights in the Occupied
Territories https://www.btselem.org/;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the BCUWU immediately pledge $3,000 to Doctors Without
Borders.

PERMANENT CEASEFIRE IN PALESTINE

WHEREAS on October 7, 2023, hundreds of Israeli civilians were killed and more than 200 taken hostage
in a brutal assault by members of the Hamas organization;
WHEREAS in reprisal, the Israeli Government is ongoingly engaging in the collective punishment of the
civilian population of Gaza, to date killing more than 18,000 Palestinian civilians via a massive ground
invasion and unprecedented aerial bombardments of hospitals, schools, and refugee camps;
WHEREAS the Israeli siege of Gaza has cut people off from access to clean drinking water, food, and
medicine, as well as the fuel needed to power hospitals, desalination plants, and communication lines;

1 WHEREAS the international nongovernmental organization Save the Children commissioned a study that
found a child in Gaza dies every ten minutes as a consequence of Israel’s military actions;
WHEREAS about 90% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been displaced within the besieged territory, and
UN agencies say there is no safe place for civilians to flee;

2 WHEREAS on December 12, 2023, at the UN General Assembly Emergency Special Session, Canada voted
in favour of adopting a resolution demanding an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire”, the immediate
and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as “ensuring humanitarian access”;

3 WHEREAS the UN Special Rapporteur Michael Lynk, former UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon,
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, South African Foreign Minister Naledi Pandor, and former Israeli Attorney
General Michael Ben-Yair have all described Israel’s occupation as apartheid.

4 THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the British Columbia Union Workers’ Union join the Ceasefire Now
Coalition;

5 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the BCUWU call on the Canadian Labour Congress to formally demand
the Canadian Government:
a. Continue to demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire;
b. Demand an end to Israel’s siege on Gaza;
c. Demand an immediate withdrawal of Israel from the Occupied Palestinian Territories
d. Demand an end to Israeli apartheid.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the BCUWU authorize the Social Justice and Solidarity Committee to
organize political action events calling on MPs in furtherance of these objectives.

5 https://ceasefirenow.ca/
4 https://news.un.org/en/story/2022/03/1114702
3 https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/12/1144717
2 https://www.cbsnews.com/news/israel-hamas-war-un-gaza-unmatched-suffering-calls-new-cease-fire-aid/
1
https://www.npr.org/2023/11/22/1214651734/rafah-crossing-gaza-egypt-aid#:~:text=The%20Israeli%20siege%20o
f%20Gaza,pumps%2C%20homes%20and%20communication%20lines