[Imc-london-audio] FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Campaign against Israeli Apartheid Moves Forward

[aaron at resist.ca]

*– For Immediate Release –
Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Campaign against Israeli Apartheid Moves
Forward as 600 People Attend Landmark Conference in Toronto
October 9, 2006*

(Toronto, October 9, 2006) -- Over 600 people attended the landmark
conference, Boycotting Israeli Apartheid: The Struggle Continues, held
from 6-8 October in Toronto, Canada. The conference represents a watershed
moment in the Palestinian solidarity movement, with leading anti-apartheid
activists from Palestine, South Africa, Canada and England addressing the
way forward in the global campaign of boycott, divestment and sanctions.

Jamal Juma', coordinator of the Stop the Wall Campaign in Palestine, told
the opening night that the burgeoning boycott, divestment and sanctions
(BDS) movement represents a powerful and practical act of solidarity with
the Palestinian struggle. He emphasized that this movement would succeed
as it had in South Africa, "We promise you we will not give up. We will
stand firm on our land; Israeli apartheid will fall."

Salim Vally, chair of the Palestine Solidarity Committee in South Africa,
gave a powerful analysis of Israeli apartheid and its resemblance to the
South African situation. He stressed that the solidarity movement to
isolate the South African apartheid regime was built by grassroots and
popular forces organized throughout the world. That same challenge faces
the Palestinian boycott, divestment and sanctions movement today.

Betty Hunter, General Secretary of the UK Palestine Solidarity Campaign,
and Jonathan Rosenhead, Emeritus Professor at the London School of
Economics and member of the British Committee for Universities in
Palestine, spoke to the conference on the lessons of Palestine solidarity
work in England. Discussions focused on the boycott campaign launched by
British academics against Israeli apartheid as well as the growing support
amongst British trade unionists for a BDS campaign.

The conference was organized by the Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid
(CAIA), a broad movement formed in response to the call by 171 Palestinian
civil-society organizations in July 2005 for the international community
to implement a comprehensive boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS)
strategy against apartheid Israel as the focal point of solidarity efforts
with the Palestinian people.

The conference developed a detailed program to move the BDS campaign
forward in different sectors. Over 75 people attended a lively session on
labor and the campaign against Israeli apartheid, in which veteran
anti-apartheid activists from the South African struggle presented lessons
on how to build support for the campaign among workers and in trade
unions. A Canada-wide student network was launched to deepen the BDS
movement on campuses across the country. Individuals from different areas
throughout Toronto formed neighborhood committees to carry the campaign
forward at a local level. Workshops were also held on media, research, art
and cultural boycott, and faith-based communities.

Robert Lovelace, Co-Chief of the Ardoch Algonquin First Nation, closed the
conference with a powerful comparison of the experience of colonialism in
Canada and Palestine. He expressed his solidarity with the Palestinian
movement for self-determination, and pledged to continue to strengthen the
links between indigenous activists in Canada and the Palestine solidarity
movement.

To become involved in the campaign against Israeli apartheid, contact CAIA
at
endapartheid at riseup.net<http://mail.riseup.net/sm/src/compose.php?send_to=endapartheid%40riseup.net>or
through
www.caiaweb.org.

– 30 –

MEDIA CONTACT: (647) 831-5516 or
media at caiaweb.org<http://mail.riseup.net/sm/src/compose.php?send_to=media%40caiaweb.org>

-- 
Coalition Against Israeli Apartheid - MEDIA
(647) 831-5516
media at caiaweb.org<http://mail.riseup.net/sm/src/compose.php?send_to=media%40caiaweb.org>
www.caiaweb.org

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