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Sample Divestment Petitions

The following petitions are currently being used by other divest-from-Israel campaigns around the country. Although they are very similar, there are some significant differences. Use these examples to develop your own divestment petition suitable for you community and your goals.

This petition, widely used in the university divestment movement, is from the University of California:

We, the undersigned, are appalled by the human rights abuses against Palestinians at the hands of the Israeli government, the continual military occupation and colonization of Palestinian territory by Israeli armed forces and settlers, and the forcible eviction from and demolition of Palestinian homes, towns and cities. We find the recent attacks on Israeli civilians unacceptable and abhorrent. But these should not and do not negate the human rights of the Palestinian people.

As members of the University of California community, we believe that our university ought to use its influence - political and financial - to encourage the United States government and the government of Israel to respect the human rights of the Palestinian people. We therefore call on the US government to make military aid and arms sales to Israel conditional on immediate initiation and rapid progress in implementing the conditions listed below. We also call on the University of California to divest from Israel, and from US companies that sell arms to Israel, until these conditions are met:

1. Israel is in compliance with United Nations Resolution 242 which notes the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war, and which calls for withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from occupied territories.

2. Israel is in compliance with the United Nations Committee Against Torture 2001 Report which recommends that Israel's use of legal torture be ended.

3. In compliance with the Fourth Geneva Convention ("The occupying power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into territories it occupies"; Article 49, paragraph 6), Israel ceases building new settlements, and vacates existing settlements, in the Occupied Territories.

4. Israel acknowledges in principle the applicability of United Nations Resolution 194 with respect to the rights of refugees, and accepts that refugees should either be allowed to return to their former lands or else be compensated for their losses, as agreed by the Palestinians and Israelis in bilateral negotiations.



This petition, from Columbia University, is similar to University of California petition except that it only calls for divestment from weapons manufacturers:

We, the undersigned, are appalled by the human rights abuses against Palestinians at the hands of the Israeli government, the continual military occupation and colonization of Palestinian territory by Israeli armed forces and settlers, the forcible eviction of Palestinians from their homes, and the demolition of Palestinian dwellings, neighborhoods and towns.

We categorically condemn the loss of any innocent life, Israeli or Palestinian. We therefore call on Columbia University (1) to use its influence--political and financial--to encourage the United States government to suspend its military aid and arms sales to Israel, and (2) to divest from all companies that manufacture arms and other military hardware sold to Israel, as well from companies that sell such arms and military hardware to Israel, until Israel complies with all the relevant UN resolutions and Geneva conventions, and ends its military occupation of the Palestinian territories of the West Bank and Gaza Strip seized since 1967.



The University of Pennsylvania divestment petition not only calls for divestment from arms manufacturers that provide arms to Israel but also from companies that provide arms to any regime that violates human rights. The petition specifically calls for a viable, independent Palestinian state:

We, the undersigned, are appalled by the human rights abuses against Palestinians at the hands of the Israeli government, the continual military occupation and colonization of Palestinian territory by Israeli armed forces and settlers, and the forcible eviction from and demolition of Palestinian homes, towns and cities;

We are horrified by attacks against Israeli civilians, and we, like many in the Israeli peace movement, are convinced that only the end of the Israeli occupation and establishment of a geographically and economically viable Palestinian state can bring peace to the Middle East;

We note that the University of Pennsylvania has significant investments in arms manufacturers that sell arms to Israel for use in the Occupied Territories, in violation of US and International Law;

We believe that these investments compromise the values and mission of the University of Pennsylvania;

Therefore, as members of the University of Pennsylvania community we call on the University to divest from all companies whose business promotes the Israeli occupation, especially firms that sell arms to Israel and firms based in illegal settlements in the West Bank and Gaza, until the following conditions are met:

1. Israel complies with United Nations Resolution 242, which notes the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war, and which calls for the withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from the Occupied Territories;

2. Israel complies with the United Nations Committee Against Torture 2001 Report, which recommends that Israel's torture of people in custody be ended, and renounces its practice of assassinating Palestinian leaders and suspected militants;

3. Israel complies with the Fourth Geneva Convention ("The occupying power shall not deport or transfer parts of its own civilian population into territories it occupies;" Article 49, paragraph 6), ceases to build new settlements, and vacates existing settlements in the Occupied Territories;

4. Israel accepts and begins to implement United Nations Resolution 194 with respect to the rights of refugees, and accepts that refugees should either be allowed to return to their former lands or else be compensated for their losses, as agreed by the Palestinians and Israelis in bilateral negotiations.

We furthermore believe that the University of Pennsylvania should divest from arms manufacturers that do business with any nation that has been shown to violate human rights, including Egypt, Turkey, Colombia, or any other. This petition focuses on Israel because it is the largest recipient of US military aid, as well as one of the largest manufacturers of military software and weapons, in the world.

We do not ask the University to take a political stance in favor of one "side" or the other, in this or any other conflict that entails human rights violations, but rather to ensure that the values of the University community are not compromised by the corporations represented in Penn's investment portfolio.




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This page last updated October 02, 2005
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