Oriel JCR TT24 wk 7 - Motion 4

Palestine Solidarity Motion

See the motion document or the attached document in the email named "Palestine Solidarity Motion" for the full motion.

Oriel College JCR stands in solidarity with the people of Palestine, acknowledging the horrific violence and systematic destruction that they have experienced; noting that:

 

• Since October 7th 2023, at least 36,000 Palestinians have been killed [1] amounting to 1 in 50 children in Gaza having been killed or injured.[2] Many of these figures are months out of date and the death toll is likely much higher.

 

-     As of 24th April, approximately 1.7 million people in Gaza are internally displaced, this is approximately 75% of the population .[3]

 

-     As of 6th May, Israeli attacks have damaged or destroyed half of all homes within Gaza, and over 75% of schools, wells and commercial buildings, and every Gazan University or Higher Education facility.[4] [5] [6]

 

-     That South Africa has brought a case against the Israeli state in the ICJ alleging that these killings violate the Geneva Convention and constitute genocide, that the ICJ's initial ruling was that it is plausible that the right to protection from genocide is in danger given the power imbalances between the two sides.” [7] and that UN experts have called on the international community to prevent genocide against the Palestinian people.[8]

 

-     The Israeli government is deliberately denying Palestinians access to food and water. [9] [10] [11] The WFP recently reported that that 1.1 million people in Gaza – half of the population – have completely exhausted their food supplies and coping capacities and are struggling with catastrophic hunger and starvation. [12] The UN has stated that widespread famine is “almost inevitable” in Gaza without immediate intervention;[13] that many people – including vast numbers of children – are already suffering acute malnutrition; and that hunger and famine should not be understood solely as ‘humanitarian emergencies’ or ‘natural disasters’ but rather as manifestations of political decision-making, in this case by the Israeli government;

 

-     Israel’s indiscriminate and planned destruction of civilian infrastructure in Gaza [14] [15] [16], (including roads, hospitals, sewage systems, agriculture and telecommunications) will lead to many more civilian deaths in the future, even if a ceasefire is eventually agreed;

 

-     Israel is currently undertaking a full ground invasion of Rafah, which the UN has warned could be a ‘bloodbath’. This follows the Israeli government rejecting a ceasefire offer that would put an end to the war. [17] [18]  Rafah is practically the last remaining safe area in Gaza, with a population density twice that of New York. Gazans have been told to evacuate to Khan Younis, an area entirely destroyed by Israeli bombing, making it unliveable. Gazans have nowhere else to go.

 

-     The extent of civilian casualties show that this conflict is not simply a war between Israel and Hamas. These attacks are indiscriminate and are enabled by the complicity of Western governments and institutions, including the UK, which have armed and enabled the IDF (Israeli Defence Forces) since long before October 7th. Since 2008, the UK government has licensed arms worth £574 million to Israel.[19]

 

• All uses of “Israeli” refer to the Israeli government, or companies that support the Israeli government and do not refer generally to the Israeli population.

 

 

This JCR further notes that:

 

- The University of Oxford is financially contributing to this by ignoring demands to divest from Israeli occupation.

 

- The University of Oxford's Investment Policy currently contains an ethical restriction on direct investments in companies manufacturing illegal arms under the Munitions (Prohibitions) Act 2010 or the Landmines Act 1998, and on indirect investments in pooled vehicles which invest "primarily" in such companies. However, this falls significantly short of meeting standards of ethical investments, as it places no restrictions on OUEM investing the University of Oxford's capital into companies producing deadly arms that are not deemed illegal under the narrow criterion set out.

 

- In managing the University’s expendable financial capital, OUEM has partnered with the investment management company BlackRock to develop a bespoke equity index fund for the University of Oxford. [20] This fund's portfolio includes substantial investments in companies that play a crucial role in Israel's infrastructures of oppression, including Elbit Systems – the biggest Israeli weapons manufacturer –, Rolls-Royce – which supplies the Israeli military with its main battle tanks and armoured personnel carriers – , Barclays, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise. [21]

 

 

This JCR believes that:

 

-   Oxford University should not be financing or accepting funds from the suppliers of weapons used to commit genocidal acts.

 

-  Human rights abuses and crimes against humanity must always be condemned, with the aim of bringing them to an end. This is not a trivial matter, but one where lives are at stake, and silence is absolutely unacceptable at a time like this. It is vital that Oxford and Oriel College speak out against such.

 

-   Showing solidarity with Palestinians is of paramount importance, now more than ever, and this must be done in a public and substantial manner.

 

-   It is vital we show solidarity with our fellow students currently protesting this genocide, and ensure the money we give to the University is not being used to commit further crimes against humanity.

 

-    Supporting the push for divestment is an immediate, local and vital way we as students can exert our power within the university to help end this conflict and make significant change by ensuring the Universities financial and academic power is not used to support or profit from Israeli apartheid, or any other violent conflicts.

 

 

Thus, this JCR:

 

-     Affirms its support and solidarity with Palestinians within, Gaza, the West Bank and globally

 

-     Calls for an immediate and permanent ceasefire

 

• Condemns the events of October 7^th in which 1,139 Israelis were killed by Hamas fighters, and calls for the release of all Israeli hostages.

 

• Actively encourages conversation and engagement on these issues, in order to further understanding and empathy with all those affected in our community.

 

• Commits to put on an event in order to allow people to engage in dialogue and conversations related to the local impact of the issues addressed in our community, and to put on induction sessions in Freshers’ week on Islamophobia and Antisemitism. 

 

-     Calls on the UK government and Oxford University to condemn the actions of the Israeli government and IDF, call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, and halt all financial and military support to the Israeli state.

 

-     Resolves to release a public statement on its platforms that affirms our unequivocal support and solidarity with Palestinians, calling for an immediate permanent ceasefire, condemning the current genocide being carried out by the Israeli government and it indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and the West Bank.

 

 

We condemn all instances of discrimination that have occurred on campus in relation to this conflict.

 

We emphasise that there is no place for Islamophobia, antisemitism, racism or any form of discrimination, in our college or in our university;

 

We call on other colleges’ student bodies at the University of Oxford to support these demands in solidarity with Palestinians.

 

[1] https://www.ochaopt.org/content/hostilities-gaza-strip-and-israel-flash-update-171

[2]https://www.savethechildren.org.uk/news/media-centre/press-releases/one-in-50-of-gaza-s-children-killed-or-injured-in-six-months-of-

[3]https://www.aljazeera.com/news/longform/2023/10/9/israel-hamas-war-in-maps-and-charts-live-tracker

[4] https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2024/03/07/all-12-universities-in-gaza-have-been-the-target-of-israeli-attacks-it-s-a-war-against-education_6592965_4.html

[5] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-68006607

[6]https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/24/how-israel-has-destroyed-gazas-schools-and-universities

[7] https://www.npr.org/2024/01/26/1227078791/icj-israel-genocide-gaza-palestinians-south-africa

[8]https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2023/11/gaza-un-experts-call-international-community-prevent-genocide-against

[9] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/27/un-israel-food-starvation-palestinians-war-crime-genocide

[10] https://www.hrw.org/news/2023/12/18/israel-starvation-used-weapon-war-gaza

[11]https://www.europarl.europa.eu/meetdocs/2009_2014/documents/dplc/dv/dplc20091110amnesty_/dplc20091110amnesty_en.pdf (2009 report by Amnesty International - included to provide additional historical context on the Israeli government’s precedent of weaponizing access to water against Palestinians). 

[12] https://www.wfp.org/news/famine-imminent-northern-gaza-new-report-warns

[13]https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/famine-looms-gaza-how-will-world-know-it-has-arrived-2024-03-05/

[14]https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/02/01/world/middleeast/Israel-gaza-war-demolish.html

[15] https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/gaza-war-inflicts-catastrophic-damage-infrastructure-economy-2023-11-17/

[16]https://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2024/04/02/joint-world-bank-un-report-assesses-damage-to-gaza-s-infrastructure

[17]https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/three-phase-ceasefire-deal-hamas-backs-israel-does-not-2024-05-06/

[18]https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/gaza-ceasefire-deal-rejected-israel-hamas-b2540718.html

[19] https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-9964/CBP-9964.pdf

[20] https://www.ouem.co.uk/news/launch-of-a-fossil-fuel-screened-equity-index-fund/

[21]https://www.blackrock.com/uk/literature/annual-report/blackrock-collective-investment-funds-en-annual-report-2023.pdf