Both the World Council of Churches and Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center made statements earlier this year that are critical of Israel, calling for an end to humanitarian violations while the status of Jerusalem is debated.
The WCC supports a call by the Presbyterian Church (USA) to divest in companies in Israel contributing to humanitarian violations, and it said the final status of Jerusalem must be part of a comprehensive peace settlement and be negotiated without delay. It went on to state that alterations of boundaries, population and settlements that change the religious, cultural or historical character of Jerusalem without consent are violations of international law.
The council contends that while world attention is focused on Israel's plans to withdraw from Gaza, the government "has intensified unilateral programs to consolidate control over Jerusalem and other occupied territory." These include:
- Creating a border by constructing the Wall on occupied territory, in contravention of international law
- Cutting the West Bank in two by adding 3,500 housing units to Maale Adumim settlement, mocking prospects for a viable Palestinian State with a shared Jerusalem as its capital
- Repeated declarations by the government that large illegal West Bank settlements and all of Jerusalem will belong to Israel in any final agreement
- Ongoing violations of human and civil rights of Palestinians in Jerusalem. Jewish settlements are built in their neighbourhoods while construction permits for Palestinians are denied, family homes are demolished and requests for family reunification are denied
- Threats of an absentee property law allowing confiscation of Palestinian property in Jerusalem and a new regulation to require permits for Jerusalem residents entering the West Bank
The WCC calls for "an open and inclusive Jerusalem, a city of shared sovereignty and citizenship, a city of two peoples and three faiths, of Christians, Muslims and Jews. Now is the time to cease actions that pre-empt peace in Jerusalem and to begin negotiation of Jerusalem's final status within the framework of international law."
A Christian organization, Sabeel also addressed human rights' concerns, paying particular attention to morally responsible investment. The center objects "to all those who carry out violent, unethical, immoral, and illegal actions," saying Christians have a God-given responsibility to act. "Morally responsible investment is a means of enacting our obligation to prevent any assistance or participation in the violations of basic human rights. All those who believe in a just resolution to the conflict also have an ethical duty to prevent unlawful harm to civilians."
International law, like that set out in the Fourth Geneva Convention (to which Israel is a signatory), specifies that people living under occupation must be protected until the occupation comes to an end. Because of this, stated the Sabeel letter, it is illegal to build on or confiscate their land, kill or harm innocent civilians (whether Palestinian or Israeli), to employ collective punishment and to transfer parts of an occupying powers' civilian population into occupied territories.
"We are calling for divestment from targeted companies that benefit from the violation of human rights and refuse to alter their behaviour once confronted. This pressure must continue until the occupation ends."
As responsible owners and investors, the churches have multiple economic options, including:
- Avoidance – avoiding investment in companies on moral grounds
- Involvement – exercising influence and pressure on companies and corporations in shareholder meetings to actively promote moral and social responsibility and accountability
- Alternative or selective investment – establishing alternative investment funds that promote justice and peace
- Withdrawal – pulling investments on moral grounds
- Reinvestment – moving the money from investments in corporations complicit of wrongdoing to organizations that engage in morally responsible business, or to reinvest in the organization after positive change occurs
Sabeel calls on churches to exert pressure on companies to divest from businesses that provide products, services, technology or finances that sustain, support or maintain the occupation, assist in the building of the Wall, or harm civilians. "Churches, by moving from statements to direct action and adopting appropriate financial policies that are in line with their moral and theological stance, create an example for the international community." – AM with files from WCC and Sabeel
