NDC reaffirms UNISON support for Palestinians

#undc13 An extended debate led to Conference overwhelmingly passing motion 79 which called for peace and justice for the Palestinian people including a state in the West Bank and Gaza Strip with Jerusalem as its capital and the right of return for Palestinian refugees. The union will be circulating the final report of the Russell Tribunal on Palestine which was held in March 2013.

Sam Macartney (pictured) from Glasgow Branch called for a stepping up of the BDS campaign 'it is right that we target Israeli settlement goods, but while Israel continues to participate in the world’s sporting events without repercussions, it is an insult to all Palestinians, who should have a right to live in their own homeland with full civil rights and free from persecution.'

Eddie Paterson from the Mater Hospital branch in Northern Ireland said that 'at the bargaining table we now need to negotiate ethical procurement clauses which enable contracts with the apartheid regime to be terminated or blocked from the beginning.'