The Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement in Brazil launched a campaign on first anniversary of the Gaza genocide, calling on candidates in the municipal elections to “boycott Israel and take a stand to comply with international law.” Municipal elections are due to be held in a number of cities later this month.
Several left-wing political parties, social movements, trade unions, civil society organizations and students joined the BDS Brazil campaign against Israel’s genocide in the Gaza Strip.
The campaign called for agreements between city councils and Israel to be severed to make “Sao Paulo free from apartheid”.
“We do not want agreements between the city council and the State of Israel! For a Sao Paulo free from apartheid,” BDS Brazil said.
“The BDS movement calls on civil society of Brazil to show solidarity through boycott, divestment and sanctions campaigns until international law is enforced, the occupation and colonization of Palestinian lands in the West Bank and Gaza end and the fundamental rights of Palestinian citizens as stipulated by United Nations (UN) Resolution 194 as recognized,” it added.
BDS Brazil asked candidates in the upcoming municipal elections to take a stand in favor of compliance with international law against all the violations of human rights, and work to impose a military, political and economic boycott of Israel within the executive and legislative municipal administration.
“Follow the situation in Palestine and the Israeli genocide in Gaza. With more than 40,000 Palestinians killed since 7 October, there is no room for silence or inaction. The government must demand human rights and international standards for the Palestinian people,” the organization said.
BDS Brazil also called for an academic boycott of Israeli institutions and universities with the renunciation of current agreements, ending military and all other agreements between Brazil and Israel and a complete severance of relationships with Israeli institutions in Brazil.
“BDS Brazil asks the municipal elections candidates to join the national initiatives of campaigns for the immediate breaking of Brazilian military and public security agreements with Israel. With this, the city of which you will be mayor will be a zone free of apartheid. With no agreement with any institution, company or state complicit in crimes against humanity.”
The International Court of Justice, the group said, “has confirmed that Israel is illegally imposing an apartheid regime in Palestinian territories, but the court couldn’t force Israel to follow its decisions.”
In view of the ICJ’s decision, it explained, “BDS endorses that the application of sanctions is not only a tool to dismantle the system of oppression but it is an obligation under international law that must be fulfilled.”
“If we look at the statistics and the targets in Gaza, more than 40,000 Palestinians murdered, most of them are women and children. If you notice, Israel is targeting all the people of Gaza, all forms of life in Gaza,” Jamal Juma’ explained.
Juma’, who was born in Jerusalem and went on to co-found BDS Brazil, added: “Hundreds of thousands of people are buried, trapped under the rubble, and cannot be found. More than 100,000 people are injured. We are talking about people without access to hospitals, without the necessary medicine, these injured people who are likely to die.”
He said thousands in Brazil have risen up to demand an end to the bloodshed in Gaza and the entire Middle East and more protests are expected in the future.
Agreements with the occupation state, he added, “may be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of international humanitarian and human rights laws, including war crimes and genocide in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank,” and this must end.
-Eman Abusidu is MEMO’s correspondent in Brazil.
