Now I heard about this first last night on CBC's As It Happens.
The CS Monitor has the story
A vote by the Presbyterian Church (USA) to use economic sanctions against certain companies doing business with Israel - namely those that profit from the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza - has set off a quiet firestorm within the American religious community.
The policy, as explained by the Minister last night on CBC is pretty even-handed and not radical. They are targeting companies which profit from the violence. The example raised as Catepillar, who builds the armored bulldozers, but also mentioned that they are looking into companies which may be helping the Palestinian side as well. The Church tries to be socially responsible and already has no investments in weapons makers, as well as gambling and tobacco interests.
To be clear, the policy is not aimed at Israel per se but at the violence, and they are questioning Palestinians as much as Israelis.
The Presbyterians say their aims are to influence the practices of companies and use their resources - an $8 billion portfolio - in morally responsible ways. "We have to be principled; we respect human rights and the legitimacy of international law, and when Israelis or Palestinians breech either we'll take a hard look at our investments," says the Rev. Marthame Sanders, who was in ministry in the West Bank.
I found this story to be interesting, and if nothing else it is fueling a debate about middle east policy that we have been unable to have in the political arena. It's really quite encouraging, and it does remind me of the divestment calls back in the mid 1980s towards South Africa. I should note that at the time I was not a proponent of those actions thinking they would likely cause more damage than good. However, it turned out I was wrong and that the divestment of South African business relationships is largely responsible for the collapse of the Apartheid regime.
Economic sanctions only appear to work when the people targetted give a rat's ass about the economy. Such was the case in South Africa, such is definately the case in Israel. I believe this will work, and the article mentions the Episcopal church is considering a similar move. This sounds to me like a good movement for Democratic activists to get behind.
The other reason the story is interesting to me is that I'm a member of the Presbyterian Church. I have not attended service for about 10 years now, but to support this move by the church I think that will change.