REJECT COMPLICITY, BUILD SOLIDARITY
REJECT COMPLICITY, BUILD SOLIDARITY
The Palestinian struggle has exposed the tangled web of interests that bind global powers – especially in the West – to an oppressive status quo. Much like the international response to South Africa’s apartheid, Palestine’s liberation movement has unmasked the façade of “universal values” upheld by Western democracies, revealing their complicity in maintaining and scaling-up the system of occupation and oppression. The ideals of international law, human rights, and justice have been overshadowed by rampant militarism, leaving countless lives shattered and entire communities destroyed.
But this struggle has also revealed something else: the quiet yet pervasive complicity of individuals, institutions, organisations and businesses – often without them (and us) even realising it. In a capitalist system designed to perpetuate ignorance, the distance between “consumers” and the true impact of their choices has grown wider than ever. From cultural products to everyday goods, the origins and ethical implications of what we support remain hidden, as we’re all caught up in surviving the next crisis – be it a layoff, a pandemic, or a natural disaster. This deliberate distancing has eroded critical consumption practices, creating a vacuum where capitalistic and colonial agents thrive. Thus, complicity is not merely accidental, it’s engineered to ensure the status quo persists.
That is why calling for boycott, divestment, and sanctions is not only a moral stance but a concrete, non-violent strategy for civil society to take action.
Some concrete examples…
Sodastream’s case
A Palestinian employee works at the SodaStream factory in the West Bank illegal settlement of Maale Adumim on January 28, 2014.
Source: Ammar Awad, Reuters
People love carbonated water. As a matter of fact, the global sparkling water market size was valued at USD 38.13 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow to USD 42.62 billion in 2024 (Fortunebusinessinsights, e.n.). The biggest carbonation system company in the world is Sodastream. The company was founded in the UK and was bought by the already infamous PepsiCo. Sodastream’s headquarters are now located in Kfar Saba (Israel) and it has 13 production facilities, some of them built inside of illegal settlements in Palestinian land.
The biggest of those, in Maaleh Adumim, fell target of a global BDS campaign that led to its closure. Buying Sodastream today means being complicit both in Israel’s policy of displacing the indigenous Bedouin-Palestinian citizens of Israel in the Naqab desert and in the mistreatment and discrimination of its Palestinian workers.
SodaStream has opened its biggest European factory in the Dutch city of Tilburg in 2021.
Bloody dates
A Palestinian child clambering in a date palm on an Israeli settlement farm, 2014
Source: Human Rights Watch
Who doesn’t like a sweet date together with a warm cup of tea? As of last year(2023), the global dates market was valued at USD 29.48 billion (Fortunebusinessinsights, e.n.). Despite Israel being a small producer in this market (0.5% of the global production), dates export yields hundreds of millions dollars to the Israeli economy (FAOSTAT, e.n.). What is less known though, is that this industry is highly exploitative – even from its inception when different strains were smuggled illegally to the colony from other ME countries – and much of its operations takes place in illegal settlements. It’s estimated that more than 40% of what is exported as “Israeli dates” is grown in illegal settlements, where Palestinian workers are not only paid low-wages (if they are paid at all) but also forced to work in extreme conditions, especially in the Jordan Valley where temperatures can get prohibitive during the harvest season. Workers, including children, are forced to work long hours and fulfil quotas before they are able to go home.
On top of that, these plantations divert crucial water resources away from Palestinian villages, depriving them of adequate water for drinking and farming. As a result, the local Palestinian date industry, already strained under military occupation, struggles to compete with the flood of Israeli dates dominating local and international markets.
One of the most infamous Israeli dates brand, Hadiklaim, is accused of using child labour and paying Palestinian workers less than the minimum wage. Hadiklaim operates in the Netherlands through its subsidiary, Palmfruits BV.
Academic complicity
Students occupying the UNL office in The Hague to demand all universities to boycott and divest from Israeli institutions, February 2024.
Source: Amsterdam Student Encampment
Attending university is seen as an essential step for securing a well-paying, highly skilled job and is also viewed as a status symbol for those who have the means to pursue it. This trend is confirmed also in the Netherlands where, according to the Centraal Bureau voor de Statistiek (CBS), the number of people with university degrees has trebled in the last 40 years. But universities are more than just places of learning; they are the breeding grounds where the next ruling class is shaped and groomed.
They serve as spaces where future leaders, influencers, and decision-makers are not only educated in academic fields but are also immersed in the social networks, values, and ideologies that will define their roles in society. This takes a grim turn when applying it to Israel where, for decades, universities have played a key role in planning, implementing and justifying Israel’s occupation and apartheid policies, while maintaining a uniquely close relationship with the Israeli military.
In the Netherlands, almost all the universities have sealed strategic collaborations with Israeli counterparts, undermining their of academic integrity, perpetuating a cycle of complicity, enabling oppressive systems and silencing critical discourse. The Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), for instance, not only collaborates with major Israeli arms manufacturers such as the Israel Aerospace Industries – one of the primary suppliers to the Israeli Defence Forces – by providing drones, aircraft, and missiles used also in the ongoing genocide in Gaza, but also maintains partnerships with Israeli institutions like the Ben Gurion University, founded in 1969 as a settlement outpost in the desert region and established to encourage new settlers to populate the area, further entrenching the occupation and displacement of Palestinian communities.
An horror movie scene
Activists interrupt the Israeli-state funded film "Bliss", September 2024.
Source: Stopartwashing
The movie-theatre industry is staging a comeback. After a long period of low attendance, 2023 has seen cinemas welcoming back large audiences, rekindling the social aspect of watching films together. However, this enjoyment can come with a troubling implication: when Israeli films are screened, viewers may inadvertently contribute to the normalisation of apartheid.
Consider, for instance, purchasing a ticket for a film produced by the Samaria Film Fund, which is distributed in the Netherlands. Would viewers be aware that this and similar funds are designed to promote the cultural and economic normalisation of the occupation? Would they know that these funds prioritise film productions in the occupied West Bank while explicitly excluding Palestinians living in the area from participating?
We believe they should.
Embed boycott in your everyday
The examples mentioned above illustrate just a few of the many invisible connections we encounter in our daily lives and interactions. In today’s world, it is virtually impossible to navigate without encountering systems of complicity – be it through our consumer choices, institutional affiliations, or the cultural products we engage with – all of which are often intertwined with global injustices and human rights violations.
As people of conscience, it is crucial for us to ensure that the spaces we inhabit or participate with do not support or sustain a violent, genocidal apartheid regime like the Israeli one, nor benefit from severe human rights abuses, or become influenced by such systems.
That’s why, following the examples of many before us, BDS Netherlands (DocP) wants to to respond to the pressing issues of our time and launch this new campaign through which we aim to transform the whole country, bit by bit, into an Apartheid Free Zone (AFZ) while defining the boundaries of a growing community of people that want to commit to concrete actions and choices against the Israeli occupation and any other regime of oppression.
Apartheid Free Zone campaign: what is it and why is important?
The Apartheid Free Zone is a BDS international campaign that addresses places, social movements, associations, and institutions upholding the principles of freedom, justice, and equality. It promotes creating a network of spaces – both virtual and physical – that declare themselves free from all forms of discrimination and commit to not engaging with systems of injustice and oppression, and people who want to contribute to creating an active community of solidarity and practical support for Palestinian rights.
We strongly believe in this campaign mission and its strategic impact in our national Palestinian liberation movement. In fact, while is important to keep up the pressure to institutions and organisations who are directly complicit with the system of apartheid with more targeted actions and by crowding public spaces with recurring sit-in and demonstrations, the AFZ campaign calls for the building of a long-standing community which embraces and embeds BDS principles in their daily activities and interactions.
This has become even more urgent following the International Court of Justice’s ruling on July 19th, 2024. The court formally declared that Israel’s occupation of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza is entirely unlawful and constitutes a system of apartheid and racial segregation. The ICJ further emphasised that all states have a duty to help bring these violations to an end, which includes cutting off economic, trade, and investment relations with Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories. In other words, under international law, every country is obligated to participate in an economic boycott of Israel’s activities in the OPT and to divest from any ongoing economic relationships there.
For any organisation, engaging in boycotts, divestment, and sanctions against Israel’s occupation, colonisation, and apartheid is not only a moral and constitutional right – it is now also an international legal obligation.
A dutch community-based project in support of the Palestinian liberation movement
In all its aspects, the Apartheid Free Zone campaign in the Netherlands will be managed as a community-based project, to address a community need: identify all the visible and invisible ties with the Israeli apartheid regime and replace those with deeds of solidarity.
Community involvement: AFZ community members will play an active role in all stages of this initiative, from planning and decision-making to implementation and evaluation.
Local relevance: by establishing its identity, the AFZ community in the Netherlands promotes collaboration and creates value through the positive exchange among local players and communities.
Collaboration: the AFZ campaign involves local community members and organisations to work together, sharing resources and building a sense of shared commitment.
Empowerment: the AFZ campaign equips the local community with the skills, knowledge and tools they need to actively harness local efforts to achieve a bigger impact.
Sustainability: the AFZ community is here to stay, its community is committed to lasting change, advocating for the freedom of Palestine and its people, and to embrace other intersectional struggles along the way.
Cultural sensitivity: the AFZ campaign embraces the rich cultural diversity of our communities in the Netherlands, ensuring that our initiatives reflect local experiences and foster genuine connections.
And to all the potential Apartheid Free Zones here in the Netherlands, we say: you are not alone!
Joining this BDS international campaign will connect you to a vast global network of solidarity and action. The AFZ campaign is already active in many countries around the world and has been growing for years.
There are thousands of Apartheid Free Zones globally, with numerous cities, organisations, and institutions joining the movement in countries across Europe, Southeast Asia, North Africa, North America, and South America. Entire cities like Belém in Brazil and Valdivia in Chile have answered the call, becoming proud Apartheid Free Zones.
JOIN THE GLOBAL MOVEMENT
This international dimension is vital, not just for showing the global scale of the campaign, but because of the enormous benefits of being connected to such a diverse and experienced community.
By becoming part of this worldwide movement, we will have the opportunity to collaborate with other AFZ teams, share best practices, and explore creative ways to keep your local AFZ community engaged and thriving.
We will learn from the successes of other regions, adapt new strategies for outreach, and, most importantly, contribute to the global struggle against apartheid and colonialism.
So, whether you're an organisation, business, or public space here in the Netherlands, take this step with us—together, we’ll be stronger and better equipped to create meaningful change. Join us in making the Netherlands an Apartheid Free Zone and be part of a global movement for justice, dignity, and freedom.