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Swedish Government Funds Latest BDS Initiative in France
As shown by NGO Monitor research, a report published today by a coalition of French and Palestinian pro-BDS organizations that calls on the French government to "pressure" French financial institutions to divest from Israeli banks, communication, insurance, and utility companies, is funded by the Swedish government.
The report, titled 'The Dangerous Ties between French Banks and Insurances Companies with Israeli Occupation' and written by Association France Palestine Solidarité (AFPS), CCFD – Terre Solidaire, International Federation of Human Rights (FIDH), the French League of Human Rights (LDH), and Al-Haq, also calls on the French government to intervene and force French banks and insurance companies to "disengage without delay from any financial link with Israeli banks" as well as encourages "a legislative proposal prohibiting enterprises from all sectors to invest in the settlements."
Olga Deutsch, Director of the Europe Desk at NGO Monitor, "BDS groups are once again targeting France and Israel with economic warfare, and it is no surprise that the central pillars of the French and Israeli economies are in their sights. What is even more troubling is that a third country – Sweden – is involved as well, and this report reflects the danger of irresponsible Swedish funding to NGOs."
The logo of the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) appears on the publication. In addition, the Swedish government provides millions of dollars in core funding to FIDH, committing $5,170,707 between 2012-2016. Sweden also provides $5.7 million from 2013-2017 to the Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Secretariat which funds Al Haq, an organization whose General Director Shawan Jabarin has alleged ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a recognized terrorist organization designated as such by the US, EU, Canada, and Israel.
The French government has also directly given hundreds of thousands of Euro for projects and core funding to each of the NGOs involved in writing the report, including FIDH, AFPS, CCFD – Terre Solidaire, LDH, and Al Haq.
The NGOs behind the report were part of a similar coalition that in 2016 pressured the French telecom giant Orange to drop its alliance with the Israeli company Partner.
Topics in this Press Release
Key Issues in this Press Release
BDS (Boycotts, Divestment, and Sanctions)
All Key Issues
NGOs in this Press Release
Al-Haq
Association France Palestine Solidarité (AFPS)
FIDH: International Federation of Human Rights (Paris)
Funders in this Press Release
Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Secretariat: Denmark, Sweden, Switzerland, and the Netherlands