Agency calls for targeted divestment in Israel, Sudan
Palestinian farmer Abu Houli stands in front of what
remains of his home, orchard and well house in 2000 after the Israeli
Army bulldozed parts of his family farm near Deir El Balah in the
Israeli-occupies Gaza strip. The United Methodist Board of Church and
Society is calling for targeted divestment related to destruction in
Palestinian areas.
A UMNS file photo by Mike DuBose.
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By Kathy L. Gilbert*
Sept. 19, 2007 | WASHINGTON (UMNS)
A young boy survives in an internally displaced persons camp
near Bilel, Sudan. The United Methodist Church is calling for economic
pressure on the government to stop the humanitarian crisis. A UMNS photo
by Paul Jeffrey, ACT-Caritas
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The United Methodist Church's social action agency wants the
denomination to divest from companies providing products or services
used for "illegal destruction" in Palestinian areas or that are doing
business with the government of Sudan.
Resolutions on the two divestment issues will be sent to the 2008
General Conference for consideration when the church’s top policy-making
body meets April 23-May 2 in Fort Worth, Texas.
The resolutions came out of the United Methodist Board of Church and
Society's fall board of directors meeting held Sept. 13-16 in the
nation's capital.
A related resolution calls for the establishment of a churchwide "socially responsible investment task force."
"In a world primarily defined by economic transactions, the next
steps should be targeted divestment with businesses directly involved
with the oppression of Palestinians and the humanitarian crisis in
Darfur," said the Rev. Steve Sprecher, chairman of the Peace with
Justice work area, which wrote the resolutions for the board's approval.
"Divestment and Caterpillar" calls for the church to divest from the
heavy-equipment manufacturer based in Peoria, Ill., because of
bulldozers and other equipment supplied to the Israeli Defense Forces
used for the "illegal destruction of Palestinian homes, orchards and
olive groves in the Occupied Territories and to clear Palestinian land
for illegal Israeli settlements, segregated roads and the Separation
Barrier."
Struggling to do the right thing
Over the past three years, the board of directors has invited
comments on possible divestment from various perspectives within the
Jewish, Palestinian and Arab communities as well as representatives from
the United Methodist Board of Pension and Health Benefits.
"The United Methodist Church has a long history of unwavering support
for Israel's right to exist," said Sprecher. "We have also long
supported human rights for Palestinians. We, like many, are frustrated
by the increasing harsh conditions Palestinians continue to endure under
Israel's 40 years of illegal occupation."
"We need to do something now; there is an urgency," said Toyomi
Yoshida, a young adult member of the work area on Peace with Justice.
Board member Anna Blaedel speaks on
the divestment issue during the Board of Church and Society meeting. A UMNS
photo by Kathy L. Gilbert.
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Yoshida said members of the work area struggled with the decision.
"We waited too long," she said. "There was a lot of resistance but, for
me, it was the right thing to do."
If approved, the resolution calls for general agencies, annual
conferences, local churches, conference boards of pensions, United
Methodist foundations and all other entities that invest United
Methodist funds to divest of all equity and debt holdings of Caterpillar
Inc., by Jan. 1, 2009.
The resolution asks every United Methodist to "prayerfully consider
taking the same action with the personal and pension assets under their
control, and request that other investment managers such as mutual fund
companies, pension plans and bank trustees do the same."
Crisis in Sudan
The United Methodist Church has called repeatedly for action to end
the humanitarian crisis in Darfur, and additional steps are needed to
bring economic pressure on the government of Sudan "to end the
genocide," states the resolution on "Divestment and Sudan."
"The Sudanese government is susceptible to well-placed economic
pressure because of its dependence upon foreign investment," reads the
resolution.
The resolution states the church "should not own or profit from
companies whose products or services are used by corrupt governments or
regimes to murder, suppress or displace its citizens and neighbors."
Targeted divestment from companies doing business with the Sudanese
government will not harm those in need, according to the Sudan
Divestment Task Force, a project of the Genocide Intervention Network.
Responsible investing
The proposed "socially responsible investment task force" would
include the United Methodist boards of Church and Society, Global
Ministries and Pension and Health Benefits; the United Methodist Church
Foundation; and the National Association of United Methodist Foundations
under the leadership of the United Methodist Church Foundation.
Its purpose would be to establish a common standard for determining
prohibited investments and positive investment principles consistent
with the United Methodist Social Principles.
*Gilbert is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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Resources
United Methodist Board of Church and Society
2008 General Conference
Sudan Divestment Task Force
Division in the Holy Land
Save Darfur |