The following residents of the ACT draw the attention of the Assembly to the State of Israel’s genocidal war on the Palestinian territory of the Gaza Strip.
This horrific war has been going for almost ten months, but the suffering of the Palestinian people has been ongoing for much longer. This Palestinian territory of Gaza has been subjected to a siege by Israel since 2006, as well as ongoing attacks by the Israel Defence Force. Just like the Gaza Strip, the West Bank has been occupied by the State of Israel since 1967 and the Palestinian people have been subjected to constant attacks and harassment by settlers, increasing significantly in the last 10 months.
The unlawful annexation of Palestinian land and expansion of Israeli settlements continues, preventing the Palestinian right to self-determination. The International Court of Justice on 26 January 2024 issued a ruling confirming that it is plausible that Israel is committing a genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, whilst the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has sought arrest warrants for the Israeli Prime Minister and Defence Minister in relation to war crimes and crimes against humanity. The International Court of Justice made a further ruling on 19 July 2024, finding that:
1. the occupation of Palestine by the state of Israel is illegal;
2. Israel is practicing apartheid;
3. Israeli settlements are to be dismantled;
4. Palestinians have the right to return to their lands; and
5. Israel should pay reparations for its crimes.
The ruling places a positive obligation upon all states and territories, including ours, to urgently act to ensure an end to our complicity in Israeli crimes. In section 31 of the ACT Human Rights Act 2004, it states that “international law and the judgments of foreign and international courts and tribunals relevant to a human right may be considered in interpreting a human right”. It is clear that the ACT has obligations based on international law. Palestinian and Muslim communities living in the ACT have faced increasing racism and Islamophobia since the war in Gaza began.
We call on the ACT Government to demonstrate its commitment to human rights by aligning itself with the positions stated by international law and therefore showing overdue solidarity with communities impacted by the genocide here in the ACT.
Your petitioners, therefore, request the Assembly to:
1. Act on the divestment motion introduced by the Greens and agreed to by Labor on 7 February of this year.
2. Enact legislation banning settlement goods and services from entering the ACT marketplace.
3. Undertake an extensive review and urgent inquiry, with the purpose of identifying the ACT Government economic relationships, investments, trade agreements, cooperation schemes and programs with companies that has ties with Israel and cancel them immediately.
4. Immediately divest and cut ties with weapons manufacturers and financial institutions listed by the United Nations OHCHR on 20 June 2024 which are complicit in human rights violations and possibly genocide.
5. Voice their support for:
a. an immediate and permanent ceasefire;
b. all perpetrators to be held accountable for their actions in accordance with international law;
c. ending the illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories and apartheid against the Palestinian population;
d. Condemn islamophobia, and racism; and state these have no place here in the ACT;
e. Canberra’s Palestinian and other Muslim communities during this challenging time, including for people seeking refuge in the ACT.