General Confederation of Trade Unions in Bergen district holds seminar to follow up BDS motion

Among the speakers at the seminar entitled “Boycott of Israel - how and why?” are the former leader of the Norwegian Peoples Aid, Finn Erik Thoresen, who was also active in the struggle against Apartheid in South Africa, as well as Olav Terje Bergo, who is the editor of Bergensavisen, a local newspaper , that has in the past called for sanctions against Israel.

In April of this year, Bergen og Omland LO, the General Confederation of Trade Unions in the
Bergen district,unanimously adopted a resolution in their congress calling for a boycott and sanctions campaign against the Occupation, due to its siege of the people of Gaza, and its implementation of apartheid structures throughout Palestine

The resolution stated that:

"LO i Bergen og Omland, refers to its resolutionnfrom the 2007 congress, and notes the horrible Israeli siege of the people of Gaza with great concern.

"LO i Bergen og Omland is concerned about the international community's inaction and lack of
political will to take effective measures that contribute to the achievement of a just solution in the conflict between Israel and the Palestine.

"In response to the 2005 call for a boycott, divestment, and sanctions campaign against Israel, which came from 171 Palestinian organizations , LO i Bergen og Omland will work towards the implementation of an effective Norwegian boycott against Israel as an occupying power.

"Therefore, we call on all of the unions who are part of LO i Bergen og Omland to work with their local offices and members to implement this boycott and to lobby employers to withdraw existing investments in Israel. Furthermore, we call on the unions to take action in local stores that sell Israeli products, and to encourage them to join the boycott and remove the goods produced by the Occupation from their shelves.

"LO i Bergen og Omland also calls on the unions to educate themselves about the occupation of Palestine. In an effort to achieve this goal, LO i Bergen og Omland will help disseminate information about the conflict from Norwegian People's Aid and The Palestine Committee.

"Finally, LO i Bergen og Omland demands from the Norwegian authorities that all investments in Israelby the national Pension Fund be withdrawn."

This action taken by LO i Bergen og Omland is the latest example of trade unions and other
organization from around the world supporting the boycott campaign, thus showing that international solidarity for the Palestinian cause is growing in strength and numbers.