Labour is urging ACC to divest from companies identified by the United Nations as complicit in the building and maintenance of Israel’s illegal settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

“Today the ACC board chair and CEO told a Parliament Select Committee it was ‘reviewing’ investments in these companies. Ministers and the agency should be taking urgent action in the wake of the International Court of Justice’s ruling,” Labour’s ACC spokesperson Rachel Boyack said.

“It is time to stop these investments in settlements the ICJ has declared to be illegal under international law.

“Nicola Willis has said she is comfortable with ACC’s current approach. The National Government is sitting on its hands and is not taking action despite the clear ruling from the ICJ,” Rachel Boyack said.

“The ICJ is the world’s highest court. Its recent advisory opinion declared countries like New Zealand have a legal duty not to aid or assist the settlements,” Labour’s associate foreign affairs spokesperson Phil Twyford said.

“As well as calling on the Government to require ACC and the Super Fund to divest from companies complicit in the illegal settlements, we call on the Government to ban its agencies from buying goods and services from the settlements.”

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