SA coalition demands legal action against Israel

A COALITION of activists has announced a march demanding that South Africa take concrete legal and political action against Israel, accusing the country of committing apartheid and genocide, and calling for immediate economic and cultural sanctions.

- MANDILAKHE TSHWETE

Yesterday, the Muslim Judicial Council (MJC-SA), Al-Quds Foundation South Africa (AQF-SA), the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign (PSC), and other civil society and faith-based organisations held a media briefing to highlight the main issues behind the protest.

Speaking ahead of the demonstration, PSC coordinator Professor Usuf Chikte said the march will push for the domestication of international conventions into South African law so that alleged crimes can be prosecuted locally.

“We have signed the Geneva Convention, we have signed the Apartheid Convention,’ he said.

“All legal scholars say that Israel is doing apartheid, and we want to invoke that and domesticate it into South African law. It isa key and primary demand of the march. We want to have that bill passed in Parliament”

The coalition singled out multinational companies and charity organisations, saying they are complicit.