Bogotá marks a turn for Global South diplomacy

The Emergency Conference to Halt Genocide in Gaza was held in Bogotá, Colombia, on 15 and 16 July.

- Imraan Buccus

Convened by The Hague Group and co-hosted by Colombia and South Africa, the meeting was attended by 32 countries. Although it was widely covered in the international media, it was, bizarrely, largely ignored locally.

The Hague Group was formed in January as an alliance of Global South countries working together to uphold international law and challenge impunity, especially in the context of Israel's actions in Gaza.

The Bogotá meeting was convened in response to growing frustration with the failure of powerful states of the Global North to enforce existing international legal rulings on Israel's conduct in Gaza. This time, 32 countries attended the meeting, including Spain, Ireland and Slovenia from the periphery of the Global North.

The concrete measures announced in Bogotá were far-reaching. Signatory states committed to preventing arms transfers, fuel and dual-use equipment from reaching Israel; banning vessels carrying military material from docking or being serviced in their ports; reviewing public contracts to ensure no state-linked resources are financing occupation; and reaffirming their commitment to universal jurisdiction, enabling legal action for international crimes regardless of where they occur.