Johannesburg - Anti-apartheid activist Denis Goldberg on Friday endorsed a campaign to boycott retailer Woolworths over its trade relations with Israel following the war in Gaza, which killed over 2000 Palestinians.
“I want to see justice for the Palestinians and if that means a boycott against Woolworths, then good,” Goldberg said in a statement issued by non-profit organisation Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions in SA (BDS).
“I would like Woolworths to say to the Israeli government that 'you are making it difficult for us to do business with you, so you better clean up your act'. That is the point of such a campaign, to increase the isolation and the pressure on Israel.”
Agence France-Presse reported that the 50-day conflict in and around Gaza killed nearly 2200 Palestinians and more than 70 Israelis, ending with a ceasefire on August 26.
BDS said many organisations supported the campaign, including the Congress of SA Trade Unions, the Young Communist League, and the ANC Youth League.
“The termination of relations with Israel is called for as part of the international boycott... which seeks to isolate Israel until (it) respects international law and Palestinian human rights,” BDS member Muhammed Desai said in the statement.
“The BDS campaign is inspired by the successful isolation of apartheid South Africa.”
Sapa