Divestment campaign update

Divestment is one of the three pillars of the Palestinian call for Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel.  Earlier this year the Gaudie newspaper broke news that the University of Aberdeen was taking initial steps to divest from Northern Trust which invest in companies complicit in Israeli human rights abuses.   In August, in another campus success, it was announced that Manchester University had divested £5million from Caterpillar and other complicit companies in the Israeli occupation. 

Time to Divest campaigns to stop Scottish local authority pension funds investing in companies directly involved or complicit in Israel’s illegal occupation, in the torture, oppression and dispossession of Palestinians. A freedom of information request submitted by Aberdeen Greens revealed North East Scotland Pension Fund (NESPF) has £15million invested in arms companies, including many complicit in Israeli war crimes, including Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems and Glenrothes-based Raytheon. Visit the Time to Divest website to find out what you can do.

Locally, SPSC Aberdeen is part of a coalition of local activist groups (including Aberdeen Greens and Aberdeen and District CND) campaigning for NESPF to divest from companies closely linked with driving global warming and committing human rights abuses. If you would like to get involved, contact us now.

UPDATE:  

The latest available Freedom of Information request (2020) suggests that NESPF has withdrawn investments in 23 arms companies, including 10 which are complicit in the occupation of Palestine.  

A huge thanks to all of you who have written to your councillors to express your outrage towards the shameful investment in companies complicit with human right abuses and war crimes. Unfortunately, NESPF continues to invest in 3 arms companies (Ricardo, Rolls Royce, Ultra Electronics). Please join our campaign to mount pressure on Scottish pension funds and demand full divestment from unethical industries that perpetuate environmental destruction as well as global misery and poverty.