Hikvision, Stop Supporting Israel's Apartheid and Oppression of Palestinians! 

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To Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co, Ltd

Since October 7 2023, more than twenty thousand Palestinians –forty percent of whom are children– have been killed by Israeli assaults on Gaza. Former UN official Craig Mokhiber called it “a text-book case of genocide.” From the cut-off of Gaza’s water, fuel, electricity, and the internet in the early stage of the war, to the use of white phosphorus and the bombardment of hospitals, schools, mosques, and civilian houses, the fact that Israel is committing war crimes in Gaza is no longer in dispute. The war on Gaza is combined with clear declarations of genocidal intention from Israeli government officials to annihilate Palestinians, the increased torture of Palestinian detainees and prisoners, and the ceaseless raids and killing that has claimed over 300 Palestinian lives in the occupied West Bank since October 7. We clearly see that Israel’s violence against Palestinians under the excuse of “self defense” did not start on October 7, and nor is it restrained to Gaza. Decades of systemic displacement, occupation, apartheid, and the killing of civilians have been committed by the Israeli state against Palestinians and are well documented. 

We write to draw attention to the complicity of Hikvision, the Chinese state-owned video surveillance technology company, in Israel’s violations of international law and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people. According to Amnesty International’s 2023 report, surveillance cameras supplied by Hikvision have been installed at checkpoints and Palestinian residential areas in Hebron City and East Jerusalem of the West Bank to keep Palestinians under constant monitoring. Combined with facial-recognition technology and connected to Israel’s police-run Mabat 2000 surveillance network, these tools can be deployed by Israeli police to restrict the freedom of movement of Palestinians, control their daily activities, and crack down gatherings and demonstrations. 

In Hikvision’s 2022 Environmental, Social and Governance Report, the company states that it honors human rights as stipulated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). It is also stated that the company is “committed to continuously strengthening our ability to exercise due diligence and business judgment” and “avoiding actions that impede human rights through misuse of products and technologies.”However, Hikvision’s technologies are being misused, in this case, by Israeli authorities to police and segregate Palestinians. This is in direct violation of Palestinians’ right to freedom of movement under Article 13 of UDHR, right to privacy (Article 12), right to freedom of expression and assembly (Articles 19 and 20), and right to equality and nondiscrimination under the ICCPR. This further reinforces Israel’s illegal settlement and occupation of the West Bank, which violates the Fourth Geneva Convention, the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, and the Apartheid Convention. 

The Israeli apartheid regime cannot wage endless wars against Palestinians without the support and supplies from overseas. This makes Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) more important than ever to hold Israel accountable. Many companies have cut business ties with Israel, closed or sold their branch in Israel, or stopped selling Israeli products, in order to fulfill social responsibility and end complicity in Israel’s illegal settlement and occupation. Hikvision should do the same. We call on Hikvision to pull out of the illegally Occupied Palestinian Territory, cease selling technologies for the continued entrenchment of apartheid, and stop profiting from occupation and rights abuse against Palestinian people.

Should Hikvision ignore the ongoing atrocities and disregard international law, campaigns will bloom globally to #BoycottHikvision, until divestment is completed. 

 

Endorsed by:

巴勒斯坦团结行动网络 Palestine Solidarity Action Network

無國界社運 Borderless Movement Hong Kong

可以自由巴 For Peace Taiwan, Taipei, Taiwan

No Tech For Apartheid

Africa4Palestine, South Africa

Workers for Palestine Netherlands

BDS Japan Bulletin

Stop Arming Israel France

Workers for a Free Palestine, United Kingdom 

Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM), Malaysia

BDS Malaysia

Kolektifa, Indonesia

Indonesian Palestine Alliance (IDPAL), Jakarta, Indonesia

Partai Hijau Indonesia (Indonesia Green Party), Semarang, Indonesia

Bandung Supporter Alliance, Indonesia

Human Rights Now, Tokyo, Japan

New Bloom 破土, Taipei, Taiwan

Ismail Juma 马聚, New York, United States

Lausan Collective 流傘 Hong Kong

Students for Hong Kong, Global

UAW-BDS Rank-and-File Caucus, Los Angeles, United States

Tempest Collective, New York, United States

Association for the Taxation of financial Transactions for the Aid of Citizens (Capital Area), Tokyo, Japan

Chinese Feminists in Japan 在日中国女权连带会

GNY Democracy Wall 纽约民主墙, United States

不粉红 Not Your Little Pink, United States

左翼中国学生联盟 LCSA, United Kingdom

HKPALS 從香港到巴勒斯坦, Canada

 

(For organizational sign-on, please use this link )