How Did We Get to This Point in the Divestment Issue?

Here is a brief summary of how the process of phased selective divestment has come before the church in relation to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict:

1. In 2004, the Florida Presbytery of St. Augustine voted and sent an overture to the 2004 meeting of the General Assembly regarding violence in Israel/Palestine. In addition to affirmation of the "Geneva Accord" as a practical way forward for the Israel/Palestine peace process, that overture called for broad divestment from companies with investments in Israel.

2. The overture was assigned to a committee of commissioners of the 216th General Assembly (those sent by their presbyteries to do the business of the church), when it met in Richmond, VA, June 26-July 3, 2004. After discussion, these commissioners unanimously approved sending an alternate overture to the whole Assembly. The Assembly devoted much time discussing this and adopted the alternate overture, with a vote of 431 in favor, 62 opposed, and 7 abstentions.

3. The resolution approved by the Assembly reiterates PC(USA)’s calls for
* an end to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands;
* mutual security guarantees; a negotiated, equitable peace;
* an end to attacks on innocent people by both sides;
* the United States to be an even-handed broker for peace;
* a United Nations peacekeeping force in Palestine; and,
* solidarity with our Christian partners in Israel/Palestine.

It also "refers to Mission Responsibility Through Investment Committee (MRTI) with instructions to initiate a process of phased selective divestment in multinational corporations operating in Israel, in accordance to General Assembly policy on social investing, and to make appropriate recommendations to the General Assembly Council for action."

4. In November, 2004, MRTI set criteria for corporations to engage as part of this process. These include multinational corporations in both Israel and Palestine whose activities and products are used to:
* support and maintain the occupation
* establish, expand, or maintain Israeli settlements
* support or facilitate violent acts by Israelis or Palestinians against innocent civilians
* support or facilitate the construction of the Separation Barrier

5. After several months of study according to these criteria, MRTI announced in August of 2005, that it was beginning the process of "progressive engagement" with five companies: Caterpillar, Citigroup, ITT Industries, Motorola, and United Technologies. Progressive engagement (also known formally as phased selective divestment) is a deliberative process focused on transformation. The hope is that dialogue with corporations will bring productive corporate change, making further steps unnecessary. The process includes:
* correspondence and dialogue with the leadership of a multinational corporation
* shareholder resolutions and proxy voting
* recommendation of divestment to the General Assembly as a last resort.

For more information on each company and on steps in the process, go to http://www.pcusa.org/mrti/actions.htm.

(The date given here is an artifice; please ignore.)