Inside the growing Scottish movement to boycott Israel

The National

6 hours ago

The international Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement has existed since 2005. It was initiated by a coalition of more than 170 Palestinian civil society organisations in an effort to put pressure on the Israeli economy in the mould of the anti-apartheid boycott of South Africa.
Various Scottish organisations and firms have adopted it throughout the years, boycotting Israeli goods and services as well as international businesses that are profiting from Israel's oppression of Palestinians – from Coca-Cola to Puma and Airbnb.
But a more concerted and co-ordinated effort in Scotland started on May 15, 2024 – Nakba Day, which commemorates the wholesale destruction and displacement of Palestinian society and Palestinians by Israel during the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.
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The Scottish Palestine Solidarity campaign (SPSC) officially launched Apartheid Free Zones Scotland – a new initiative looking to sign up shops, restaurants, businesses, community organisations, and trade unions in communities across Scotland to commit to BDS practices.
Now there are dedicated boycott groups in Aberdeen, two neighbourhoods in Glasgow and Leith.
The community-owned Isle of Eigg (below) has also announced its own full boycott of Israel.
One of the organisers of AFZ Scotland, Sofiah MacLeod – also co-convener of SPSC – explained that, as well as the dedicated groups, individual businesses have signed up more widely across Scotland – including in Moray, Argyll and Bute, the Borders and East Lothian.
'It has grown gradually and is picking up pace lately. It really began in Aberdeen,' she told the Sunday National.
MacLeod added: 'It's people getting together because it's really community-driven. It's walking through your community and neighborhood, your local high street and chatting with people,'
'It's about building those connections, explaining what's going on, what BDS is and what it means to be an apartheid-free zone.'
Dave Black (below right) – who has been involved in SPSC since 2010 – helped set up the Aberdeen AFZ, and now 40 businesses across the city have signed up.
(Image: Dave Black)
'At the moment, it's predominantly shops, restaurants, takeaways and barbers but we've also got a whisky shop and a tobacconist in there – which we thought was quite unusual,' he told the Sunday National.
'We've got organisations that are just willing to sign up, but also others which are particularly engaged and willing to do more. So, on Sunday (today) we're going to be meeting in Turquoise Cafe on Holburn Street and have a bit of a social there and then go on to try and sign up local businesses around us.'
He said that there has definitely been a shift lately.
'I definitely feel that there's a growing change and a growing anger at Israel's actions, the Israeli genocide, and that's spurring people on to want to take more action and to be more outspoken,' Black said.
'And the apartheid free zones are a really good way for a broad range of actors, whether that's businesses but also groups – trade union branches, other activist groups, cultural performers, venues – to get involved.'
For example, almost 200 Scottish arts organisations have endorsed the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI).
The Scottish Artists Union, ATLAS Arts, Deveron Projects, Scottish Queer International Film Festival, Glasgow Short Film Festival and //BUZZCUT// are among the organisations to have signed up.
Black says AFZ Scotland has also had signups across Scotland from people who run B&Bs, who are now not listed on Airbnb and Booking.com, given their involvement in the illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Two of the organisers from the Govanhill AFZ group – Tony and Miriam – told the Sunday National that 54 businesses have now signed up in the Glasgow neighbourhood.
Again, it's a mix – ranging from cafes and restaurants to corner shops.
The owner of Pakistani Street food alongside AFZ Govanhill organiser Tony (R) (Image: Colin Mearns)
'[A lot of] the community were already doing it. Places like Pakistani Street Food, Bangin Burgers – there's probably a few more that had already boycotted Coca-Cola, had already boycotted Israeli products and goods,' Miriam explained.
'We just came in to also make that a bit more visible and make a more visible sense of solidarity within the whole community. Not just the shops but people recognising what a boycott meant.'
Asked what led them both to get involved, Miriam said: 'I think there's just such a drive to want to do something. When you see all of the things that are happening in Gaza, all of the visuals, the stories that Palestinians are themselves sharing, and they have to share because so many journalists have now been killed,'
She went on: 'You do feel very, very helpless here. You can literally just nip to the shop to get a coffee. It's so trivial. So, I think it comes from just the frustration of people who could just take everything for granted. And you want to shake the community a little bit, and I think this is a really good kind of campaign to bring it to the community and not have to ask people to join a protest. It brings it to the people.'
The Govanhill group has also inspired a new group to be set up in the city's West End, as well as the Isle of Eigg – which announced a full boycott of Israel recently.
The community-owned island in Scotland's west coast is home to 120 people, all of whom are members of the Isle of Eigg Residents Association (IERA).
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In a statement last month, the residents association announced the move and said this decision was taken in order to 'stand in solidarity with the people of Palestine and to raise awareness of the complicity of these companies in genocide'.
For example, the boycott means the island's only shop will stop stocking goods from Israeli firms as well as its biggest supporters – including Coca-Cola due to its alleged links to illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
One of the organisers, Eilidh, told the Sunday National that the island has a 'history of taking action and showing solidarity in situations of injustice'.
The statement also stressed that while Eigg residents recognise they are just a small number of people, collective action in communities across Scotland and the UK can 'push our governments to stop perpetuating conflict and the circle of violence'.
Last week, John Swinney announced that the Scottish Government is 'considering' its own boycott of Israel, which would see official guidance issued to businesses urging them to end trade with Israel, as was done with Russia in 2022.
AFZ Scotland organiser MacLeod said that was 'absolutely' welcome – as was the First Minister finally acknowledging that Israel is committing a genocide in Gaza.
'We're now pressing on them to live up to their obligations. Because now that they've recognised it's genocide, they do have an obligation to stop it and to do what they can within their powers to make sure that there are no Scottish public bodies and authorities complicit in any way, even inadvertently.'
She added: 'There's already a lot of research and information available, and there has been for many years. There's the UN list of complicit companies, there are databases such as Who Profits? – an Israeli organisation that provides information about the complicity of companies. There are various reports, including the Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch reports and, lately, the report by the UN Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese. So there's actually a lot of information that's ready to go.
'So yes, we would definitely like to see the Scottish Government providing guidance to businesses, providing support to businesses, and outlining, very clearly, the procurement guidelines and how local authorities can adhere and make sure that they are not complicit by doing business with these companies.'