A COALITION of 22 bodies across Cymru supported demands today for the Wales Pension Partnership (WPP) to divest from companies complicit in genocide and apartheid in Palestine.

The broad coalition of Welsh campaigners from grassroots activists to trade unions, faith groups and political parties issued the urgent call for divestment from companies implicated in violations of international law and human rights abuses against Palestinians.

Palestine Solidarity Cymru’s Zahid Noor said: “Together, we are demanding divestment and ethical pensions that reflect our values of justice and sustainability.”

The WPP manages pension investments on behalf of local government pension funds in Wales.

Research from PSC revealed £1.1 billion of Welsh local government pension funds are invested in companies associated with illegal settlements, apartheid infrastructure, financing and arms manufacturing.

PSC Cymru claimed the companies are directly or indirectly linked to the ongoing human rights violations in Palestine, including mass casualties, forced displacement and the denial of basic human rights.

The coalition’s letter to the WPP highlights that pension funds elsewhere, including Norway, the Netherlands and increasingly in Britain, have already started to divest from such companies, setting a clear ethical precedent.

PSC Cymru and the coalition urged the WPP to ensure Welsh pensions meet the highest ethical, human rights and environmental standards as a moral obligation and a prudent financial responsibility.

Mr Noor said: “We have made the WPP aware that a genocide has occurred in Gaza, and it must stop funding this injustice. Thousands are calling for decisive action — WPP must act now.”

PSC Cymru said the pension investments pose significant moral, financial, reputational and legal risks, and claimed it may contravene the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015.

Campaigners welcomed the intervention by Future Generations Commissioner Derek Walker, who called on First Minister Eluned Morgan to initiate an urgent review of public-sector pensions in Wales.

The commissioner wrote to the First Minister on November 27, saying that public bodies should conduct an urgent review of their pension investments to ensure they are ethical and sustainable. 

PSC Cymru urged supporters to join a protest from 9.30am at the meeting of the Wales Pension Partnership on Wednesday, March 12, outside the Swansea Guildhall.