This Ramadhan, Check the Label: Don't break your fast with Israeli dates
Ramadhan is a time of year when we remember those who are less fortunate than ourselves. When we break our fasts with dates, it would be an affront to us all if the dates were the produce of illegal Israeli settlements built on land stolen from Palestinians.
Israeli produced Medjoul dates are grown in the Jordan Valley within illegal Israeli settlements. They form a large part of the agricultural produce from these settlements which are then exported all over the world. Buying these dates means that you are actually helping Israeli settlers steal Palestinian land.
Israelis claim Palestinians are given jobs working on the land of these settlers and a boycott will harm them. In actual fact, these Palestinians are employed for paltry wages, to do the back-breaking work that the Israeli settlers will not do themselves.
Settlers exploit Palestinian children, who are forced to miss out on their education and work long hours under the hot baking sun for small sums of money. The price of settlement produced dates are cheaper compared to those produced by Palestinian farmers as a result
Don't let your money go towards entrenching Israel's occupation of Palestine
Check the label. Do not buy dates that come from: Israel, West Bank or Jordan Valley
Support the Palestinian economy by buying Palestinian produced fair trade Medjoul dates from Zaytoun: find your local stockist at www.zaytoun.org.
In the news: Check the Label Campaign - Boycott Israeli Dates
British Muslims urged to boycott Israeli dates during Ramadan: http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2010/aug/04/israeli-dates-boycott-ramadan
Press TV report: Boycott of Israel dates gains momentum across Britain
Profitting from the occupation:
Dates have been Israel's leading fruit export and account for about 15% of export from Israel into the EU. It is estimated that Israel produces over 10,000 tonnes of dates per year and the total income for Israel from dates in a year is approximately £80 million - and a vast majority of which are sold during Ramadhan.
Ramadhan 2010: Check the label - Boycott Israeli Dates
Join PSC, Friends of Al-Aqsa and Zaytoun in their campaign to urge shoppers not to buy Israeli dates - and support Palestinian farmers by buying dates from Zaytoun. If you've organised leafleting please let us know - email: info@palestinecampaign.org.
New 'Check the label' leaflet
