ROSS Greer has said that “words are not enough” as he sought to keep the pressure on the Scottish Government after it was revealed ministers were considering implementing his plan for a state boycott of Israel.
The Scottish Greens leadership contender told The National that while he welcomed the commitment to weigh up his plans – which could include fining companies which trade with Israel – “we have been here before”.
He said: “This is a welcome step from the Scottish Government, but words are not enough and we have been here before.
“Previous proposals to take action against those complicit in the genocide, submitted by the Scottish Greens, have been ‘considered’ by the Government to avoid the bad press of dismissing them out of hand, only to be quietly rejected a few weeks later.”
The Scottish Greens have previously demanded that the Scottish Government stop funding arms companies complicit in the Israeli genocide in Gaza, only for a review to later conclude that no rules were being broken.
Greer added: “The Scottish Government should at the very least be taking the same approach to Israel as it has with Russia. Palestinians and Ukrainians are equally deserving of freedom and the right to life, but no Scottish Minister has ever explained why their immediate call for businesses to boycott Russia in 2022 was not extended to Israel in 2023.
“We are so far past the point where words of condemnation are enough. The Scottish Government must act. All of my proposals are within their devolved responsibilities.
“Nothing is stopping them from implementing a policy of boycotts, divestments and de-facto sanctions against Israel and its enablers, other than their own reluctance.”
John Swinney’s acknowledgement that Israel was committing a genocide in Gaza was welcomed but campaigners are now putting pressure on him to do more.
More than 500 letters have been sent to the First Minister through a campaign by the Scottish Palestinian Solidarity Campaign urging Swinney to back South Africa’s genocide case against Israel at the International Court of Justice, to speak with the South African ambassador about how to support the case and to launch a review of the Scottish Government’s ties to Israel.
Greer said: “What is happening in Gaza is one of the greatest crimes against humanity of this century. Every government and every leader will be judged on how they respond to it. When the history books are written about this shameful moment in world history, Scotland’s story must not be one of inaction.
“The First Minister has said he is doing everything he possibly can to apply pressure on Israel, but until now that has simply not been the case. I hope this is the moment when that changes.”
A Scottish Government spokesperson reiterated the position that the proposals were being considered.
