News release from Student Justice for Palestine Poneke
Over 1,000 people have signed an open letter by Student Justice for Palestine Pōneke (SJPP) calling for Victoria University to divest from Israel. The letter has also gained the support of several student organisations at the university.
The Victoria University Foundation has disclosed to Salient that it is invested in Israeli government bonds. Through its fund manager, ANZ Investments, approximately $47,532 of the Victoria University Foundation’s $109 million investment portfolio is invested in Israeli government bonds, which helps finance their military campaigns.
Hana Pilkinton-Ching, a spokesperson at SJPP, said: “Despite the Foundation’s response to our letter claiming it is committed to the United Nations Principles for Responsible Investment (UNPRI), their recent disclosure has shown they are in violation of their own policies of responsible investment. The Foundation and VUW need to be held to account. Going forward, the Foundation and VUW must sever all investment ties to the apartheid Israeli state, as well as companies that support and finance its genocide and illegal occupation.”
“The recent International Court of Justice ruling that Israel is responsible for apartheid means that universities and other academic institutions could be complicit in supporting apartheid should they fail to review all diplomatic, political, and economic ties with Israel.”
On Monday morning, Victoria University students walked on to a campus spray-painted with protest statements against the university’s investments, including “Divest from genocide” and “Free Gaza”. The graffiti has since been removed by the university.
The Victoria University Foundation is currently seeking alternative fund managers due to ANZ exiting the wholesale funds market.