Open letter to Susan Sarandon: Follow UNICEF’s lead and publicly cut ties with Lev Leviev

[ProgressiveMuslim]

July 2, 2008

From: Adalah-NY; the West Bank villages of Bil’in and Jayyous; Jewish Voice for Peace; Defence for Children International-Palestine Section; The Steering Committee of the Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions National Committee; and The Coalition of Women for Peace, Israel


As seven diverse groups committed to justice, human rights and peace, and representing hundreds of organizations and tens of thousands of people in the US, Palestine and Israel, we call on you as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, to follow the lead of UNICEF which told Reuters on June 20th that it was cutting all ties with Israeli billionaire and diamond mogul Lev Leviev. UNICEF took this action due to Leviev’s companies’ construction of Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian Territory. In a June 19 letter to Adalah-NY, Chris De Bono, senior communications advisor to UNICEF’s Executive Director, explained: "Yesterday we confirmed that UNICEF has concluded that it will not consider partnerships - direct or indirect - with Mr. Lev Leviev or any of his corporate entities, and will not accept financial or other support that we know is from him or his corporate entities. The concerned parts of the UNICEF family, including our national committees, have been advised of this."

Like UNICEF, which did not know until we informed them, we understand that when you attended the November 13, 2007 gala opening of Leviev’s Madison Avenue jewelry store, as Adalah-NY protested outside, you were unaware of Leviev’s record of human rights abuses in Palestine, Angola and beyond. However, as a popular and respected human rights advocate and a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador, not publicly severing ties with Leviev has sent and will continue to send a message to the world that you support Leviev's highly unethical business activities which result in grave human rights abuses in Palestine.

read on...
http://www.dci-pal.org/English/Doc/Press/2007/Susan_Sarandon_letter_1_July_2008.doc