Ramallah, 6 January 2013 - G4S, the world’s largest private security company, has been nominated for the 2013 Public Eye Awards, which are aimed exposing companies that disregard the consequences of their actions. The awards, organized by Berne Declaration and Greenpeace, have been held since 2000 and are given in parallel to the World Economic Forum, held each year in Davos, Switzerland.
The nomination for the Public Eye Awards comes at a time when G4S is put under a lot of pressure because of its complicity in human rights abuses in the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
G4S is complicit in four types of activities related to the Israeli occupation. First, it provides security equipment for Israeli prisons in which Palestinians are detained and tortured. Second, it offers security services to businesses in illegal Israeli settlements. Third, it provides equipment for Israeli checkpoints located within occupied Palestinian territory. Fourth, it provides security services for Israeli police in the West Bank.
Citing G4S complicity in the Israeli occupation, many governmental and non-governmental bodies have terminated their contracts with G4S, which was the direct result of various campaigns by global civil society. A highlight of such campaigns came in March 2011 when the European Union decided that it will not renew its contract with G4S.
Addameer condemns the practices of G4S, which should uphold its legal and ethical responsibilities and ensure that it is not complicit in human rights violations. Addameer welcomes the nomination of G4S and views this as an important opportunity to expose it’s complicity in Israel’s illegal occupation.
We encourage all our supporters to take the time to vote for G4S. The closing date for voting is 23 January, so please help us to spread the message.
To vote and to find out more about the Public Eye Awards please click here.
