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Advocacy – Global Sumud Flotilla Amnesty International Statement

Source: Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand

Amnesty International STATEMENT
02 October 2025 – In response to reports that Israeli forces have intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla and detained peaceful protestors, including three New Zealanders, attempting to deliver urgently needed food, medicine, and humanitarian supplies to Palestinians in Gaza, Amnesty International Aotearoa New Zealand’s Executive Director, Jacqui Dillon, said:
“The complete absence of any remotely adequate response from governments, including New Zealand’s, to Israel’s genocide against Palestinians has forced activists from across the world to take peaceful measures to break the siege.
Our Government must act. Their job is to immediately condemn this interception, demand the immediate and unconditional release of all those on board, including any New Zealand nationals, and insist that Israel ends its unlawful blockade and allows unrestricted humanitarian access to occupied Gaza. Anything less risks complicity in Israel’s grave violations of Palestinians' rights.
The New Zealand Government must do all it can to end this genocide. The atrocities must end.”
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Advocacy: Oxfam – Palestine recognition must come with action: to save lives, States must stop Israel’s crimes and ensure Palestinian agency

Source: Oxfam Aotearoa

Statement by independent groups
Most countries recognize Palestinian statehood, yet Israel’s international law violations are accelerating, with near-total impunity, causing mass displacement, widespread death, and an escalating humanitarian crisis throughout the occupied Palestinian territory . For real impact and to avoid complicity, States must turn their expressions of solidarity into concrete, life-saving action, and any plans for a way forward must place Palestinians as the main architects of their own future.
Statehood recognition is an important, welcome step in the realization of the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination. It cannot remain symbolic or be treated as a reward. Importantly, it doesn’t absolve Member States of their legal and moral obligations to put an end to the Israeli occupation in the occupied Palestinian territory (Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem) – which the International Court of Justice has determined to be illegal and in violation of Palestinians’ right to self-determination – and to stop what the UN Commission of Inquiry has determined to be a genocide carried out by Israel in Gaza.
The escalating humanitarian crisis driven by these actions is widely known and documented. Just in the past two years, Israeli eviction orders, demolitions, blockages, arbitrary arrests and direct attacks on people, have triggered the largest forced displacement in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, since the start of the occupation in 1967. The largest land theft in three decades was officially approved last year, and violence by settlers is at an all-time high. In Gaza, Israeli authorities have been carrying out a deadly military operation that has killed or injured over 136,000 people, forced 2 million people to flee several times, and destroyed 90% of the buildings. Throughout Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, Israeli forces have attacked health facilities close to 1,650 times. They have restricted free movement – through military checkpoints, gates, barriers, corridors and no-go zones – with devastating consequences on communities’ ability to access livelihoods, medical care, education and other vital services.
World leaders cannot claim ignorance. Even as 4 in 5 countries globally recognize the State of Palestine, the Israeli parliament recently approved a motion to completely annex the West Bank including East Jerusalem, where 3.3 million Palestinians live, and Israeli officials have reiterated their intention to pursue “complete sovereignty” over the West Bank, stating that “there is no Palestinian people and no Palestinian State” and that “the place belongs to [Israelis]”. Similar intentions have been openly declared for all of Gaza.
Such declarations are no longer fringe: they show what is driving the accelerated erasure of a people. Israel’s fragmentation and annexation of land internationally recognized as Palestinian is rendering the prospect of a viable Palestinian State less and less realistic.
Acting is not optional. The International Court of Justice clarified in July 2024 that all UN Member States are obligated to not recognize or support Israel’s unlawful occupation, including through trade and investments. Moreover, the UN Commission of Inquiry has determined that all States must “take all necessary steps to try to avoid or stop the commission of genocide”.
Just in the few weeks that have passed since several additional countries recognized the State of Palestine, hundreds of Palestinians have been killed and more than 1,500 have been injured by Israeli fire across the occupied Palestinian territory. The military takeover of Gaza City has accelerated in scope and brutality: deadly strikes on tents, housing units and public buildings have forced tens of thousands to flee once more, though most people have nowhere to go; several health care facilities in the north have had to shut down leaving hundreds of thousands with very limited access to medical care. In the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, settler attacks and military incursions and arrests have intensified. Dozens of Palestinian structures have been demolished. The Israeli parliament’s National Security Committee has advanced discussions to restrict humanitarian access to prisons where over 9,500 Palestinians are held as well as a law to authorize the death penalty for detainees.
With each hour of delay, another family is shattered, another child starves, another home is reduced to dust, another piece of Palestinian life is erased.
To avoid the outcome of having a State of Palestine without Palestinians, and to prevent Israeli forces and settlers from taking additional punitive action against communities, States must use every available political, economic, and legal tool at their disposal for:
  • An immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, and for Palestinians to own and lead their own (re)construction plans and process, in line with their inalienable right to self-determination
  • An end to Israel’s illegal occupation of the entire occupied Palestinian territory, ensuring the conditions needed for Palestinians to stay in their land
  • Unrestricted UN-coordinated humanitarian access and protection, as enshrined in international humanitarian law, throughout the occupied Palestinian territory
  • An end to trade with illegal settlements, including the provision of services and investments
  • An immediate halt to all arms sales and transfers to Israel
  • Accountability for crimes committed
  • The immediate reopening of a corridor linking Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, for medical evacuations and other purposes.
Endorsed by (alphabetical order):
  • 1. ActionAid International
  • 2. Al Awda Health and Community Association
  • 3. American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)
  • 4. Arab Educational Institute – Pax Christi Palestine
  • 5. Bystanders No More
  • 6. Churches for Middle East Peace (CMEP)
  • 7. CIDSE – International Family of Catholic Social Justice Organisations
  • 8. Emmaus International
  • 9. Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
  • 10. Global Legal Action Network (GLAN)
  • 11. HelpAge International
  • 12. Insecurity Insight
  • 13. Médecins du Monde International Network (MdM)
  • 14. Norwegian People’s Aid
  • 15. Oxfam International
  • 16. PARC – Agricultural Development Association
  • 17. Pax Christi International
  • 18. Palestinian Institute for Climate Strategy (PICS)
  • 19. Plateforme des ONG françaises pour la Palestine
  • 20. Sabeel-Kairos UK
  • 21. The Middle East Children's Alliance
  • 22. Terre des Hommes Italy
  • 23. United Against Inhumanity
NOTES
  • In 2025, Israeli policies and practices have forced at least 40,000 Palestinians out of their homes in the northern West Bank – all-time high since Israeli occupation began in 1967 – due to Israeli-ordered demolitions, evictions, and increasing attacks by settlers and armed forces. Another 66,800 at least face a direct risk of forcible transfer, as about 663 km 2 of West Bank land is vulnerable to settlement takeover and expansion.
  • Israeli authorities have approved the largest land theft in the West Bank in three decades in July 2024, as well as the construction of over 15,000 units and 22 new illegal settlements in 2025 alone, and established over 121 new outposts. Weeks ago, Israeli authorities gave final approval for the “E1” settlement project, which is effectively cutting off East Jerusalem from the occupied West Bank and further fragmenting the land.
  • For two years, Israeli forces have bombed Gaza relentlessly. The military operation has killed at least 66,000, injured 170,000 and forced close to 2 million people to flee repeatedly. Over 92% of housing units and 90% of school buildings are now destroyed and only 1.5% of cropland is now usable as a result.
  • Since 2007, Israeli authorities have blocked the entry of vital goods into Gaza, including an 11-week complete siege this year that has led to extreme starvation, with famine confirmed in northern Gaza, and severe shortages in health facilities.
  • Israeli forces have attacked health care facilities close to 1,650 times across the occupied Palestinian territory since October 2023.
  • Israeli authorities have imposed countless movement restrictions across the occupied Palestinian territory in the form of militarized corridors, checkpoints and no-go zones in Gaza (82% of the land is now inaccessible), and over 800 gates, checkpoints and barriers in the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, with devastating consequences on people’s ability to access livelihoods, health care, education and other vital services.
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Advocacy – Protest Israel’s attack on humanitarian flotilla to Gaza – 5pm Bridge of Remembrance TODAY Oct 2

Source: Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa (PSNA)

Protest Israel's attack on humanitarian flotilla to Gaza – 5pm Bridge of Remembrance TODAY Oct 2. 

Four New Zealanders are on this group of boats…

Nothing from our PM or Foreign Minister yet about this kidnapping of New Zealanders who have stepped up when our government has refused.

(PSNA has made two appeals in the last month to the government but as usual no response)

John Minto
Co National Chair
Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa

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Defence News – Auckland school’s Services Academy sparks NZ Army career for electrician

Source: New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF)

As a teenager, Lance Corporal Elia Fata didn’t really know what career he wanted to take up, but getting involved in Onehunga High School’s Services Academy put him on a path that has taken him around the world – leading to his latest task helping to improve the lives of people in the Cook Islands.

Lance Corporal Fata, a member of the New Zealand Army’s 25 Engineer Support Squadron, 2 Engineer Regiment, is overseeing electrical tasks for Exercise Tropic Twilight on the small island of Ma’uke, population about 240. It’s his second stint of work in the Pacific following a trip to Tonga earlier this year.

He has been leading a team of six electricians, including personnel from Australia and Vanuatu, as they tackled upgrades and maintenance of bore pumps and the island’s solar farm and school.

The work, funded by New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, involved replacing water pumps and replacing switches to ensure the six pumps were not constantly pumping, which was wasting water and wearing them out quicker.

“We work mainly on residential, but this is bigger. Same concept but bigger scale,” Lance Corporal Fata said.

“It was a bit overwhelming in the beginning but once I got my head around it, it made sense.”

Part of his role was assessing where each of the individual’s electrical knowledge was at and how to allocate work from there.

Lance Corporal Fata said the exercise had its challenges. Ma’uke is about 277 kilometres northeast of Rarotonga and most of the materials had to be brought in by aircraft or boat.

“We are quite limited with resources. We don’t have the luxury of a supply store. We are working with what we have and trying to deliver the same outcome.”

However, making a meaningful difference for the people of Ma’uke was a motivation.

“They are lovely people, very friendly and make you feel like one of them. They have welcomed us with open arms, which makes me more driven and motivated to get these jobs done for them.”

Lance Corporal Fata is Samoan and was enjoying the hospitality and food on Ma’uke.

“It feels like home. All the elderly people here remind me of my parents and grandparents and you show them the same level of respect, which I think is appreciated.”

It was Onehunga High School’s Services Academy, run in partnership with the New Zealand Defence Force’s Youth Development Unit, which inspired him to join the NZ Army.

He enlisted in 2015 when he was 20 and initially trained as a gunner, posting to Manawatū-based 16th Field Regiment. He became a mortar detachment commander and spent a lot of time at Waiouru Military Training Area.

“But once I had a family, I felt I needed to spend more time at home, hence the trade change to be a sparkie.”

Lance Corporal Fata’s career has allowed him to attend multinational exercises in Hawaii, centenary anniversary commemorations for the Battle of Messines in Belgium in 2017, and more recently carrying out electrical work in Tonga and now the Cook Islands.

“The Services Academy just painted a picture, and I thought, yes I’ll go for that. I’ve never looked back.”

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Universities – Gene therapy reverses diabetes heart failure – UoA

Source: University of Auckland (UoA)

Scientists have reversed diabetic heart failure with a genetic therapy in mice and in miniature human hearts made from stem cells.

Scientists have reversed diabetic heart failure with a genetic therapy in mice and a miniature human hearts made from stem cells.

In Aotearoa, New Zealand more than 300,000 people have diabetes and it is estimated that half of these have some form of heart damage which increases the risk of heart failure.

“Diabetes often leads to problems with the heart’s ability to relax properly between beats, known as diastolic dysfunction” says co-lead researcher Associate Professor Kim Mellor, head of Cellular and Molecular Cardiology at Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland.

Together with Professor Lea Delbridge, head of the Cardiac Phenomics Laboratory at the University of Melbourne, Mellor has discovered a process, called ‘glycophagy’, used by cells to break down excess glycogen in heart cells.

In diabetes, this process becomes disrupted, leading to diastolic dysfunction, where the heart becomes stiff and struggles to relax and fill properly. See Nature Cardiovascular Research.

“Before now, it has not been understood how the heart can store and mobilise sugar to create energy,” says Mellor. “The heart needs a lot of energy to pump and we have shown this isn’t working well in the diabetic heart. If we can understand that process, we can treat it.”

The group, which included a large network of international researchers, also found that a protein called GABARAPL1 is key to glycophagy and is deficient in diabetic heart disease.

In diabetic mice, the group successfully trialled using a virus to deliver genes to the heart to boost this key protein, GABARAPL1, and restore the breakdown of glycogen in the heart.

The treatment reduced glycogen buildup and improved heart function, without affecting blood sugar levels or body weight.

“We’ve shown that fixing this energy recycling system in heart cells can reverse the damage caused by diabetes,” says Mellor. “It’s a completely new way of thinking about how to treat diabetic heart disease.”

The genetic therapy also worked in miniature human hearts grown from human stem cells, improving their ability to relax after each beat, a key sign of healthy heart function.

“This discovery could lead to a new class of treatments that target the heart directly, rather than just managing diabetes symptoms,” says Delbridge.

“It is significant to find an intervention that can benefit the heart’s relaxation,” says Mellor. “That’s the way the heart fills with blood and there aren’t many medicines that can improve how the heart fills, rather than how it contracts.”

The researchers plan to explore clinical applications and investigate how sex differences may influence treatment response. Early findings suggest the therapy may be especially effective in female hearts, which show stronger glycophagy responses.

The study was supported by funding from the Health Research Council of New Zealand, the Marsden Fund of New Zealand, the National Health & Medical Research Council of Australia, Diabetes Australia, and the National Institutes of Health (USA).

Read more about animal research at the University of Auckland
http://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/research/about-our-research/openness-in-animal-research.html

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Local News – New blueprint for Porirua land use

Source: Porirua City Council

Porirua City Council formally adopted Porirua’s new District Plan today that will protect Porirua’s environment while also enabling growth in the city.
“After years of dedicated work by staff, and critical feedback from the community, the new District Plan will soon become operative,” says Council Chief Executive Wendy Walker.
The District Plan plays a key role in the way land is used to grow a city to benefit us all. It will provide more housing choice, change the size of rural lifestyle blocks, and identify hazards and future resilience for the city. At the same time, it will look after the cultural, environmental, and historic values and places important to the people of Porirua.
The Proposed District Plan was notified in 2020, with a direction from the Government in 2022 to enable more medium-and high-density housing.
“After 480 submissions and eight hearings, all appeals have now been resolved and the plan can come into operation. It will replace the Council’s existing district plan and is a significant milestone for the city to help us get the right development in the right places.”
Porirua’s natural hazards are now more clearly shown so we understand where best to build. This protects the needs of our residents now and those who live here in the future.
“We support the government’s focus on providing more homes for people and have done our best to achieve that in a way that also takes care of the natural environment, particularly the health of Te Awarua-o-Porirua Harbour,” says Ms Walker.
“We’re grateful to our communities for engaging so constructively and providing valuable input that will help shape our city for years to come.”
The Council partnered with Ngāti Toa Rangatira in developing the plan. Some of the chapters were written by iwi and they reviewed the entire plan before it was notified to the public.
The District Plan becomes operative next month.
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Weather News – A Wet Swirling System for the Week’s End – MetService

Source: MetService

Covering period of Thursday 2nd – Monday 6th October – It is no surprise that in the middle of spring we’ve got active, quick moving weather on the cards. There is a stock standard bout of rain passing over the country today (Thursday), with just about everyone seeing some spots. While you won’t be able to dry that washing outside, it’s nothing to write home about. The more interesting weather comes Friday and Saturday. With things moving so quickly at the moment, if you see the sun out there, go grab some rays while you can!

On Friday, periods of rain and showers move from the northwest over the North Island and top of the South Island, brought on by a series of active rain bands associated with a low pressure system. Squally thunderstorms and hail with localised heavy falls are possible for Auckland and Northland in the evening and at night.  

MetService Meteorologist Katie Hillyer says, “Rain will be heavy at times in places in the top half of the North Island, but the speed at which these bands are moving means total rainfall accumulations might struggle to climb. However, we’ll be keeping an eye on shorter, more intense falls.”  

On Saturday, showers spread over the rest of the country as the low-pressure system moves over. “The whole country really becomes a swirling mass of scattered showers,” remarks Hillyer.  

While everyone will be affected by these showers at some point, the places to watch are the top half of the North Island and the Tasman Region on Friday and Saturday, as well as the southeast coast of the South Island on Saturday and into Sunday. These places will see more persistence in the rain and showers, as well as some heavier ones, particularly up north. This isn’t good news for the Black Caps as they get ready to take on Australia again at Bay Oval in Tauranga on Friday night.

The winds will be picking up as well from tomorrow (Friday), but while strong, they are not outside our usual ‘spring weather’. Though, you would be wiser to grab a rain jacket and wellies than an umbrella. The strong winds will turn right around the clock as the low moves over the country, so all windows will be getting a good leak test.  

Temperatures will rise at first, bringing some warm double-digit minimums tomorrow night, before dropping again over the weekend, with a few frosts to areas in the South Island.

This is the sort of dynamic situation where it’s hard to pin down where the heavy showers will form. This plays a big role in what you’ll experience, so we advise people to keep up to date with the latest information.  

“Word to the wise, with quick moving showery situations such as this, it's best to stick to the written forecasts for the most accurate picture” suggests Hillyer.

To end the school holidays and start back, we see the shortest of breaks in the wet weather before the next weather system arrives later on Monday. Unfortunately, the weather isn’t playing ball for this last weekend of school break, but we managed to get all sorts of weather these holidays! Supposedly Mark Twain said, “In the spring, I have counted 136 different kinds of weather inside 24 hours”, which really sums it up.  

Please keep up to date with the most current information from MetService at MetService – Te Ratonga Tirorangi: https://www.metservice.com/national
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Animal Welfare – Outrage at government’s proposal to continue with cruel confinement of mother pigs

Source: SAFE For Animals

SAFE is appalled by the associate minister for Animal Welfare Andrew Hoggard’s announcement that the Government plans to continue to allow mother pigs to be confined in farrowing crates and mating stalls, arguing that no reduction of time spent in these cage systems justifies their use.
The Government proposes to limit the confinement of mother pigs in farrowing crates to a maximum of seven days, down from the current 33 days. It also proposes restricting the use of mating stalls to three hours at a time, followed by a three-hour break before a sow can be returned to the stall – a process that can be repeated as often as the farmer chooses, instead of allowing continuous confinement for seven days.
The announcement comes five years after SAFE and the New Zealand Animal Law Association took the Government to the High Court over the use of these systems.
In 2020, the Court held that the approach the Government had used to regulate the use of farrowing crates and mating stalls was unlawful. That decision led to substantive efforts by the then Labour-led Government to eventually phase out their use.
SAFE CEO Debra Ashton says this announcement is a betrayal of those positive changes and the mother pigs it was meant to protect.
“This was an opportunity to show that this government takes animal welfare seriously. Instead, of recognising that confining a mother pig in a cage for any amount of time is unjust, the Government has chosen to allow an inhumane and unlawful practice to continue.” says Ashton
“Allowing confinement for any number of days undermines the Court’s ruling and the intent of the Animal Welfare Act. This is a deeply disappointing result that shows Government remains captive to industry influence.”
NZALA President Marcelo Rodriguez Ferrere said the decision was “a significant disappointment that undermines the real progress made on ending the use of farrowing crates and mating stalls proposed in 2023; progress that has since stalled for the last two years.”
SAFE says the announcement on how the government plan to deliver these changes is vague and will wait for more information before deciding on next steps. In the meantime, SAFE remains firm in its position that no cage system for any amount of time is acceptable, and will continue to advocate for the freedom of pigs in New Zealand.
“It is difficult to believe the Minister has chosen to allow the continued confinement of mother pigs in cruel cages. We know New Zealanders will not accept this and SAFE won’t let it go unchallenged.” says Ashton.  
SAFE is Aotearoa’s leading animal rights organisation.
We're creating a future that ensures the rights of animals are respected. Our core work empowers society to make kinder choices for ourselves, animals and our planet.
Notes:
  • High-res photos and video of mother pigs in farrowing crates
  • Farrowing crates are metal cages used to confine mother pigs during and after birth. In these crates, mother pigs cannot turn around or interact meaningfully with their piglets. In 2022, it was estimated that up to 60% of pig farmers use farrowing crates. The system has been widely condemned by animal welfare experts and is already banned or heavily restricted in several countries, including Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland.
  • In 2020, the High Court ruled in favour of NZALA and SAFE, declaring that the minimum standards and regulations permitting farrowing crates and mating stalls were unlawful. The Court found they breached the Animal Welfare Act 1999, which requires animals to be able to express normal patterns of behaviour.
  • The ruling marked the first successful legal challenge to a Code of Welfare in New Zealand’s history.
  • SAFE submitted a petition in March 2018, which was signed by over 112,000 people calling for farrowing crates to be banned. 
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Education – New creative study comes to Lower Hutt as Whitireia and WelTec launch Animation, Digital Media and Design and Screen Production in Petone

Source: Whitireia and WelTec

Lower Hutt is set to become a hub for creative learning in 2026, with Whitireia and WelTec offering their Animation, Digital Media and Design and Screen Production (Film) programmes at the Petone campus.
From Trimester 1 2026, ākonga (students) will be able to undertake new creative study close to home, marking a significant expansion of creative education opportunities in the Lower Hutt community.
“We're excited to see Petone become a new hub for creative learning” says Brenda Saris, Kaiwhakahaere Hōtaka (Programme Manager) Digital Media and Design at Whitireia and WelTec.
“By offering Animation, Digital Media and Design and Screen Production (Film) in Petone, we’re making creative study more accessible for Hutt locals, while also opening the door to fresh collaborations with local industries, businesses, and community groups,” says Saris.
The move also creates opportunities for exciting new collaborations with other programmes based at the Petone campus, such as Animation or Digital Media and Design ākonga in working alongside Information Technology ākonga.
For current Digital Media and Design ākonga and Naenae local Brant, the shift to Petone feels like a natural fit.
“It’s really cool that the move to Petone gives locals more ways to get involved in creative study,” says Brant. “It’s a great chance to learn close to home, get hands-on experience, and be part of the creative scene here in the Hutt Valley.”
Mary-Claire Proctor, Head of School of Innovation, Design and Technology at Whitireia and WelTec, says having these programmes based in Petone is a great opportunity for businesses and organisations in the Hutt Valley to connect with upcoming talent.
“We’re excited to see the opportunities it will bring for our ākonga, for local industry, and for the Lower Hutt community as a whole,” says Mary-Claire. “It’s a great chance for ākonga and businesses to grow together in Hutt Valley’s creative scene.”
ENDS
More information about Animation and Digital Media and Design
Learn real skills to bring your concepts, characters, creatures or worlds to life. Come and learn from tutors who will teach you about animation, game, graphic and screen design (film and visual effects). Whether you’re creating captivating animations or imaginative illustrations, designing gameplay experiences, or shaping visual narratives, there’s a world of creativity waiting for you.
See Animation and Digital Media and Design programmes here:
More information about Screen Production (Film)
This hands-on programme introduces ākonga to industry-based practices and processes. Learn from industry practitioners and gain skills in off-set and on-set crew roles, including directing, camera, lighting, and production management. If you want to write and produce great stories and create engaging digital content for this evolving industry, this is the programme for you.
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Advocacy – Open letter to UniSaver Board members 2025 on Palestine

Source: University Workers for Palestine

Open letter to UniSaver Board members 2025 from University Workers for Palestine, dated Thursday, October 2, 2025, 10am.

Tēnā koutou katoa,

University Workers for Palestine has been trying for over a year to get UniSaver, the preferred superannuation provider for most universities, to divest from Israel and companies complicit in occupation and genocide, and develop a BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) policy. We've had no response from them. So we're drawing a line in the sand. This open letter makes clear that if they don't respond in an ethical, meaningful way, university communities will support a campaign to sever ties with them and take our, and our employers', contributions elsewhere.

If you work at a New Zealand university, please sign on, and share with other university workers (and we also invite others, including our students, alumni and former colleagues, to sign in solidarity). We will be sending this letter to UniSaver at the start of November.

In solidarity, University Workers for Palestine (Uni4pal)

*******

To the UniSaver Board,

We are writing to you to demand that you divest immediately from all holdings that are complicit in the genocide of Palestinians. In August of last year, you received an open letter with 400 signatures pointing out some of the worst investments (like Elbit Systems and Palantir Technologies) and asking you to develop a divestment policy. You never bothered to contact letter signatories and you have apparently done nothing to change UniSaver investments.

A year has passed, a year in which genocide has accelerated; many thousands of Palestinians, including our university colleagues, have been killed during this time, in what has been described as a scholasticide.

We are writing to you now to reiterate our call for you to divest and develop a divestment policy to prevent future investments in companies that are complicit in genocide and apartheid. To repeat from our letter a year ago (with the addition of point 4), we demand that UniSaver Limited:

  1. Take immediate steps to review its portfolios and to terminate its holdings in entities which make it, and us as members of UniSaver, complicit in the crimes of the Israeli state,
  2. Outline a clear plan for divestment where immediate termination is not possible, and
  3. Develop policy measures to ensure its financial and investment strategies are in keeping with the internationally recognised BDS framework.
  4. Update the Responsible Investment Policy to require the investment manager to divest from companies found to be complicit in the genocide of Palestinians.

If you don’t withdraw our funds from genocide, we, the undersigned, will support a campaign to get universities in Aotearoa New Zealand to sever ties with you. We will not accept our retirement funds fuelling the genocide of Palestinians.We expect to hear a response from the Unisaver board by the end of November.

About University Workers for Palestine

We are a collective of university workers from institutions across Aotearoa in active support of a Free Palestine. We are organising to oppose the occupation, apartheid, scholasticide, and genocide in Gaza, and to act in solidarity with Palestine. This has included a call for Unisaver, the university supported superannuation scheme, to divest from entities that are invested in and benefit from the illegal military occupation of Palestinian territories, as well as the genocidal war on Gaza. In July 2024 an open letter written by UW4P collected over 400 signatures.