Sorry for you Israel/South Africa

Seen in a bid document: “I, the bidder, certify that my company will not be using services or material coming from Israel.”

The reason given for this 2024 decision was that a board ruling required the bid seeker to refrain from entering into business negotiations and/or contractual agreements with businesses and/or companies of Israeli origin and/or that are complicit in supporting Israel in oppressing Palestinian people.”

The above have given me the courage to now ask people that I buy products from to please; “Certify that their products are sourced from a supplier who is a millennial and recently discovered that they/them is a huge obfuscation that will save the rare Antarctic Vervet Monkey!.”

Sanctions

Seriously – I know that sanctions are a weapon used by governments against other governments that sometimes work but don’t we need to be guided by our Government before creating our own private sanctions regime?

Did the SA Government Issue a Directive?

Our South African government does not have a formal policy or legal ban forcing private businesses to boycott Israel, but ruling party figures and certain departments have enacted specific regulatory restrictions and vocal political support for anti-Israel trade measures.

The government requires South African traders to refrain from labelling goods produced in illegal Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) as “Made in Israel.

Individual political entities—most notably the African National Congress (ANC)—actively encourage citizens and the private sector to join in boycotting Israeli goods and cutting economic ties.

One must also remember that, legally, private South African companies retain the right to buy or sell Israeli products, and bilateral trade continues, though individual firms face intense pressure and targeted campaigns from local civil society and Palestine solidarity coalitions.

Who Would Lose?

Itai Melchior, the trade attaché at the Israeli Embassy, said trade between the two countries was over a billion US dollars a year – and the balance of trade was significantly in South Africa’s favour.

Israel is far less reliant on South Africa. About 90 per cent of its imports are raw materials that can be readily purchased elsewhere. If trade were to be stopped it would not have a major effect on Israel or Israeli companies.

All the cellular operators and fixed-line operators in South Africa have Israeli technology. Most mobile phones have Israeli technology and companies like Google, Apple, Microsoft and Intel have major research and development centres in Israel.

Arthur Goldstuck is widely quoted as saying that if South Africa did not use Israeli technology, it would have to go back to the stone age.