Disinvestment, sometimes referred to as divestment, refers to the use of a concerted economic boycott, with specific emphasis on liquidating stock, to pressure a government towards policy or regime change. The term was first used in the 1980s, most commonly in the United States, to refer to the use of a concerted economic boycott designed to pressure the government of South Africa into abolishing its policy of apartheid. The term has also been applied to actions targeting Northern Ireland, Myanmar, and Israel. Look up Boycott in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article cites very few or no references or sources. ... Look up Boycott in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A segregated beach in South Africa, 1982. ... Northern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km², about a sixth of the islands total area). ...

Targets

South Africa

Main article: Disinvestment from South Africa

The most frequently-encountered method of "disinvesting" was to persuade state, county and municipal governments to sell their stock in companies which had a presence in South Africa, such shares having been previously placed in the portfolio of the state's, county's or city's pension fund. Several states and localities did pass legislation ordering the sale of such securities, most notably the city of San Francisco. An array of celebrities, including singer Paul Simon, actively supported the cause. The campaign gained prominence in the mid-1980s on university campuses in the US. The debate headlined the October 1985 issue (above) of Vassar Colleges student newspaper. ... A county is generally a sub-unit of regional self-government within a sovereign jurisdiction. ... This page is a candidate for speedy deletion. ... Paul Frederic Simon (born October 13, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist, half of the folk-singing duo Simon and Garfunkel who continues a successful solo career. ...

Many conservatives opposed the disnvestment campaign, accusing its advocates of hypocrisy for not also proposing that the same sanctions be levelled on either the Soviet Union or the People's Republic of China. Ronald Reagan, who was the President of the United States during the time the disinvestment movement was at its peak, also opposed it, instead favoring a policy of "constructive engagement" with the Pretoria regime. Some offered as an alternative to disinvestment the so-called "Sullivan Principles," named after Reverend Leon Sullivan, an African-American clergyman who served on the Board of Directors of General Motors. These principles called for corporations doing business in South Africa to adhere to strict standards of non-discrimination in hiring and promotions, so as to set a positive example. This article deals with conservatism as a political philosophy. ... Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was the 40th President of the United States (1981 – 1989) and the 33rd Governor of California (1967 – 1975). ... The presidential seal was first used in 1880 by President Rutherford B. Hayes and last modified in 1959 by adding the 50th star for Hawaii. ... Motto: Praestantia Praevaleat Pretoria (May Pretoria Be Pre-eminent In Excellence) Country South Africa Province Gauteng Established 1855 Area  - City 1,644 km²  (634. ... The Sullivan Principles were developed in 1977 by the Rev. ... Languages Predominantly American English Religions Protestantism (chiefly Baptist and Methodist); Roman Catholicism; Islam Related ethnic groups Sub-Saharan Africans and other African groups, some with Native American groups. ... General Motors Corporation (NYSE: GM), also known as GM, is an American automobile maker with worldwide operations and brands including Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, Holden, Hummer, Opel, Pontiac, Saturn, Saab and Vauxhall. ...

Northern Ireland

There was also a less well-publicized movement to apply the strategy of disinvestment to Northern Ireland, as some prominent Irish-American politicians sought to have state and local governments sell their stock in companies doing business in that part of the United Kingdom. This movement featured its own counterpart to the Sullivan Principles; known as the "MacBride Principles" (named for Nobel Peace Prize winner Sean MacBride), which called for American and other foreign companies to take the initiative in alleviating alleged discrimination against Roman Catholics by adopting policies resembling affirmative action. The effort to disnvest in Northern Ireland met with little success, but the United States Congress did pass (and then-President Bill Clinton signed) a law requiring American companies with interests there to implement most of the MacBride Principles in 1998. Northern Ireland is a part of the United Kingdom lying in the northeast of the island of Ireland, covering 5,459 square miles (14,139 km², about a sixth of the islands total area). ... Lester B. Pearson after accepting the Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish and Norwegian: Nobels fredspris) is the name of one of five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel. ... Seán MacBride (26 January 1904 – 15 January 1988) was a senior Irish politician, barrister, revolutionary & statesman. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ... Manifestations Slavery · Racial profiling · Lynching Hate speech · Hate crime Genocide · Ethnocide Ethnic cleansing · Pogrom · Race war Religious persecution · Gay bashing The Holocaust · Armenian Genocide Blood libel · Black Legend Pedophobia · Ephebiphobia Movements Discriminatory Aryanism · Neo-Nazism · Ku Klux Klan National Party (South Africa) American Nazi Party · Hate groups Kahanism · Supremacism Anti... Type Bicameral Houses Senate House of Representatives United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D since January 4, 2007 Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, D since January 4, 2007 Members 535 plus 4 Delegates and 1 Resident Commissioner Political groups (as of November 7, 2006 elections) Democratic Party Republican... William Jefferson Bill Clinton (born William Jefferson Blythe III[1] on August 19, 1946) was the 42nd President of the United States, serving from 1993 to 2001. ... Year 1998 (MCMXCVIII) was a common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1998 Gregorian calendar). ...

Cuba

Though in place long before the term "disinvestment" was coined, the United States embargo against Cuba meets many of the criteria for designation as such — and a provision more closely parallelling the disinvestment strategy aimed at South Africa was added in 1996, when the United States Congress passed the Helms-Burton Act, which penalized owners of foreign businesses which invested in former American firms that had been nationalized by Fidel Castro's government after the Cuban revolution of 1959. The passage of this law was widely seen as a reprisal for an incident in which Cuban military aircraft shot down two private planes flown by Cuban exiles living in Florida, who were searching for Cubans attempting to escape to Miami. Billboards carrying messages attacking the United States government (this one compares it with fascism) can be seen all over Cuba. ... 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year for the Eradication of Poverty. ... The Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (Libertad) Act of 1996 (better known as the Helms-Burton Act) is a United States federal law which strengthens and continues the United States embargo against Cuba. ... Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (born on August 13, 1926) is the current President of Cuba but on indefinite medical hiatus. ... The Cuban Revolution refers to the revolution that led to the overthrow of General Fulgencio Batistas regime on January 1, 1959 by the 26th of July Movement and other revolutionary elements in the country. ... 1959 (MCMLIX) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Official language(s) English Capital Tallahassee Largest city Jacksonville Largest metro area Miami Area  Ranked 22nd  - Total 65,795[1] sq mi (170,304[1] km²)  - Width 361 miles (582 km)  - Length 447 miles (721 km)  - % water 17. ... Nickname: Location in Miami-Dade County and the state of Florida. ...

Sudan

There is currently a growing movement to divest from companies that do business with the Sudanese government responsible for genocide in Darfur. In New York City, Councilman Eric Gioia recently introduced a resolution to divest City pension funds from companies doing business with Sudan. Eric Gioia is a member of the New York City Council and a Democratic politician in New York. ...

The recent divestment of assets implicated in funding the government of Sudan, in acknowledgment of acts of genocide perpetrated in the Darfur conflict. In the United States, this divestment has taken place at the state level (including Illinois, New Jersey, Oregon, and Maine). It has also taken place at many North American Universities, notably Cornell University, Harvard University, Queen's University, Stanford University, Dartmouth College, Amherst College, Yale University, Brown University, the University of California, the University of Pennsylvania, Brandeis University, the University of Colorado, American University and Emory University. The Sudan Divestment Task Force [2] has organized a nationwide group which advocates a targeted divestment policy, to minimize any negative effects on Sudanese civilians while still placing financial pressure on the government. The so-called 'targeted divestment approach' generally permits investment in Sudan, and is thus radically different from the comprehensive divestment that ended apartheid in South Africa. Because targeted divestment permits investment in hundreds of multinational corporate and private-equity firms that support, lend legitimacy to, and pay taxes and graft to the government of Sudan, policy experts suggest that this "feel good" approach will have little impact on the Sudanese government's sponsorship of terrorism and genocide. Genocide is the mass killing of a group of people as defined by Article 2 of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide (CPPCG) as any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnic, racial or... Combatants factions of the SLA Justice & Equality Movement Janjaweed  Sudan Minnawi-faction of the SLA Commanders SLA: SalaBob and Sulaiman Gamos JEM: Ibrahim Khalil Janjaweed: ? Sudan: Omar al-Bashir SLA: Minni Minnawi Casualties 300,000 civilians killed (est. ... Cornell University is a private university located in Ithaca, New York, USA. Its two medical campuses are in New York City and Education City, Qatar. ... Harvard University (incorporated as The President and Fellows of Harvard College) is a private university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA and a member of the Ivy League. ... Queens University, generally referred to simply as Queens, is a coeducational, non-sectarian, public university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. ... Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly known as Stanford University (or simply Stanford), is a private university located approximately 37 miles (60 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco and approximately 20 miles northwest of San José in Stanford, California. ... Dartmouth College is a private, coeducational university located in Hanover, New Hampshire, in the United States. ... Amherst College is a private, independent, elite[1][2] liberal arts college in Amherst, Massachusetts, USA. It is the third oldest college in Massachusetts. ... “Yale” redirects here. ... Brown University is a private university located in Providence, Rhode Island. ... Berkeley Davis Irvine Los Angeles Merced San Diego Santa Barbara Santa Cruz UC Office of the President in Oakland The University of California (UC) is a public university system in the state of California. ... This article is about the private Ivy League university in Philadelphia. ... Brandeis University is a private university in Waltham, Massachusetts, United States. ... The University of Colorado at Boulder (CU-Boulder, UCB officially[2]; Colorado and CU colloquially) is the flagship university of the University of Colorado System in Boulder, Colorado. ... For other universities known as American University, see American University (disambiguation). ... Emory University is a private university located in suburban Atlanta, Georgia. ...

Israel

In 2004, the Presbyterian USA church, in a process they would later call "flawed," voted to begin a process of phased, selective divestment from companies operating in Israel. A tremendous backlash occurred in response to the Presbyterian Church (USA) divestment overture in 2004, calling for an economic leverage/divestment process that dealt only with Israel. That resolution was couched in language asserting that the "occupation" was "at the root of evil acts." In 2005, the World Council of Churches followed suit. The New England Conference of the United Methodist Church, at its Annual Conference session held June 8-11-2005, voted to urge the divesting of funds from companies that support the Israeli occupation of Palestinian Territories. The resolution stated: Presbyterianism is part of the Reformed churches family of denominations of Christian Protestantism based on the teachings of John Calvin which traces its institutional roots to the Scottish Reformation, especially as led by John Knox. ... Emblem of the PC(USA) The Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) or PC(USA) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination in the United States. ... The World Council of Churches (WCC) is an international Christian ecumenical organization. ... This article is about the current denomination africa. ...

• Whereas the United Methodist Church should not profit from the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian land or the destruction of Palestinian homes, orchards, and lives,
• Whereas we are committed to ensuring that our denomination’s money is used in a manner consistent with our beliefs, with international law, and with Christ’s teaching,[3].

The United Church of Christ also followed suit [4], endorsing a range of economic leverages that included divestment, but church leaders publicly announced that no divestment path was planned for their pension or foundation assets. Theological Rationale: We believe that God in love seeks blessing and not destruction for all peoples, and lays the same pursuit upon Jews, Christians and Muslims (Genesis 12:1-3, 17:15-20, 21:14-19; Joshua 5:13-15; Isaiah 42:5-7, 49:6; Jonah; Micah 4:2-4; Matthew 5:14-16, 5:23-24; Mark 3:35; Luke 6:27-36, 9:51-55, 10:25-37; John 3:16-17, 21:15-17; Revelation 22:1-2)[5]. Many of these denominational caucuses were criticized by their own members for their association with lobbyists and speakers from the controversial Sabeel Liberation Theology Center. This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ... Christ is the English of the Greek word (Christós), which literally means The Anointed One. ... Disambiguation: This article is about the United States denomination known as United Church of Christ. ... The Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center in Jerusalemwas founded by Palestinian Christian. ... Liberation theology is a school of theology that focuses on Jesus Christ as not only the Redeemer but also the Liberator of the Oppressed. ...

In 2006, the Prebyterian Church (USA) General Assembly by a vote of 483-28 adopted a balanced resolution that replaced language adopted in 2004 mandating a process of divestment focused on Israel - and endorsing instead the church's customary corporate engagement process. [6]

To date, divestment campaigns aimed at Israel have yet to gain significant traction. In addition to the Presbyterian Church's replacing its 2004 call for divestment, the other large mainline churches have avoided the path to divestment. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America rejected a pro-divestment resolution during the summer of 2005. The Episcopal Church USA ruled out the possibility of anti-Israel divestment later that year, and the United Methodist Church has also avoided divestment. Similarly, a pro-divestment push was rebuffed in the city of Somerville, MA. Successes for pro-divestment forces have been scarce. On May 27th 2006, representing more than 200,000 workers, delegates to The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) - Ontario convention in Ottawa voted overwhelmingly to support divestment, They condemned what they called Israel's "apartheid wall," saying it is illegal under international law. [7] This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Somerville is a city located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, just north of Boston. ... The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE, French: Syndicat canadien de la fonction publique) is a Canadian trade union serving the public sector - although it has in recent years organized workplaces in the non-profit and para-public sector as well. ... Motto: Ut Incepit Fidelis Sic Permanet (Latin: Loyal she began, loyal she remains) Capital Toronto Largest city Toronto Official languages English Government - Lieutenant-Governor James K. Bartleman - Premier Dalton McGuinty (Liberal) Federal representation in Canadian Parliament - House seats 106 - Senate seats 24 Confederation July 1, 1867 (1st) Area [1] Ranked... Motto: Advance Ottawa/Ottawa en avant Location of the City of Ottawa in the Province of Ontario Coordinates: Country Canada Province Ontario Established 1850 as Town of Bytown Incorporated 1855 as City of Ottawa Amalgamated January 1, 2001 Government  - Mayor Larry OBrien  - City Council Ottawa City Council  - Representatives 8... This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

On the 27th of April 2005, The Rawalpindi-Islamabad Citizens Peace Committee of Pakistan has called for a total boycott of US and British products to protest declaring war on weak nations [8]. Their release cites:“The local chains pay their American principals a royalty of 5% on each sale for using their brand names. It is this 5% that goes to bloat the coffers of the US corporations most of whom are major contributors to the state of Israel. Thus, consuming American fast food goes to strengthen the US and Israeli armed forces, US aggression worldwide and the Israeli atrocities on the Palestinians".

Pro-Palestinian student groups at many colleges and universities have petitioned their schools to divest from companies with ties to the Israeli military in 2002-2004, but to date every university divestment campaign has been unsuccessful in swaying the schools' administrations' investment decisions. Former Harvard President Lawrence Summers famously called those campaigns "anti-Semitic in effect, if not in intent." For album titles with the same name, see 2002 (album). ... shelby was here 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Lawrence Henry (Larry) Summers (born November 30, 1954) is an American economist and academic. ...

As a response, many pro-Israel student advocacy groups throughout the nation have launched "Invest in Israel" campaigns, encouring donors to universities and the universities themselves to invest in Israel. Warren Buffett's $4 billion recent investment in Israel serves as a testament to the strength and promise of the Israeli economy.

Others

Myanmar (formerly Burma) has also been the target of disinvestment campaigns (most notably one initiated by the state of Massachusetts.) Divestment campaigns have also been directed against Saudi Arabia due to allegations of "gender-apartheid." The University of California, Riverside's Hillel chapter has a Saudi Divestment petition circulating as of 2007. Official language(s) English Capital Boston Largest city Boston Area  Ranked 44th  - Total 10,555 sq mi (27,360 km²)  - Width 183 miles (295 km)  - Length 113 miles (182 km)  - % water 13. ...

Criticism

Some hold that divestment campaigns are based on a fundamental misunderstanding of how equity markets work. John Silber, former president of Boston University, observed that while boycotting a company's products would actually affect their business, "once a stock issue has been made, the corporation doesn't care whether you sell it, burn it, or anything else, because they've already got all the money they're ever going to get from that stock. So they don't care." ^[1] A stock market is a market for the trading of publicly held company stock and associated financial instruments (including stock options, convertibles and stock index futures). ... John Robert Silber (born August 15, 1926 in San Antonio, Texas) is a controversial former president of Boston University. ... For similarly-named academic institutions, see Boston (disambiguation). ...

Regarding the more specific case of South Africa, John Silber recalled:

...when the students were protesting the South African situation, I met with them, and they said BU must divest in General Motors and IBM. And I said, "Why should we do that? Is it immoral to own that stock?" Absolutely immoral to own it. And I said, "So then, we're supposed to sell it to somebody? We can't divest unless we sell it to somebody. And if we burn the stock, that just helps General Motors, because it reduces the amount of stock outstanding, so that can't be right. If we sell it to somebody, we have just gotten rid of our guilt in order to impose guilt on somebody else." ^[1]

The common perception about the effectiveness of divestment lies in the belief that institutional selling of a certain stock lowers its market value. Therefore, the company's networth becomes devalued and the owners of the company may lose substantial paper assets. In addition, institutional divestment may encourage other investors to sell their stocks for fear of lower prices, which in turn lowers prices even further. Finally, lower stock prices limits a corporation's ability to sell a portion of their stocks in order to raise funds to expand the business.

References

See also

• Divestment campaign
• Economic and political boycotts of Israel
• Ethical consumerism