**PLEASE SIGN ONLY IF YOU ARE EITHER A STUDENT, ACADEMIC, ALUMNI OR STUDENT SOCIETY AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER**
As students and academics we demand the University of Manchester adhere to its Socially Responsible Investment policy and DIVEST from Caterpillar for human rights violations and armament sales to military regimes.
Socially Responsible Investment (SRI):
The University of Manchester’s Socially Responsible Investment policy [April 2018] clearly states that the university, as part of its Manchester 2020 Strategic Plan, explicitly commits to ensuring:
“social, economic and environmental factors are built into our processes for the procurement of goods and services and how we invest our money”
The policy then enlists Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) issues that lead to elimination of investments:
1) Human rights violations
2) Armament sales to military regimes
3) Racial Discrimination
4) Environmental degradation
Caterpillar:
The University of Manchester invests £487,840.44 in Caterpillar - according to the number of shares invested (4895) and the share price ($127.75) as of 14th November 2018.
Caterpillar supply custom-made armoured bulldozers to the Israeli army (IDF) for the specific purpose of demolishing Palestinian homes, factories, agricultural land and civilian infrastructure in illegally occupied territory. Caterpillar is currently supplying machinery for the impending destruction of the Palestinian village, Khan al-Ahmar.
As a result of these practices, the United Nations Human Rights Council, Amnesty International, International Red Cross, Human Rights Watch and other international human rights organisations have repeatedly condemned and sued Caterpillar in violating the human rights of civilians and actively breaking international law.
Crucially, Caterpillar’s actions encapsulate every single ESG issue outlined in the SRI policy above.
Divestment:
The University of Manchester’s SRI policy and Investment Charter [April 2018] condones the following strategy to pressure corporations that contravene the policy:
“Where a company in which the University currently holds shares does not respond positively to concerns about its practices and is deemed to be in fundamental breach of acceptable standards of ethical and/or environmental practice, the University will DIVEST itself of shares in that Company and require the Investment Manager to inform the Company of its reasons for doing so.”
It follows:
As students and academics we demand the University of Manchester adhere to its Socially Responsible Investment policy and DIVEST from Caterpillar for human rights violations and armament sales to military regimes.
More Information:
University Socially Responsible Investment Policy [April, 2018] :
http://documents.manchester.ac.uk/DocuInfo.aspx?DocID=659Caterpillar :
https://waronwant.org/sites/default/files/Caterpillar%20-%20The%20Alternative%20Report.pdf Khan al Ahmar impending demolition:
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/israel-bulldozers-palestinian-village-demolish-khan-al-ahmar-jcb-caterpillar-cat-liugong-1208431690?fbclid=IwAR1mlZOYp85W2Wdt3bphprw4IvAU78Ar-OW6_v7GlLwlZqXf3YrbYQI3LKc