There have been calls for the Occupied Territories Bill to be passed in response to the war in Gaza. But what is it? Why did it stall? And can it be revived now?
What is the Occupied Territories Bill?
The proposed legislation – the Control of Economic Activity (Occupied Territories) Bill 2018 – was introduced by Independent Senator Frances Black long before the current wars in Gaza and Lebanon. It is aimed at banning trade between Ireland and Israel’s illegal settlements in Occupied Palestinian Territories. While the Bill passed various stages in the Oireachtas, it has stalled at committee stage in the Dáil since 2020.
What’s the hold up and why is it back on the agenda now?
Previous attorneys general had advised that the Bill was contrary to European Union trade law. However, there has been pressure from the Opposition and from within the Coalition for it to be reassessed. It is seen as a potential action Ireland could take in response to the huge loss of life suffered by the Palestinian people – more than 42,000 of whom have died as a result of Israel’s year-long war in Gaza, which was sparked by the Hamas-led attack on Israel last October.
Has anything changed that would help the Bill get over the line?
The Government has pointed to an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) as creating a “new context” to examine the issue.
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The UN’s top court ruled in July that Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are in breach of international law and that Israel’s occupation of those territories amounts to long-term annexation which has undermined the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination. These were the main findings of a non-binding advisory opinion issued by the ICJ. Taoiseach Simon Harris asked Attorney General Rossa Fanning to examine the Bill again following the ICJ’s opinion.
So can the Bill be revived?
Perhaps, in some form at least. The three Coalition leaders were briefed by Mr Fanning on Monday evening and his advice is to go to Cabinet next week. Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said on Tuesday that the ICJ’s opinion “puts obligations on member states not to do anything that would support the illegal occupation of Palestine”.
He said that offers a “clearer way forward” though there are “still challenges and the existing Bill would need to be redrafted and amended very substantively”. He also said “definitely the ICJ changes the context in which one can proceed now”.
What do the other Coalition leaders say?
Mr Harris has said he wants to see the current Government “make progress” on the matter. He also said “every country must use every lever at its disposal to bring about a ceasefire in the Middle East, to end the humanitarian catastrophe”. There has been division at European Union level in terms of the approach to the war in Gaza. Mr Harris’s message to other leaders at a summit this week will be “we’re not going to wait for everyone in Europe to develop a consensus on this. If there’s more Ireland can do, Ireland will absolutely not be found wanting”.
Green Party leader Roderic O’Gorman said it is his party’s position that Ireland should not be trading with Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories and “we want to see that position advanced in the remaining lifetime of this Government”.
What impact would Ireland passing the Occupied Territories Bill, or something like it, have?
Very little economically, in all honesty, but it would be a big political statement. The instigator of the Bill, Ms Black, said on Tuesday that it would only impact around €1 million in trade and “it’s not going to end the occupation on its own”.
“It’s about saying that Ireland will no longer support this horrific injustice that’s happening,” she told RTÉ radio.
She said she believed there will be a general election before Christmas, but she hoped it could be passed “very quickly in whatever new government is going to be formed in the new year or whenever that is”.
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