New divestment overture backs ’04 resolution in part
The Layman Online, February 6, 2006
The Presbytery of San Francisco has affirmed a controversial resolution by the 216th General Assembly, which called on the Presbyterian Church (USA) to begin phased, selective divestment of its holdings in corporations doing business with Israel.
But the San Francisco overture also includes a new twist.
Instead of zeroing in on Israel, the presbytery’s overture would direct the denomination’s Committee on Mission Responsibility through Investments (MRTI) to “recommend opportunities for investment in joint Palestinian-Israeli ventures, including those provided by organizations such as Oikocredit, which benefit both peoples.”
Oikocredit – oiko is from the Greek word that forms part of the term ecumenical, meaning worldwide community – is a World Council of Churches bank established to provide loans for poor people around the globe. Whether Israelis, even in partnership with Palestinians, would qualify for Oikocredit assistance is unknown.
The WCC bank, in which the PCUSA claims to be the highest investor, is a microfinancier that lends money only to ethnic groups that cannot normally meet requirements of other lenders. The largest share of PCUSA money in Oikocredit is $500,000 from the foundation-rich East Liberty Presbyterian Church in Pittsburgh, a declining congregation that caters to a multi-cultural congregation and members with nontraditional sexual behavior.
San Francisco also overtured the General Assembly to “reaffirm the 216th General Assembly decision to initiate a process of phased, selective divestment of multinational corporations that contribute to the construction of the separation barrier, profit from the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, or Palestinian violence.” It requested “divestment from selected corporations where, according to MRTI, dialogue and shareholder actions have not produced satisfactory results.”
The divestment portion of the resolution by the 216th General Assembly did not mention the Palestinians. It focused exclusively on “corporations doing business with Israel.” Nor did the resolution state that it was based mainly on the separation barrier, which Israel claims is a necessary defense against Palestinian terrorist attacks and suicide bombers.
But the defensive wall was condemned elsewhere in the 2004 resolution and has been a sticking point for the PCUSA in its ongoing condemnation of Israel’s military response to the Palestinians. And MRTI, the PCUSA social advisers on investments, has placed Caterpillar on the possible hit list because Israelis bought its equipment for building the wall.
The PCUSA has a large investment in Caterpillar. When the 2004 General Assembly approved the divestment resolution, the denomination owned 37,100 shares of Caterpillar stock valued at $2,893,058. The stock split recently, and those same holding were valued at $5,058,214 as of today – a gain of $2,165,156.
That 74.8 percent gain in value is one of the reasons that managers of the Presbyterian Foundation and the Presbyterian Health and Pension Board, the owners of the Caterpillar stock, have warned the denomination against making fiduciary decisions on the basis of political or social leanings.
If all of the PCUSA’s funds in Catepillar had been invested in Oikocredit in June 2004, the return would been ranged from 1 percent to 2 percent annually. At 1 percent, the return would have been approximately $44,710 through January 2006; at 2 percent, the return would have been about $89,420. The two Presbyterian investment bodies would have lost between $2.07 million and $2.12 million in a Caterpillar-for-Oikocredit swap.
The San Francisco resolution also called on the General Assembly to “direct the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program to offer study tours for members and congregations of the PCUSA, as well as interfaith groups, that incorporate visits and interaction with both Israelis and Palestinians, especially meeting with those working toward peace and reconciliation.”
Previous Presbyterian groups that meet with leaders of Hezbollah, a terrorist group in Southern Lebanon, were responsible for sparking international criticism against the PCUSA.
The full text of the San Francisco overture:
Overture 62. On Divestment and Israel-From the Presbytery of San Francisco.
The Presbytery of San Francisco overtures the General Assembly of the PC(USA) to take the following actions:
1. Reaffirm the 216th General Assembly decision to initiate a process of phased, selective divestment of multinational corporations that contribute to the construction of the separation barrier, profit from the Israeli occupation of the West Bank, or Palestinian violence. Request divestment from selected corporations where, according to MRTI, dialogue and shareholder actions have not produced satisfactory results.
Rationale
The occupation of the West Bank continues unabated taking more land and isolating Palestinians from one another and their livelihood, undercutting the possibility of a viable economy. Action by the 217th GA is required to carry forward the process initiated by the 216th GA.
2. Direct the MRTI to recommend opportunities for investment in joint Palestinian-Israeli ventures, including those provided by organizations such as Oikocredit, which benefit both peoples.
Rationale
This action demonstrates the historic commitment of the PC (USA) to the well being of both Israel and Palestine and expresses our hope for mutual cooperation and a just solution to the conflict between the two peoples.
3. Direct the Presbyterian Peacemaking Program to offer study tours for members and congregations of the PC (USA), as well as interfaith groups, that incorporate visits and interaction with both Israelis and Palestinians, especially meeting with those working toward peace and reconciliation.
Rationale
Many tours to the Holy Land visit only Israel or only Palestine and provide a one-sided version of the conflict between these two peoples. This overture seeks to correct this imbalance by providing study tours to see and hear all sides of the story.