Belfast Palestine activists joined by Lowkey as they face court once again

Rappers, Palestine activism, and farcical British state repression seem to be inseparable this week. Not only were Kneecap in court facing absurd terror charges for waving a flag around, three activists for the direct action group BDS Belfast were facing a magistrate on accusations of criminal damage for stickering. The latter were supported in-person by the politically aware hip-hop artist Lowkey, who had been performing in Belfast the night before.

The alleged damage relates to the campaigners placing stickers on Sodastream products in a west Belfast branch of Sainsbury’s. Sodastream – which is made in so-called Israel – features a claim on its packaging that states it is:

produced by Arabs and Jews working side-by-side in peace and harmony.

This blatantly misleading boast is now being challenged by the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP), who have worked in harmony with BDS Belfast to bring the matter to the attention of the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA), on the grounds that it is untrue, and therefore false advertising. The notion that Palestinians – described by Sodastream as “Arabs”, eliding their core identity – and Jews working in “harmony”, as an ongoing holocaust is perpetrated in Gaza, is clearly an absurd claim.

Israeli-made Sodastream funds genocide yet it’s Belfast activists in court?

The activists’ primary objection to the product, however, is that its sale funds the ongoing genocide, apartheid and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinians every time proceeds are sent back to the Zionist pseudo-state.

BDS Belfast have a stated aim of ceasing the sale of all ‘made in Israel’ products in Ireland, in much the same way import of apartheid South Africa goods were halted in 1987. This followed a refusal of Dunnes Stores workers in 1984 to handle anything produced under that racist regime, after they were directed to do so by their union IDATU. Unions in Ireland have sadly failed to issue similar instructions to workers today, despite an ongoing genocide and the likes of Desmond Tutu and Noam Chomsky having previously described Zionist apartheid as even worse than its South African predecessor.

However, in court seven at Laganside Courts, the magistrate ruled that a two week postponement was necessary, as no means were available for the Sainsbury’s witness – a member of staff at the Kennedy Centre branch of the supermarket chain – to appear anonymously. The witness had claimed that hiding her identity was essential to protect her from potential harassment. The activists have pointed out that they always emphasise that the blame for the presence of Zionist products lies with senior management, not rank and file staff.

Any ruling against the group could have significant repercussions for similar actions across Britain. Stickering to raise consumer awareness of what exactly is being purchased has a noble history, with its use being another tool that activists deployed against the apartheidists in Pretoria, as South African fruit and veg was labelled by activists. Animal rights activists have routinely sought to raise awareness of the harms done by the factory farming industry through stickers on meat products in supermarkets.

Protests against Zionist products sweep the world

Outside court in Belfast, one of the accused – Martin Rafferty – spoke of the drawn-out nature of proceedings, estimating authorities had dragged him to the court nine times for this matter with still no ruling. He went on to say:

We started doing this in Belfast, then it spread to Derry, then it spread to Strabane. Then it spread across the water, over to England, Scotland and Wales, and then it spread over to Europe. Now it’s throughout the world. They’re trying to make an example of us, they’re trying to intimidate people.

This was reiterated by Lowkey, who said:

What’s happening here is they’re trying to establish a precedent which will be used to beat others in different ways, and protect the flow of capital from the Zionist entity back and forth to places like this.

He went on to perform an a cappella version of his song Long Live Palestine before the crowd of around 50 supporters.

Also facing charges, Eoin Rua Davey pointed out how the “oppressive judicial system” trying the campaigners was a British court in a still occupied six counties, just as Palestine remains occupied by so-called Israel.

Yasmary Perdomo, also accused, read a poem. One section lamented the failure to act by so many:

The world does know
Some speak up, some are silent
Some people polish their ‘it’s complicated’ grin
Some turn away
Others that should know better, don’t do better.

The final ruling is now expected on 9 October. It will be another litmus test for the fading British justice system, following the proscription of Palestine Action. That the state views a sticker on a box as a more concerning form of criminal damage than that done to Gaza ought to raise further alarm about the priorities of Britain’s ruling class, and its increasingly authoritarian means of enforcing them.

Feature image via screengrab.