By Hanna Kawas

The Boycott Israeli Wines campaign in Vancouver, Canada held another flash action and picket on Dec. 17, despite the unusually cold temperatures in the city. The activists initially went into the government liquor store, and showed real “holiday spirit” with their chants and singing.

The manager of the store was made aware that the 3 brands of Israeli wines that are stocked there are all from stolen Arab and Palestinian land, thus rendering the BC Government complicit in human rights violations.

One brand in particular, the Teperberg Vision Malbec, even openly brags on its website that the vineyard that contributes grapes for this wine is in the illegal Israeli settlement of Mevo Horon.

This settler enclave is in the Latrun area of the occupied Palestinian West Bank and is also close to the infamous “Canada Park” built by the Jewish National Fund with Canadian tax-deductible monies.

The picket then moved outside of the store, where leaflets were handed out to many passersby. Palestinian flags flew high as more chants and singing happened on the busy street corner in one of Vancouver’s densest shopping areas.

Activists succeeded in getting their message out, both inside and outside the store, and their chant of Boycott Israeli Wine, Free Free Palestine was heard loud and clear!

Background information on this campaign can be found in this Palestine Chronicle article.

– Hanna Kawas is Chairperson of the Canada Palestine Association and co-host of Voice of Palestine. He contributed this article to PalestineChronicle.com. Visit: http://www.cpavancouver.org.