Source: Palestine Solidarity Network Aotearoa
9 September 2026
PSNA says the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is derelict in its duties if it can’t identify and ban products from illegal Israeli settlements on the Occupied West Bank.
This follows announcements by the UK, France and Canada that they would ban imports of products which originated from the settlements.
MFAT is reported to have stated a ban ‘would be complex and require a full policy process’ and so New Zealand couldn’t do it, at least until after the elections.
PSNA spokesperson Rinad Tamimi says Palestinian support groups had been urging the government to identify imports from the Occupied Palestinian Territory for more than 20 years, on the basis that settlement goods were falsely labelled as ‘Product of Israel.’
“Then in July 2024, the International Court of Justice ruled that UN members must ‘distinguish, in their relevant dealings, between the territory of the State of Israel and the territories occupied since 1967’, as means of ending the occupation.”
“That’s plenty of time for MFAT to work out how to deliver a trade ban.”
Tamimi says there is ample precedent for import bans.
“The sanctions New Zealand imposes on Russia include oil, gas, coal and gold. Other Russian imports are prohibitively tariffed.”
“There were comprehensive import bans on apartheid South Africa.”
“So statements, like those made by ACT Leader David Seymour, that New Zealand is ‘a trading nation – we don’t generally use trade bans to make political points’, is quite untrue.”
Tamimi says the MFAT was also falsely claiming that New Zealand was sending a clear signal to Israel that New Zealand condemned settler violence, and the Israeli government must control it, and it must not expand settlements.
“The government has banned a small bunch of rabid settlers from entering New Zealand, along with two ministers.”
“But it also sent a clear message at the same time, in June last year, by stating that that it was just two ministers, and the ban was specifically not ‘designed to sanction the wider Israeli government’.”
“Yes, the message is clear to Israel – the New Zealand criticism is meaningless hot air.”