Letter to CalPERS Board Members
Dear CalPERS Board Members:
This is a follow-up to the petition that the Israel Divestment Campaign (IDC) submitted to you in December 2011. Almost 5,500 California tax-payers, including members of PERS, appealed to you to follow the PERS’ policies regarding socially responsible investing and its commitment to the UN Principles of Responsible Investment.
The IDC has submitted to the PERS Board and staff compelling evidence of the complicity by five companies in the violation of the rights of the Palestinian people—all companies in which PERS is invested: Bank Hapoalim, Bank Leumi, Caterpillar, Elbit and Veolia.
I am pleased to learn that PERS is in conversation with IDC and is reviewing the documentation it submitted. I remain hopeful that PERS will honor its principles and its promises to California tax-payers and pension fund members to invest our money in a socially responsible manner.
It is time for PERS to take the first step in its "engagement" process by meeting with these companies to encourage them to stop their complicity in human rights abuses.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely yours,