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Methodist Church launches consultation on Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions

The Methodist Church has launched a major consultation on thearguments for and against the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions(BDS) movement. The consultation, arising from a request by theannual Methodist Conference, is seeking responses from anyinterested individuals or organisations, in writing or through anonline form.

BDS is a movement that calls on individuals and organisations toboycott all goods and services from Israel, to divest and to imposesanctions on Israel. While the Methodist Church does not supportthe BDS movement, it supports a boycott of goods and servicesproduced by Israeli settlements in the occupied territories.

The Methodist Conference requested a briefing on the Boycott,Divestment and Sanctions movement at its meeting last summer. Thefinal report will go to the Methodist Council, which will thenbring a report to the 2014 meeting of Methodist Conference - the governing body of the Church. 

Doug Swanney, Connexional Secretary of the Methodist Church, said:"This is an area where many people hold widely differing beliefs.We want to hear the full range of arguments for and against BDS sothat we may better understand not just what people believe, butwhy."

More information, including background notes, a printable versionof the questions and the online survey, can be found here.