Director,

All Sports Ltd (Victory Group),

37 Labourdonnais Street,

Port Louis,

Mauritius.

18 January, 2023.

Dear Sir,

In September 2022 we sent you a letter in which we exposed the involvement of sportswear manufacturer “Puma”, whose products you merchandise, in Israeli settlements or colonies in Palestine. This is in violation of international law and an ongoing infringement of human rights. Puma is in fact the main sponsor of the Israeli Football Association (IFA). The IFA includes teams that are based in illegal Israeli settlements. At least six Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territory have clubs affiliated to the IFA. In our letter we wrote to you, dated 9 September 2022, we called on you to consider de-shelving Puma products from your shop for as long as this unethical sponsorship continues.

The Israel’s military occupation of Palestinian land means the expulsion of Palestinian families, including children and the aged, from their homes so as to give way for these illegal settlements. For the information of your company’s directors, Israeli settlements are considered war crimes under international law.

More than 200 Palestinian sports clubs have called on Puma to end the sponsorship deal, and to thus stop supporting Israel’s illegal land-grabs. Our organisation forms part of the BDS (Boycott, Disinvestment, Sanctions) movement, which is leading this campaign against Puma as well as against other companies involved in business activities within illegal Israeli settlements.

This campaign is gaining momentum internationally. In July 2018, for example, Adidas, a competitor of Puma, announced that it was no longer sponsoring the IFA following an international campaign and the delivery of over 16,000 signatures to Adidas headquarters. In May 2022, Nike, yet another direct competitor, in turn, announced it would stop selling its products to stores across Israel. So, Puma directors are becoming isolated. Puma merchandizers will also become isolated as the boycott gains momentum.

The United Nations has declared the year 2022 the deadliest year for Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since 2006. This is due to the increased use of force by Israel military and more recurrent attacks against Palestinians by Israeli settlers. Meanwhile, in Israel the political arena is further shifting to the far right after the recent elections. Israeli forces, in fact, killed at least 170 Palestinians in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem in the year 2022, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. The figure includes more than 30 children killed. At least 9,000 other Palestinian people have been injured. In March 2022, Israel launched a military campaign called “Break the Wave”, which included near-daily raids, mass arrests and killings in the West Bank, with a focus on Jenin and Nablus. In May of the year 2022, the world also witnessed the assassination of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh. This killing of a Palestinian-American journalist took place while she was covering a military raid on the Jenin refugee camp. Amid growing international protests the Israel Military (the IDF) finally admitted that one of its soldiers had probably shot her. In August 2022, the Gaza strip was again bombarded by Israeli warplanes, killing more 49 Palestinians, including 17 children, all of whom, as you know, are literally imprisoned in the Gaza strip.

We in SOMALP (Mauritians in Solidarity with the People of Palestine: No to Israeli Apartheid) through this letter, are reiterating our call to you to put a halt to trading Puma products. We are at the same time joining our voice in support of the International Day of Action against Puma (21 January) initiated by the BDS movement demanding Puma to end its support for illegal Israeli settlements on stolen Palestinian land.

We should do everything to isolate Apartheid Israel.

Yours sincerely,

cc Kuasa Ltd, legal representative PUMA in Mauritius, the Press.

BDS (Palestine)

Alain Ah Vee

for SOMALP which regroups: Confederation of General Trade Unions,  Mauritius Labour Congress, Confédération des Travailleurs des Secteurs Public et Privé, All Workers’ Federation,  Federation of Parastatal Bodies and Other Union, Dr. Idrice Goomany Treatment Centre,  Consumer Advocacy Platform, Chagos Refugees Group, Muvman Liberasyon Fam, LALIT and individual members, like former President of the Republic Cassam Uteem and former Attorney General Jean-Claude Bibi.