Most people would not be aware that two Israeli companies are the main suppliers of irrigation systems in Australia. They are potential targets for Palestine justice activists keen on expanding the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) campaign into rural areas.
Along with the water business, FIMI/Rivulis and Netafim are deeply involved in the ongoing military oppression of Palestinians. Both companies provide military, surveillance and prison equipment to the Israeli government.
FIMI (First Israel Mezzanine Investors), which听describes itself as a leader in 鈥渕icro irrigation鈥, also owns听Israeli defence firms.
Netafim is complicit in displacing Palestinians by assisting Israeli farmers to establish and run their agricultural businesses.听
FIMI/Rivulis
According to its听听FIMI is 鈥渢he leading private equity firm in Israel with more than US$2 billion in assets鈥.
In 2014, FIMI听bought John Deere Water and renamed it听. While headquartered in Israel, its head office is in Queensland.
听stated that听in 2018 FIMI bought the听US-based听Aitech Rugged听Group, which听designs computing systems for military air and ground systems as well as providing 鈥渞adiation-hardened solutions for the military and commercial space markets鈥.
Aitech vice president Doug Patterson boasted at the time that 鈥淔IMI management really understands the aerospace and defence and space markets鈥.
FIMI owns Israeli defence firms Gilat Satellite Systems and Magal Security Systems, among others, and acquired a controlling share (55%) in Israeli Orbit Technologies in late 2017.
骋颈濒补迟鈥檚听听states that it provides 鈥淢ission-Critical Communications-on-the-Move听for the Front Line鈥. These 鈥渜uick-to-deploy Satellite on-the-move solutions鈥 can, apparently, be 鈥渄eployed on vehicles, as well as portable lightweight solutions that can be carried in a backpack鈥.
Its 鈥淰ery Small Aperture Terminal systems that ensure seamless connectivity for both on-the-move and on-the-pause missions鈥 are ideal technology and equipment for the Israeli Defence Force in its ongoing oppression of Palestinians in Gaza.
惭补驳补濒鈥檚听听states it was established in 1965 as a branch of the Israeli Aerospace Industry, initially focused on developing 鈥渋ndicative fences for security鈥. It was privatised in 1993.
翱谤产颈迟鈥檚听听states that it 鈥渄evelops, manufactures and supplies a wide range of superior performance communications equipment and solutions to serve airborne, maritime and ground applications鈥.
Orbit Communications Systems manufactures precision tracking-based communications for air, sea and land. This is the sort of equipment and technology deployed in Gaza and the West Bank to keep Palestinians under constant surveillance.
FIMI鈥檚 ownership of Magal, Gilat and Orbit Communication Systems makes this seemingly benign owner of the agricultural firm Rivulis complicit in the Israeli government鈥檚 policing and subjugation of Palestinians.
Netafim
Netafim Australia started business in 1993. Its Australian headquarters is in Victoria, while its Israeli HQ is in听Tel Aviv.听It is the world鈥檚听largest provider of drip irrigation services, with a more than听30% share of the global drip irrigation market.
According to its听, 鈥渨e鈥檙e farmers first and innovators second 鈥 We started in 1965, in the Negev desert in Israel, trying to grow crops in desert soil 鈥 We know what it鈥檚 like to farm in local and extreme conditions鈥︹
This means that the business was started on land illegally taken from Palestinians and, after developing enhanced irrigation techniques, Netafim promoted their products to Israeli farmers on illegally occupied Palestinian land, and then to the world.
It boasts: 鈥淭o date, we鈥檝e irrigated over ten million hectares of land, and produced over 150 billion drippers 鈥 for more than two million ambitious farmers.鈥
The question is how many of the 2 million 鈥渁mbitious farmers鈥 were, or could have been,听Palestinian?
Netafim currently has 20听dealers for its irrigation products in听Adelaide alone. It is one of the largest suppliers of irrigation equipment in Australia, according to a source within the National Party.
The听 notes that听Netafim is jointly owned by three Kibbutzim (Hatzerim, Magal and Yiftak), the Markstone Investment Fund and the Tene Private Equity Fund.
In 2009, the company鈥檚 annual sales totalled $504 million.
In 2017, Netafim was purchased by听Mexican piping and chemicals company Mexichem SAB in a cash deal valuing the firm at $1.9 billion.听But its headquarters and management remain in Tel Aviv.
The听 campaign, which organised the recent campaign calling on SBS to not broadcast the Tel Aviv 2019 Eurovision Contest, is campaigning for a boycott of HP, which听manages the Israeli government鈥檚 population registry and ID systems.
They have also concentrated efforts on Israeli-owned purveyors of fashion items.
We should also seek to raise public awareness of the activities of FIMI/Rivulis, in particular, with its connections to the Israeli military and prisons.
[Mark Govier is a member of Australian Friends of Palestine Association.]