Swiss chain won’t label settlement goods as Israeli

 

Switzerland’s largest retailer says the decision is in the interests of transparency

Switzerland’s largest retail chain announced Tuesday it would join a growing list of countries and sellers refusing to mark goods produced in the West Bank as “Made in Israel.”

 

A Migros location in Zurich. (photo credit: CC-BY lejoe, Flickr)

A Migros location in Zurich. – Photo: CC-BY lejoe, Flickr

The moves comes just weeks after South Africa and Denmark said they would stop labeling products made in the settlements as Israeli.

Migros said the decision is in the interests of greater transparency, and is designed to help the customers to make an informed choice. Spokeswoman Monika Weibel said Tuesday that Migros doesn’t support boycott calls by pro-Palestinian groups but does want to let customers decide which products they want to buy.

The Swiss government and the United Nations consider the settlements to be illegal under international law. The Swiss government has released a statement saying “The colonization of the occupied Palestinian territory, both in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, is illegal and constitutes a violation of international law.”

 

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