Statement on Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (“OPT”)

As an institutional investor, London CIV recognises its responsibility to respect human rights, as outlined in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises. Since 2021, we have identified human rights, labour rights, and their associated impacts as material risks and prioritised engagement on these issues, as detailed in our stewardship policy.

The escalation of the Israel-Hamas war in late 2023, rooted in long-standing geopolitical tensions and human rights concerns, underscored the complex and unpredictable nature of ESG investment risks. This event highlighted the limitations of relying solely on rational analysis for risk prediction and reinforced the need for dynamic risk management strategies. London CIV remains committed to portfolio diversification, continuous monitoring of human rights risks, and proactive engagement with investee companies to mitigate potential negative impacts.

Since 2021, we have reported our exposure to companies accused of contributing to human rights abuses in Palestine, based on the Human Rights Watch report1 A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution. We remain committed to engaging with investee companies flagged by United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner’s A/HRC/37/39 Report2, the WhoProfits database3, and the AFSC (Investigate) watchlist4.

In 2023, we updated this list and will continue to assess and report on our exposure to this issue on a quarterly basis for actively managed funds and at least annually for those deemed passive/pooled by LGIM and BlackRock. We remain committed to engaging with our investment managers, EOS at Federated Hermes, portfolio companies, and other stakeholders to manage and mitigate associated risks. We will assess the outcome of each engagement on a case-by-case basis, using escalation measures if required.

This ongoing engagement work is part of our broader active ownership strategy, where we assess global human rights issues to identify the exposure of our funds to such risks and inform our priority engagements. Other key engagements on human rights violations include engaging with companies accused of the following activities: benefiting from the forced labour of Uyghurs5, supplying arms used to commit war crimes in Yemen6 or maintaining business relationships with military-affiliated Mytel and Viettel in Myanmar7.

We will continue to monitor all relevant lists and emerging issues to identify where funds might become complicit in any violations of human rights or international law anywhere in the world, accordingly taking appropriate action.

1 A Threshold Crossed: Israeli Authorities and the Crimes of Apartheid and Persecution, 27th April 2021. Last Accessed 15th August 2024.

2 United Nations Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner’s A/HRC/37/39 Report, 30th June 2023, UN OHCHR. Last Accessed 15th August 2024.

3 Who Profits - The Israeli Occupation Industry. Last Accessed 15th August 2024.

4 Palestine | AFSC Investigate. Last Accessed 15th August 2024.

5 Uyghurs for sale: ‘Re-education’, forced labour and surveillance beyond Xinjiang, March 2020, Australian Strategic Policy Institute. Last Accessed 15th August 2024.

6 G20 arms exports to Saudi Arabia worth three times aid to Yemen since 2015, 17th November 2020, Oxfam.

7 Nodes of Corruption, Lines of Abuse How Mytel, Viettel and a global network of businesses support the international crimes of the Myanmar military, 20th December 2020, Justice for Myanmar. Last Accessed 15th August 2024.