Take action: write letter HERE
The CDPQ December 31, 2021, year-end reports show investments in 10 companies with $3B fair-market value on the UN Data base as complicit with war crimes, along with about $10 B in other companies complicit with Israeli war crimes, and majority ownership in Allied Universal which purchased G4S.
Investments of over $3 billion in companies identified by the UN as complicit is war crimes
| Company | # of shares | $ Amount (in millions) | |
| Bank Hapoalim B.M. (E,F) | 317990.00 | 4.10 | Hapoalim Bank – whoprofits |
| Bank Leumi Le-Israel B.M. (E,F) | 26,495 | 0.40 | Leumi Bank – whoprofits |
| Booking Holdings Inc (E ) | 51,975 | 157.50 | Booking.com – whoprofits |
| General Mills (G) | 37,500 | 4.50 | General Mills (Pillsbury) |
| Israel Discount Bank (E,F) | 299,850 | 2.50 | Discount Bank – whoprofits |
| Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd.(E,F) | 3,103 | 0.20 | Mizrahi Tefahot Bank – whoprofits |
| Motorola Solutions (B) | 6,100 | 2.10 | Motorola Solutions – whoprofits |
| Re/Max ( E) | 232,738 | 9.00 | REMAX Israel (Impact Property Developers) – whoprofits |
| YES Bank Ltd. ( E) | 1,948,603 | 0.50 | |
| Alstom SA (E,F) | 65,367,765 | 2,931.50 | Alstom – whoprofits |
Total Value: $3,108. M or $3.1 B
There are 10 companies compared to 12 in 2020, but value has increased to $3 billion from approximately $1 billion** (see below for 2020-year end)
The United Nations (UN) Database of companies complicit with human rights violations
The UN Database was released on February 12, 2020 in the Report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (A/HRC/43/71) after the independent international fact-finding mission to investigate the implications of the Israeli settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Palestinian people throughout the oPt, including East Jerusalem. There are a total of 112 companies included on the UN list. Based on CDPQ 2020 Annual Report of equity holding, the CDQP is invested in at least a dozen companies that are listed in the United Nations database.
UN Security Council resolution 2334 (2016) reaffirmed that settlements have no legal validity and constitute a flagrant violation under international law.
Violations by Code (codes are by each company)
In resolution 31/36, the Council defined the database by reference to the listed activities compiled by the fact-finding mission in its report, which were:
A The supply of equipment and materials facilitating the construction and the expansion of settlements and the wall, and associated infrastructures;
B The supply of surveillance and identification equipment for settlements, the wall and checkpoints directly linked with settlements;
C The supply of equipment for the demolition of housing and property, the destruction of agricultural farms, greenhouses, olive groves and crops;
D The supply of security services, equipment and materials to enterprises operating in settlements;
E The provision of services and utilities supporting the maintenance and existence of settlements, including transport;
F Banking and financial operations helping to develop, expand or maintain settlements and their activities, including loans for housing and the development of businesses;
G The use of natural resources, in particular water and land, for business purposes;
H Pollution, and the dumping of waste in or its transfer to Palestinian villages;
I Captivity of the Palestinian financial and economic markets, as well as practices that disadvantage Palestinian enterprises, including through restrictions on movement, administrative and legal constraints;
J Use of benefits and reinvestments of enterprises owned totally or partially by settlers for developing, expanding and maintaining the settlements.
Alarming! CDPQ is reported to own 80% of Allied Universal
CDPQ reports holding over $1.5 billion* in Allied Universal Holdco LLC but does not report the actual amount.
Also, CDPQ holds between $10-30 million*, Allied Universal Manager LLC but does not give actual figure.
*INVESTMENTS IN SHARES, BONDS AND CORPORATE RECEIVABLES ISSUED IN PRIVATE MARKETS
In April 2021, Allied Universal, a leading security and facility services company in North America, announced the acquisition of G4S.
G4S held 50% of Policity Ltd., a company contracted to build & run the Israel’s National Police Academy, as well as provide training.
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (“CDPQ”) in February 2019 announced a huge investment in Allied Universal (the “Company”) noting that this is the leading security services provider in North America, and indicated the transactions values Allied Universal at more than US$7 billion.
This meant Allied Universal is controlled by Québec’s CDPQ, alongside U.S. private equity firm Warburg Pincus.
According to AFSC Investigate
Until 2017, G4S was deeply involved in several projects of the Israeli occupation of Palestine through its Israeli subsidiary G4S Israel (formerly Hashmira). In 2016, following an international campaign, G4S plc divested G4S Israel, which was renamed G1 Secure Solutions. G4S plc still retains a 25 percent stake in the Israeli National Police Academy.
G4S is involved in the operations of the Israeli National Police Academy, which consolidated all of Israel’s police training facilities and trains all units of the Israeli Police, as well as other security forces and private security companies. The Israeli Police is in charge of enforcing Israel’s military law in the occupied West Bank and providing security for Israel’s illegal West Bank settlements. In addition, the Border Police branch is regularly deployed in the occupied Palestinian territories, where it is under military command.
The National Police Academy is owned and operated by Policity, a consortium of companies that was created for the purpose of this project. Policity is owned by Israeli infrastructure company Shikun & Binui (50 percent), Israeli security company G1 Secure Solutions (25 percent), and G4S (25 percent). Policity formed in 2010 as a joint venture between G4S and Shikun & Binui for the purpose of bidding on the National Police Academy. The facility opened in 2015, with G4S and Shikun & Binui each owning a 50 percent stake. In 2017, after G4S sold its Israeli subsidiary (see below), its stake in Policity was reduced to 25 percent. Policity has the contract to operate the Academy at least until 2035.
Security Info Watch indicated Allied Universal is 80% owned by Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Valued at $8.5 B in 2020, if CDPQ owns 80% the value would seem to be around perhaps $7B.
Beyond this, CDQP is invested in an additional over $10 billion in Israeli war crimes
The AFSC Investigate report indicates the following companies, beyond those listed in the UN Database are complicit with Israeli war crimes associated with occupation.
| Company | # of shares | $ amount (in millions) |
| 3M Co | 495,273.00 | 111.10 |
| 3M India | 11,721.00 | 5.10 |
| ABB India Ltd. | 4,802.00 | 0.20 |
| ABB Ltd. | 1,488,548.00 | 72.00 |
| ACS Actividades | 162,733.00 | 5.50 |
| Alphabet Inc. | 3,845,390.00 | 5.90 |
| Alstrom SA | 65,367,765.00 | 2,931.50 |
| Atlas Copco | 2,711,509.00 | 236.70 |
| BAE Systems | 3,010,237.00 | 28.30 |
| The Boeing Company | 75,786.00 | 19.30 |
| Bombardier | 5,774,400.00 | 10.00 |
| CNH Industrial | 2,395,307.00 | 58.70 |
| Canon | 874,178.00 | 26.90 |
| Caterpillar Inc | 33,200.00 | 8.70 |
| Cemex | 18,682,957.00 | 16.10 |
| Cisco Systems Inc | 6,806,439.00 | 544.80 |
| Doosan Bobcat Inc | 120,256.00 | 5.20 |
| Doosan Co Ltd | 5,960.00 | 0.70 |
| Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction Co Ltd | 300,104.00 | 6.50 |
| Hyundai Doosan Infracore Co Ltd | 40 447 | 0.03 |
| Exxon Mobil | 661,684.00 | 51.10 |
| Ford Motor | 2,595,223.00 | 68.10 |
| Ford Credit Canada Co | 303.00 | |
| Fosun International Ltd | 622,336.00 | 0.80 |
| General Dynamics Corp | 935,569.00 | 246.40 |
| General Electric Co | 37,500.00 | 4.50 |
| General Motors | 4,964,909.00 | 367.70 |
| General Motors Financial of Canada Ltd | 83.40 | |
| HeidelbergCement AG | 94,000.00 | 8.00 |
| HeidelbergCement India | 2,745,405.00 | 10.60 |
| Hewlett Packard | 2,106,951.00 | 42.00 |
| Hitachi Construction Machinery Co Ltd | 66,385.00 | 2.40 |
| Hitachi Ltd | 938,525.00 | 64.10 |
| Hyundai Department Store Co Ltd. | 5,931.00 | 0.50 |
| Hyundai Engineering & Construction Co Ltd. | 137,277.00 | 6.50 |
| Hyundai Glovis Co Ltd. | 45,825.00 | 8.20 |
| Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co Ltd. | 3,499.00 | 0.40 |
| Hyundai Heavy Industries Holdings Co Ltd. | 136,206.00 | 7.80 |
| Hyundai Marine & Fire Insurance Co Ltd. | 46,174.00 | 1.10 |
| Hyundai Mipo Dockyard Co Ltd. | 1,075.00 | 0.10 |
| Hyndai Mobis Co Ltd. | 205,398.00 | 55.50 |
| Hyundai Motor Co | 331,375.00 | 73.60 |
| Hyundai Steel Co | 226,585.00 | 9.90 |
| Hyundai Wia Corp | 11,083.00 | 0.90 |
| HDC Hyundai Development Co-Engineering & Construction | 8,651.00 | 0.20 |
| IBM: International Business Machines Corp | 427,864.00 | 72.70 |
| Indorama Ventures PCL | 2,096,042.00 | 3.40 |
| JA Solar Technology Co Ltd. | 19,800.00 | 0.40 |
| Lockheed Martin Corp | 256,906.00 | 115.30 |
| Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corp | 494,501.00 | 4.60 |
| Mitsubishi Corp | 331,708.00 | 13.30 |
| Mitsubishi Electric Corp | 106,922.00 | 1.70 |
| Mitsubishi Estate Co Ltd. | 9,647,042.00 | 168.70 |
| Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co Inc. | 66,180.00 | 1.40 |
| Mitsubishi HC Capital Inc. | 1,002,653.00 | 6.30 |
| Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. | 106,672.00 | 3.10 |
| Mitsubishi Materials Corp. | 117,100.00 | 2.50 |
| Mitsubishi Motors Corp | 3,421,300.00 | 12.00 |
| Mitsubishi UF J Financial Group Inc | 1,492,710.00 | 10.20 |
| Northrop Grumman | 18,700.00 | 9.10 |
| Orbia Advance Corp SAB | 8,681,285.00 | 28.00 |
| Palantir Technologies | 152,200.00 | 3.50 |
| PayPal | 362,763.00 | 86.40 |
| Raytheon Technologies Corp | 90,000.00 | 9.80 |
| Siemens AG | 107,000.00 | 23.50 |
| Siemens Healthieers AG | 124,985.00 | 11.80 |
| Siemens Ltd | 30,257.00 | 1.20 |
| SolarEdge Technologies Inc | 1,958.00 | 0.70 |
| Tempur Sealy International Inc. | 204,544.00 | 12.20 |
| Teva Pharmaceutical Industries | 715,811.00 | 7.20 |
| Toyota Motor Corp | 15,437,140.00 | 356.50 |
| Toyota Tsusho Corp | 50,758.00 | 3.00 |
| Toyota Industries Corp. | 126,864.00 | 6.80 |
| Volvo AB | 37,108.00 | 1.10 |
| WSP Global | 21,191,798.00 | 3,891.40 |
| TOTAL | $ 10,378.03 |
BOLD: ongoing campaigns in Canada
See details of these companies at
Campaigns through the Canadian BDS Coalition related to these companies include
HP: https://bdscoalition.ca/2019/09/09/hp-free-zone/
Palantir: https://bdscoalition.ca/2021/11/01/rbcsayno2palantir/
Paypal: https://bdscoalition.ca/2016/11/03/palestinians-want-access-to-paypal/
Teva: https://bdscoalition.ca/2019/07/28/boycott-teva-apartheid-is-bad-medicine/
WSP: https://www.justpeaceadvocates.ca/1768-2/
December 31, 2020 Holding by CDPQ in Israeli war crimes
CDPQ 2020 investments in companies listed by the UN as complicit with Israeli war crimes include:
| Company & codes violated | # of shares (if available) | $$ Amount or Range | Country |
| Airbnb Inc. E | $500 M to $1 B | United States | |
| Bank Hapoalim BM E, F | 190,051 | 1.7M (FV) | Israel |
| Bank Leumi Le-Israel BM E,F | 251,904 | 1.9M (FV) | Israel |
| Booking Holdings Inc E | 12,896 | 36.6M (FV) | Netherlands |
| Expedia Group Inc. E | 4,197 | 0.7M (FV) | United States |
| Israel Discount Bank Ltd E,F | 169,627 | 0.8M (FV) | Israel |
| Mizrahi Tefahot Bank Ltd E,F | 24,757 | 0.7M (FV) | Israel |
| Motorola Solutions Inc B | 135,361 | 29.3M (FV) | United States |
| Alstom SA E,G | 213,389 | 15.5M (FV) | France |
| Altice Europe NV E | 698,760 | 5.8M (FV) | Netherlands |
| General Mills Inc. G | 207,666 | 15.6M (FV) | United States |
| Indorama Ventures PCL G | 2,557,980 | 4.0M (FV) | Thailand |
12 companies on UN list
**Worth at least $612.6 M but perhaps over 1.0 B given that not specific number for Air BNB
*the links are from Who Profits where available, or if not, AFSC Investigate
Canadian Investment complicit with War Crimes
| WSP Global | 20,956,623.00 shares | $2,527.2M (FV) | Canada |
WSP Global, is a Canadian management and consulting firm that specializes in engineering projects. WSP according to Who Profits, is involved in the planning of the Israel railway system that crosses into the occupied West Bank and constitutes settlement infrastructure. With over $2.5 B of investment in WSP Global, CDPQ is very heavily invested in this Canadian firm. A firm involved in illegal settlement activities.
WSP | Parsons Brinckerhoff (Formerly Parsons Brinckerhoff International Inc.) – whoprofits
Canadian Complicity in Jerusalem Light Rail
CDPQ needs to follow global leaders
We remind the CDPQ of the large divestments from public pensions in New Zealand and Norway in 2021.
Norway’s $1.3 trillion sovereign wealth fund excluded Shapir Engineering and Industry Ltd and Mivne Real Estate KD Ltd. for their activities associated with Israeli settlements on the West Bank. The companies were excluded based on advice from the Council on Ethics “due to unacceptable risk that the companies contribute to systematic violations of individuals’ rights in situations or war or conflict,” the fund said in a statement.
We ask has the CDPQ conducted similar analysis of investments of their portfolios?
In this regard CDPQ needs also to divest from other firms complicit in Israeli war crimes:
- Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. Teva is the world’s largest generic drug manufacturer, and both companies are part of an oligopoly of companies who benefit from selling to the Palestinian captive market as verified by Who Profits, an Israeli research center.
- Elbit is Israel’s largest weapon company. Makes killer drones, large weapon systems, and ammunition used against civilians. Monitors walls and borders in Palestine. Recently, Canada has entered a contract with Elbit for $35 M of armed surveillance drones, which over 70+ organizations and thousands of people have demanded Canada cancel.
- HP Provides equipment to the discriminatory Israeli population registry and prison system.
| Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd | 565,384 | $7.0M (FV) | Israel |
| Elbit Systems Ltd | 6,531 shares | $1.1M (FMV) | Israel |
| HP Inc | 1,458,643 shares | $45.7 (FMV) | USA |
Alarming!
| CDPQ holds Allied Universal Holdco LLC | Worth over | $1.5B | United States |
Background regarding CDPQ/Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec
Total portfolio Dec. 31, 2020: $365.5 B
Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec is an institutional investor that manages several public and parapublic pension plans and insurance programs in Quebec. CDPQ was founded in 1965 by an act of the National Assembly.
CDPQ at a Glance
Read more:
https://www.cdpq.com/en/about-us/governance/law
https://www.cdpq.com/fr/a-propos/gouvernance/loi
https://www.cdpq.com/en/about-us/snapshot
https://www.cdpq.com/fr/a-propos/coup-oeil
CDQP Governance and Responsibility
CDPQ indicates their “Calling for responsible governance practices” and their priority areas: • Use ESG analyses across our investment activities • Anticipate cybersecurity issues • Counter abusive use of tax planning.
https://www.cdpq.com/en/approach/stewardship-investing
https://www.cdpq.com/fr/approche/investissement-durable
The CDPQ indicates it “Foster equity, diversity and inclusion at all levels.”
https://www.cdpq.com/fr/approche/investissement-durable/diversite
https://www.cdpq.com/en/approach/stewardship-investing/diversity
CDPQ commits to: Effective risk management is crucial to our investment activities and an integral part of our portfolio management and business processes. CDPQ says that over the years, they have developed rigorous processes, strong and sustained governance, and effective measurement tools.
https://www.cdpq.com/en/investments/risk-management
https://www.cdpq.com/en/investments/risk-management
In “Bad” company with the Canadian Public Pension Investment Board (CPPIB)
On March 8, 2021, over 70 organizations along with dozens of individuals contacted the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board about its investment in funds related to Israeli occupation of Palestine and the Syrian Golan Heights.
See statement in English and French
The 2021 CPPIB Annual Report indicated increased investments in Israeli war crimes with at least 10 companies identified by the UN as complicit in war crimes.
While the CPPIB indicated it was initiating a review in March 2021, no response has been received to the thousands of letters over 2021.
During 2021 over 5,000 letters were sent to the CPPIB and the Minister of Finance.
March 31, 2022 reports indicate CPPIB Invests at least 7 percent of our public pension in Israeli war crimes
CPPIB Invests at least 7 percent of our public pension in Israeli war crimes
Read more
.
Demands of QDPQ
1.Divest immediately from:
-United Nations (UN) identified companies held by CPPIB, and ensure that no investments in the future include these UN identified companies
-WSP which has been submitted by NGOs for consideration for the UN data base.
-Allied Universal
-all companies listed in the AFSC Investigate list
- Review all portfolios for any other investments that are in violation of international law.
3. Put in place a transparent process to ensure that companies are vetted for violations of human rights and international law.
The concerns that we raise are also in the broader context of ethical investment related to Quebec’s public fund investment including in mining, fossil fuels, private health care, and other issues of justice and humanitarian concern.
We ask the CDPQ to take all steps necessary to ensure that the activities of all companies included in all of its portfolio are in compliance with international law governing war crimes. We remind CDPQ that in Canada, parties that are complicit in war crimes are liable to criminal prosecution under the Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act,[1] including corporations.[2]
[1] S.C. 2000, c. 24.[2] R.S.C., 1985, c. C-46, ss. 22.1-22.2.
Note: information about the mentioned companies, have been verified by Who Profits, an independent Israeli research organization and/or the American Friends Service Committee “Investigate” as per links provided with each of companies listed.
You can review the details associated with each of these companies listed on the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights report.
