Palestine can seem bleak, not just on a humanitarian level but politically too. However, breakthroughs by the solidarity movement are possible. The TUC's recent pro-boycott resolution was a significant development. Now we have the welcome news that the government is issuing fresh guidance, aimed at supermarkets, on the labelling of Israeli produce. This makes it far more likely that produce from illegal Israeli settlements will be easily identifiable. In effect it discourages supermarket chains from stocking such goods in the first place.
It's also a reminder that progress is possible - for those of us campaigning in solidarity with Palestinians - and that campaigns can win positive changes. Government and supermarkets alike have been subjected to sustained lobbying and protests by opponents of Israeli settlements and the occupation of Palestinian land. The next step is to demand the banning of imports of settlement produce altogether. As the Palestine Solidarity Campaign comments: 'It is unacceptable that goods grown on stolen Palestinian land can then be sold openly in supermarkets across Britain'.
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