Following reports published
by The Electronic Intifada on the use of Volvo equipment in the
demolition of Palestinian houses in 2007, the Volvo Group stated that
it did not condone the use of its equipment for such purposes. Claiming
to have no control over the use of its products, Volvo affirmed that its Code of Conduct decries unethical behavior.
In spite of these claims, The Electronic Intifada has found that
through its Volvo Buses branch, the Volvo Group is providing armored
buses to transport Israeli settlers in the Occupied Palestinian
Territories (OPT).
Volvo Buses is co-owner of Merkavim Ltd., an Israeli transport
technology company. Another shareholder in the company is Mayer's Cars
and Trucks, the exclusive Israeli representative of companies from the
Volvo Group. According to Merkavim's website, the company was chosen by
Volvo as "its major body builder in the Middle East." However, the Who
Profits from the Occupation? project recently reported that Merkavim
manufactures an armored version of Volvo's Mars Defender bus for the
Israeli public transport company Egged. Egged uses the Mars Defender to
provide bus services for illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Merkavim proudly announced on its website that the Mars Defender offers
protection and ultimate comfort when traveling through war zones or
routes susceptible to terrorist attacks. In a promotional video the
armored bus is shown driving along Israel's wall in the West Bank and
crossing checkpoints (http://www.merkavim.co.il/upload/defender.wmv,
accessed 6 October). In another video on Merkavim's homepage, Volvo's
Senior Vice-President of Business Region Europe, Lars Blom, declares
that "Three core values that are very important to us are quality,
environmental care and safety. ... [T]he products we are developing
with Merkavim also deliver these three core values plus reliability" (http://www.merkavim.co.il/movies_library/merkavim.wmv, accessed 7 October 2009)
According to Merkavim, in the video promoting the bus, the Mars
Defender "looks like any other modern bus," but it is "the world's most
armored bus." Indeed, the company calls it "the bus that saves lives!"
As the narrator explains that the bus is "designed to safeguard the
most precious cargo," the camera pans over Israeli soldiers lining up
to board the bus and on patrol with their machine guns at the ready.
The video explains that Israel has "adapted its world renowned
expertise in military and defense technologies to deal with" the
"growing threat" of "terrorists and hostile forces." It adds that
Merkavim "blends this state of the art know-how with its own expertise"
to produce the Mars Defender. Built on a Volvo chassis, the Mars
Defender's sides, front, roof and floor are shielded with steel armored
panels and it is fitted with bullet- and explosion-proof armored glass
windows as well as "run-flat" tires. According to the company, these
safety measures allow the bus to withstand "grenades, car bombs,
roadside charges and 7.62 caliber armor-piercing bullets." Merkavim
claims that these features are needed because "people trust this bus
with their lives."
The 2004 advisory opinion of the International Court of Justice on
Israel's wall in the West Bank confirmed that settlements violate
Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Article 49 explicitly
states that the Occupying Power is not allowed to deport or transfer
parts of its own civilian population into the territory it occupies.
Bus services with Volvo subsidiary's Mars Defender armored buses
facilitate the maintaining of illegal settlements in the OPT.
In its Code of Conduct, the Volvo Group commits itself to support and
respect the protection of human rights and to ensure that it is not
complicit in human rights abuses. However, by providing construction
and transportation equipment that facilitates Israel's occupation, the
company violates this Code of Conduct on a daily basis. With increasing
calls for boycott of and divestment from companies that support
Israel's occupation, Volvo Group can expect activists around the world
to put pressure on responsible investors to divest from the company and
to call on public bus companies not to buy Volvo buses.
Electronic Intifada