Walls

• Proposed by: Partido Verde Ecologista de Mexico (Mexico), Green Party United States (USA), Les Verts suisse/Die Gruenen (Switzerland), EELV-Les Verts France (France)
• Adopted at the 4th Global Greens Congress, Liverpool 2017

Preamble:

• The Social Justice Principle, stated in the Global Greens Charter, requires a new vision of citizenship built on equal rights for all individuals regardless of gender, race, age, religion, class, ethnic or national origin, sexual orientation, disability, wealth or health. 
• The Nonviolence Principle, stated in the Global Greens Charter, requires removing the causes of war by understanding and respecting other cultures, eradicating racism, promoting freedom and democracy, and ending global poverty. 
• Point 6.2 of political action on Human Rights, stated in the Global Greens Charter, calls the Greens to condemn all dictatorships and regimes which deny human rights, regardless of their political claims.

Operative Text:

The Global Greens condemn the construction of a wall between the USA and Mexico.

Global Greens also condemn all other existing walls that have become mind barriers, physical representations of racism, xenophobia and discrimination. Among them the Separation Wall in the Occupied West bank built by Israel to subjugate Palestinians as part of their apartheid policy; Hungary’s fence along its entire border with Serbia in order to block refugees fleeing the Syrian crisis; and Australia’s policies at sea intercepting refugees being sent to offshore detention centers in order to prevent asylum seekers from reaching Australian mainland. Global Greens also condemn the transnational firms, as Lafargue-Holcim, which make benefits and profits building these walls of shame.

Global Greens are especially concerned with Trump’s election and the rise of white supremacism, right-wing populism in the United States. Global Greens condemn President Trump’s travel bans as racist, Islamophobic and violating human rights and international law.

For decades and particularly during the Cold War, which divided Europe, Green Parties and movements have proposed an alternative to politics of fear and hate. We are a movement based upon empathy and solidarity for our fellow human beings and upon seeing humanity as an integral part of global ecology.

Humanity is facing many profound challenges. Literally billions of people are not meeting their basic human needs and human rights. Many of them are already considering green politics of solidarity as concrete options.

In 2016 in Austria, Green Alexander Van der Bellen was elected president in a two-way race against a far right, anti-immigrant candidate. On March 15, 2017 in The Netherlands, the Green Party Groen Links won a historic total of 14 seats in the Dutch Parliament, being a major player in the election campaign to prevent the outright victory of the far right antiimmigrant party there.

These successes demonstrate that it is possible to win battles against hate and fear, promoting the fall of all walls dividing humanity. 

Background:

• The USA foreign policy has undergone major changes since President Donald Trump took office on January 20th, 2017. 
• On January 25th, President Trump signed the Executive Order “Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements”, which includes the immediate construction of a physical wall on the border with Mexico. 
• Ever since the presidential campaign, Mr. Trump expressed his intention to make Mexico pay for the border wall, causing tensions that go beyond the two nations. 
• Other recent actions from President Trump include the temporary travel ban from seven Muslim-majority countries and the attempt to allow anti-LGBTQ discrimination based on religious belief. 
• These actions represent a clear violation of human rights and have been condemned by several world leaders. It’s time for the Greens to take a stand on this issue.