The announcememt earlier this month that the University of Otago intends to partner with the Palo Alto Networks (PANW) to offer a Masters in Digital Technology for the new Queenstown campus will be shocking to many in the wider community.
This is because Palo Alto has deep links to the Israeli government, which has been accused by international courts of committing genocidal acts in Gaza.
A partnership with a firm that is aiding such a state, and now waging war on its neighbours, would seem to be entirely at odds with the university’s mandated role as critic and conscience of society.
For those of us in the Staff for Palestine group, it is particularly disappointing that the university seems to be openly rejecting the guidelines set out by the Boycott Divest and Sanction (BDS) movement, an international campaign founded in 2005 by Palestinian civil society aimed at pressuring Israel to uphold the basic human rights of the Palestinian people under its control.
PANW is a big player in cyber-security. It is the largest publicly traded company on the Tel Aviv stock exchange and maintains a large R&D facility in Tel Aviv.
It is worth pausing to consider how PANW has become such a major player in this particular field. Its origin in Israel — a country that spends close to 10% of its GDP on military spending, one of the highest in the world — is not incidental to its success.
On the contrary, PANW and its subsidiaries pride themselves on being part of the Israeli military and intelligence establishment. As tech observers have noted, the Israeli military establishment is PANW’s ‘‘strategic core’’.
Technological companies are Israel’s key foreign currency earner and are vital in creating lasting security and economic ties with Western countries.
While the company’s HQ is in Santa Clara, California, PANW trades in the image of a battle-tested cyber defence firm with links to the notorious IDF unit 8200, or cyberwar division.
The founder and former chief technology officer of PANW is a veteran of this unit. Further, according to the Hind Rijab Foundation, PANW’s head of the identity security lab has been actively serving as a major in the Israeli airforce.
In fact, an analysis by the website Drop Site has identified a large number of 8200 veterans within PANW.
Recently, PANW embarked on a multibillion-dollar acquisition spree purchasing a dozen Israeli cyber defence startups whose ranks are made up of unit 8200 veterans. And last week, in the midst of Israel’s war with Iran, it secured a $250million contract to supply the Israeli government.
Given events in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, the timing of this proposed partnership could not be worse for Otago.
The International Court of Justice ruled in July last year that not only was the Israeli occupation illegal but that all states are under an obligation not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the situation created by Israel’s illegal presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.
As a public institution tasked with the education and development of people, the University of Otago has a responsibility to respect human rights in all aspects of its operations. As a corporate entity, it is required to take steps to identify and respond to the human rights impacts of its investments as well as ensure that its financial decisions demonstrate respect for international law.
Our partnership with PANW disregards these commitments, prioritising financial opportunity over our role as ‘‘critic and conscience’’.
These are dark times and there has never been a greater need to teach students about living and working ethically in the world. This partnership puts us squarely on the wrong side of history.
- Olivier Jutel, David Jenkins, Richard Jackson and Fairleigh Gilmour are members of Otago Staff for Palestine.
