On Jan. 18, ADC President Ziad Asali sent a letter to Glen A. Barton, Chair and CEO of Caterpillar Inc., calling on the heavy equipment manufacturer to respond to reports that Caterpillar bulldozers and other equipment are being used in the demolition of Palestinian homes by Israeli occupation forces. ADC has since received further evidence of the use of Caterpillar equipment in home demolitions, but has received no reply from Caterpillar.

Clearly it is time for Caterpillar to hear from all those opposed to Israel's cruel, inhumane and illegal policy of home demolitions. Please contact Mr. Barton at: <Barton_Glenn_A@cat.com> and Caterpillar's Director of Corporate Public Affairs Marsha Hausser at: <Hausser_Marsha_M@cat.com>

You can also write to:
Office of the Chairman Caterpillar, Inc.
100 N.E. Adams St.
Peoria, IL 61629-7240.

Please feel free to use the sample letter below as a model, but keep in mind that original letters tend to carry much more weight than standard texts.

SAMPLE LETTER:

Dear Mr. Barton:

The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee has received reports that Caterpillar bulldozers and other equipment are being used in the demolition of Palestinian homes by Israeli occupation forces in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. I would ask you three questions: 1) Is the Israeli government using Caterpillar products in the perpetration of massive human rights abuses and possible war crimes against the Palestinian people? 2) What is Caterpillar's position regarding the use of its products in the furtherance of illegal acts against defenseless civilians? 3) If Israel is using Caterpillar products for such immoral and illegal purposes, will Caterpillar continue to allow them to be sold to the Israeli government?

Over the decades of occupation, thousands of Palestinian homes have been demolished by Israeli forces, and Israel is now using such demolitions as element of warfare and a tool of collective punishment. In the most serious of these recent incidents, on Thursday, Jan. 10, Israeli forces demolished over 60 homes in the Rafah refugee camp leaving more than 600 Palestinians homeless. In addition, on Monday, Jan. 14, at least 9 homes were demolished in occupied East Jerusalem.

Such actions are a clear breach of the Fourth Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, which countless UN Security Council resolutions, most recently Resolution 1322 passed on Oct. 7, 2000, affirm Israel is bound to observe as the "Occupying Power" in East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Article 33 prohibits collective punishments, which the home demolitions in Gaza on Jan. 10 clearly were. Article 53 holds that "Any destruction by the Occupying Power of real or personal property belonging individually or collectively to private persons, or to the State, or to other public authorities, or to social or cooperative organizations, is prohibited, except where such destruction is rendered absolutely necessary by military operations."

These demolitions constitute a serious human rights violation, and may indeed rise to the level of war crimes. Writing in the leading Israeli daily Ha'aretz on Jan. 13, Israeli columnist Gideon Levy correctly noted that "The punitive action executed by Israel at the weekend in the Gaza Strip, and in particular the mass demolition of homes in Rafah on Thursday morning, constitute a war crime. There is no other way to describe and define the collective punishment of hundreds of innocent civilians who have been left utterly destitute." Our own government has repeatedly demanded that these demolitions stop, although Israel continues with them.

If its products are being used to commit massive human rights abuses against defenseless civilians, no responsible company can afford to turn a blind eye. I would therefore insist that you answer the questions I have posed as soon as possible to clarify Caterpillar's position on these issues.

Sincerely,