The conflict between Israel and Palestine has been going on for as long as we can remember. However, while the conflicting parties - the Israeli Army and Hamas - have been busy fighting each other, it is the innocent general public who have been the worst hit by this war.
However, just like the two sides of a coin, the world has been divided into two parties over this war: pro-Palestinians in favour of Palestinian statehood and pro-Israelis against this. Globally influential nations like the USA, UK, Germany and France are openly supporting Israel. Consequently, business brands from these countries are pro-Israel as well. This means they are supporting the civilian casualties, also being called genocide by some people, in Gaza.
Brands such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, Ralph Lauren, Starbucks, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, McDonald's, KFC, L'Oreal and many more brands from pro-Israel countries support and to some extent are complicit in this cruel war.
With the help of social media, many people have become aware of such brands and started boycotting them to show their support towards Palestinian cause. One of the leading multinational coffee retailer chains Starbucks has incurred loss of $11 billion due to this boycott. Other popular food brands like McDonald's, Burger King and KFC faced around 70 per cent sales drop. People are opting for other local substitutes for these products or brands that support Palestine. This has created a great opportunity for local brands to increase their sales.
For example, Bangladeshi beverage Mojo owned by Akij Food & Beverage has seen a sharp rise in its demand and sales over the past few months. People are choosing local beverages like Mojo, RC Cola, Clemon etc. instead of beverages from brands like Coca-Cola and PepsiCo. This action not only dropped the sales of the pro-Israel companies but also boosted local companies' sales.
The world is looking forward to a settlement of Palestine issue, so that we do not need to witness any more children losing their parents or even worse, their own lives. And we, as consumers, are trying to contribute to it from our end by boycotting pro-Israel brands.
Tanjina Hossain Arpita, student, School of Business and Economics, North South University
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