UK architects support suspension of Israeli association from international body

The Council of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) voted Wednesday to support the suspension of the Israeli Association of United Architects (IAUA) from the world body of architects the International Union of Architects (UIA).

RIBA, the professional body for UK architects, passed the motion by 23 votes to 16, with 10 abstentions. The text reads as follows:

Since the Israeli Association of United Architects (IAUA) has paid no regard to the UIA resolution 13 of 2005 and 2009, the RIBA calls on the UIA, as the international guardian of professional and ethical standards in our profession, to suspend the membership of the Israeli Association of United Architects, until it acts to resist these illegal projects, and observes international law, and the UIA Accords and Resolution 13.

The vote represents a victory for Architects and Planners for Justice in Palestine (APJP), who had pushed for its adoption along with RIBA’s past President Angela Brady, other Council members and a number of RIBA members and registered architects.

RIBA’s sister organisation, the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland (RIAS), passed a similar resolution earlier in the week.

In the lead up to the vote, a group of architects operating under the name ‘Constructive Engagement’ campaigned for the motion to be rejected, claiming that it was misguided and discriminatory.