Failure to include Palestinian voices when referring to Israel as a "democracy"

"Your coverage does not include any Palestinian voices whatsoever, instead focussing on Israelis and how they feel about these changes. In doing so, you have left out the glaring and obvious problem that while Israel is having a debate over its “democracy”, Palestinians have been living under military occupation in what is now increasingly recognized as an apartheid system of government by human rights groups and UN experts amongst others."


August 4, 2023

To:

Nathan Sekhon, Executive Producer, Global News

Amanda Connolly, Managing Editor of Politics and Breaking News, Global News

Rebecca Joseph, Online Managing Editor, Global News

Dawna Friesen, Anchor and Executive Editor, Global News

Dear Mr. Sekhon, Ms. Connolly Ms. Joseph, Ms. Friesen,

I’m writing to you on behalf of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME, https://www.cjpme.org) to express my concern regarding a Global News segment on Israel’s judicial reforms titled “Top court in Israel to decide Netanyahu’s controversial judicial overhaul.”

Your coverage does not include any Palestinian voices whatsoever, instead focussing on Israelis and how they feel about these changes. In doing so, you have left out the glaring and obvious problem that while Israel is having a debate over its “democracy”, Palestinians have been living under military occupation in what is now increasingly recognized as an apartheid system of government[i] by human rights groups and UN experts amongst others.

It is essential to include this context in order for your audience to better understand the selective nature of Israel’s “democracy” which is selective at best and meant only for its citizens, and not for the millions of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.

Certain media outlets have extensively included Palestinian voices when covering the judicial reforms in Israel. I would suggest that in the interest of providing your audience with all sides of the story that you adapt future reporting to include these Palestinian perspectives.

Should you wish, you can contact me at 438-380-5410 for more information.

Sincerely,

Mohamed Khalaf

Director of Strategic Operations, 

Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East

[i] “Israel’s apartheid against Palestinians: Cruel system of domination and crime against humanity,” Amnesty International, February 1, 2022, https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/campaigns/2022/02/israels-system-of-apartheid/.