The Media Accountability Project  

"These are the same authorities who have been accused of imposing an apartheid system on Palestinians  and  now of committing genocide. Israel should have no say  in deciding whose family members should be allowed to come to Canada."

"I think that the genocide unfolding in Gaza is our wake-up call to stop seeing and expecting Canada to promote and enforce human rights and recognize and treat it as complicit in human rights abuses once and for all."

"Failing to see it this way and waiting again to react by gathering academics, experts, and diaspora community members “once the war is over” would put us back in the same cycle of deliberately turning a blind eye to damning evidence."

"Now, by the time these Whittington and Caddell pieces were published, Israel had in this crisis killed more than twice as many Palestinian civilians as Palestinians had killed Israeli civilians. Facts are what they are. Whittington does not reflect them when he exclusively reserves harsh adjectives (“murderous,” “terrorist”) for Palestinians, while treating the Israeli killing of Palestinians in gentler tones."

"Your article sheds light on the incongruence in Canada’s position when it comes to international law, strongly supporting Ukraine for example, while completely neglecting its principles when it comes to Israel’s egregious treatment of the Palestinians."

"While I was happy to read the bold language used in describing Israel’s occupation and its treatment of Palestinians, I’m baffled that it has taken so long for public concern in Canada to be expressed on this scale."

"I am writing to express my appreciation for the article by Neil Moss. His article provided a variety of perspectives on why PM Trudeau should be speaking out more loudly against Israel’s judicial reforms. The notion expressed by David Matas and Aurel Braun, that Israel can resolve its own internal disputes without external pressure, was not supported by the majority of those interviewed for Mr. Moss’ article."

"MPs should avoid unethical, all-expenses-paid tours with pro-Israel advocacy organizations like CIJA. If an MP decides to go anyway, they should at the very least insist on setting up additional meetings with Palestinian and Israeli human rights defenders and devote equal time and resources to this part of the itinerary. Finally, MPs must make sure to push for access to the Gaza Strip and other areas restricted by the Israeli government."

On April 5, 2023, the Hill Times published a letter from CJPME about a recent meeting between Minister Joly and her counterpart in Israel’s far-right government. The letter reads:

People around the world are openly questioning Israel’s commitment to democracy. Right-wing Israeli ministers make blatantly racist remarks about Palestinians. Human rights organizations have published detailed analyses of Israel’s apartheid policies against Palestinians.

Yet the Global Affairs readout on the March 16 meeting between Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly and her Israeli counterpart Eli Cohen made it sound like a meeting of friends in prosperous times, cooing about “shared values.”

In fact, Joly should have refused this meeting, as Cohen is little different from his right-wing cabinet colleagues. Last year, for example, he suggested that Palestinian citizens of Israel who disagree with Israeli laws could “move to Gaza on a one-way ticket.” Hopefully, Joly doesn’t take the same attitude toward people who disagree with her government.

It’s time for Canada to question Israel’s democratic character. It’s time to forcefully condemn Israel’s illegal settlements in Palestinian territory. It’s time to denounce Israel’s apartheid policies. It’s time to withhold trade benefits and arms from Israel until it respects international legal norms.

It is time for Canada to stop providing cover for Israel and its dubious rights record and right-wing ideologies. Events of recent weeks make clear that Canada can no longer pretend that Israel is a liberal western democracy. “Business as usual” with the current Israeli government is no longer an option.

It’s time for Canada to question Israel’s democratic character.  It’s time to forcefully condemn Israel’s illegal settlements in Palestinian territory.  It’s time to denounce Israel’s apartheid policies.  It’s time to withhold trade benefits and arms from Israel until it respects international legal norms.