Is Israel “the bulwark of democracy in the Middle East”?!

The following letter was sent to Elizabeth May, Leader of the Green Party of Canada, regarding her position on Israeli “democracy”.

Elizabeth May
Leader of the Green Party of Canada

You were quoted in the “Jewish Tribune” as saying that “Israel plays as the bulwark of democracy in the Middle East.” It seems to me that you “have not thought through the real politic of life in the Middle East” to quote you.
Here are the facts:

Israel has over fifty laws that discriminate against 20% of its Christian and Muslim citizens:
http://adalah.org/eng/Israeli-Discriminatory-Law-Database

See also the Index of Currently Pending Discriminatory Bills in the 19th Israeli Knesset: http://adalah.org/Public/files/Discriminatory-Laws-Database/Discriminatory-Bills-19th-Knesset-24-06-2013.pdf

Following is the moral and principled position of the Green Party (USA) and the Left Party in France:

Green Party (USA) reiterates support for BDS
The Left Party in France joins the Boycott-Divestment-Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel
http://www.lepartidegauche.fr/actualites/communique/le-parti-gauche-s-engage-dans-les-campagnes-boycott-desinvestissement-sanctions-l-egard-d-israel-25718
I hope that you won’t call their position anti-Israeli, the way you described the “‘anti-Israeli stance’ of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME)”. I urge you to not “pander” to the pro Israeli lobby the same way the other leaders of Canadian federal parties do, otherwise Canada and by association the Canadian people’s reputation internationally is doomed. I urge you to rethink your biased and emotional position.
Thanks for your attention
Hanna Kawas
Chairperson, Canada Palestine Association, Vancouver

International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, 2013

Gaza in Crisis: Eyewitness Reports
Friday, November 29th, 2013, 7PM
SFU… Read more

Gaza in Crisis: Eyewitness Reports
Friday, November 29th, 2013, 7PM
SFU Harbour Centre, Fletcher Challenge Theatre
515 W. Hastings, Vancouver
Guest speakers – Eva Bartlett, human rights activist and journalist who lived for extended periods in Gaza
Kevin Neish, a Victoria activist and Mavi Marmara survivor who just returned from Gaza
Admission by donation ($5-10 suggested)
Organized by: Boycott Israeli Apartheid Campaign, Canada Palestine Association, Gaza’s Ark and Independent Jewish Voices
For more info, email: info@cpavancouver.org or ijv-vancouver@ijvcanada.org
Download the event leaflet
Download the event poster
Please join our Facebook Event
Video 1, Video 2

Other events in British Colombia for Eva Bartlett:

Comox
Date/Time: Tues, Nov 26, 2013 7 – 9:30 pm
Where: Comox United Church, 250 Beach Drive, Comox, BC
Sponsored by: Mid-Islanders for Justice & Peace in the Middle East-Comox Valley
Admission: by donation
Contact Info: Judy Goldschmidt 250-331-9391 judy.goldschmidt@gmail.com

Victoria
Date/Time: Tues, Nov 27, 2013 7 – 9:30 pm
Where:David Strong Building C118, University of Victoria, Victoria BC
Sponsored by: IJV, Victoria Chapter and Social Justice Studies, U of Victoria
Admission: by donation
Contact Info: Corey Levine, 613-230-4501, cmjlevine@gmail.com

Nanaimo
International Day of Solidarity With the Palestinian People
Thursday, November 28th, 2013, 7PM
First Unitarian Fellowship Hall on Townsite Rd @ Millstone, Nanaimo
Admission by donation
Organized by Mid-Islanders For Justice & Peace in the Middle East & Co-sponsored by KAIROS Nanaimo

PROTEST AGAINST WAR CRIMINAL EHUD BARAK

Monday, September 30 – Gather at 5:00 pm
Four Seasons Hotel, 791 W … Read more

Monday, September 30 – Gather at 5:00 pm
Four Seasons Hotel, 791 W Georgia, Vancouver
Facebook
Former Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister Ehud Barak is coming to Vancouver on September 30 as the honoured guest of a $500/plate dinner. Barak is responsible for, among other notorious actions:
– ordering Operation Cast Lead, the assault on Gaza that killed over 1300 Palestinians0
– attacking the Gaza Flotilla in June 2010
– launching last November’s attacks on Gaza
– maintaining the siege on Gaza
– expanding the construction of the Apartheid Wall
– multiple assassinations of Palestinian political activists and leaders

Barak’s responsibility for these and other actions make clear that he is a war criminal and our message must be heard loud and clear. The organization hosting Barak, the Bon Mot Book Club, is the same organization that hosted $500/plate dinners for Dick Cheney and Pervez Musharraf in 2011. The people came out to the streets to say WAR CRIMINALS NOT WELCOME – it is time to say this clearly again!

Organizing Groups To Be Announced (including Boycott Israeli Apartheid Campaign, Canada Palestine Association, Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network and more)

Protest the Vancouver JNF Event

Where: across from Temple Sholom (Oak St. between W 56th and 57th Ave)
When:… Read more

Where: across from Temple Sholom (Oak St. between W 56th and 57th Ave)
When: 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept 29, 2013

The Jewish National Fund (JNF) is hosting Gilad Shalit in his first visit to Canada. Also in attendance will be the former Conservative minister Stockwell Day. The event will raise funds to develop an area of Canada Park in honour of captive Israeli soldiers, past present and future.

Canada Park is built on land of three Palestinian villages whose inhabitants were driven out in 1967 – Imwas (the biblical Emmaus), Yalu, and Beit Nuba

It was originally funded by Canadians who weren’t told what their money was being used for, but now we have no excuse to say “we didn’t know.”

The JNF has a long and ongoing history of using trees to “greenwash” their part in the dispossession of Palestinians both inside the borders of Israel and from territories that Israel illegally occupies

See more info on the JNF.

Please join us to protest the JNF and its actions: Independent Jewish Voices, Boycott Israeli Apartheid Campaign, Canada Palestine Association and Gaza’s Ark

20 Years of the Oslo Accords: Palestine and the Palestinian Struggle Today


Roadmap
Community Discussion and Gathering
Sunday, September 22, 2013
7:00 pm
Read more


Roadmap
Community Discussion and Gathering
Sunday, September 22, 2013
7:00 pm
Tamam Fine Palestinian Cuisine, 2616 East Hastings Street, Vancouver
Facebook page
RSVP required: email boycottapartheid@gmail.com

Join us for an evening of great food, important conversation and community discussion about the current stage of struggle for justice in Palestine.

On September 13, 1993, the Declaration of Principles, popularly known as the Oslo Accords, were signed in Washington, DC, by the Israeli state and the Palestine Liberation Organization. A new era of peace was hailed.

However, the reality of the Oslo accords proved to be much different, as the settler population in the West Bank tripled, thousands of Palestinians were imprisoned in Israeli jails, and the occupation – rather than ending – intensified, with the siege on Gaza, the building of the Apartheid Wall, and thousands of home demolitions.

Hanna Kawas, chair of the Canada Palestine Association and co-host of Voice of Palestine, will speak about the Oslo Accords, and what they meant for Palestinians – and what they mean today as new “negotiations” are pursued.

Please note: Appetizers will be provided! We encourage you also to order from Tamam’s excellent menu. Because we will be hosting at Tamam, it is important to know the number of people who will be attending. Please email us atboycottapartheid@gmail.com to confirm your attendance – thank you!
Organized by Boycott Israeli Apartheid Campaign, Canada Palestine Association and Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network