Media Watch – Canada Palestine Association

Edward Said: Special from Alternative Radio

Entitled Palestine: Memory, Inequality & Power, Alternative Radio has waived the fees for our supporters to download and listen to this show highlighting a 2003 lecture by Edward Said. This never-before-broadcast marks the 30th anniversary of Oslo and the 20th anniversary of Edward Said’s death on September 25, 2003.

As a Palestinian intellectual, Said brought his anti-colonial critique to bear on what he called “The Question of Palestine,” revealing Zionism as a colonial ideology and the Western liberal support of this as a part of its colonial heritage.… Read more

Palestine Solidarity Goes Back to its Roots

On April 28-30, the Liberation Conference was held in Ottawa, Canada to examine strategies for Palestine solidarity work going forward in North America. The conference was organized by Masar Badil, who has already held several conferences in Europe, Brazil and Lebanon and is working to harness the new energy amongst diaspora Palestinians.

The conference was attacked by Zionist lobby groups before the first speaker even stepped to the platform, based on a now familiar litany of fraudulent charges of “terrorism”.… Read more

Is CBC Ombudsman impartial in his IHRA Vancouver review?

In his November 2022 Inbox, the CBC Ombudsman chose to comment on CBC’s coverage of Vancouver’s recent adoption of the IHRA; he did so before issuing his final report on an ongoing review, and clearly without any understanding of either the IHRA definition itself nor the dynamics of what happened at Vancouver City Council. Once again, it seems the CBC Ombudsman will fail the Palestinian community, similar to his 2021 ruling that the CBC “language guide” censoring the word Palestine was “reasonable”.… Read more

Stop the smear campaigns against Palestinian Advocacy!

New Article in Mondoweiss: Fearmongering and intimidation by Canada’s pro-Israel lobby – Mondoweiss

(Over 85 Canadian and international organizations have endorsed this statement, as well as numerous individuals including Roger Waters. Join with them and send your own letter to Canadian officials here.)

Today, we are witnessing an intensified campaign by the pro-Israel lobby in Canada to smear Palestinian activists and their supporters.… Read more

Canadian company financing Israel-UAE collaboration

In June of this year, the story of how Dubai Ports World was helping to squash opposition to the Israeli Zim shipping company in a small Canadian town caught the interest of many progressives worldwide. Lest anyone think this was an isolated incident, Canadian media recently highlighted another saga of Canada-UAE-Israel partnership.

This time around, former Canadian prime minister Stephen Harper is taking centre stage as the head of the advisory committee to Toronto-based AWZ Ventures.… Read more

CBC Insists on Erasing Palestinian National Identity

The following letter was sent on September 10, 2020 to the CBC Ombudsman requesting an official review of CBC’s flawed explanation of its language guide on Palestine. The Ombudsman has already confirmed that the review will happen, noting the results will be made public on his website.

Dear Mr. Jack Nagler,
CBC Ombudsman

We have received the more detailed reply regarding CBC’s language guide on Palestine from Paul Hambleton, Director of Journalism Standards.… Read more

Why I oppose Canada’s bid for the UN Security Council seat

(The following letter was recently sent to all UN Ambassadors from Canada Palestine Association chairperson, Hanna Kawas. The vote for non-permanent UNSC seats is set to happen June 17, 2020.)

June 12, 2020

Dear UN Ambassadors:

I am a Christian Palestinian refugee from Bethlehem who can’t return to my hometown because of my identity and because Israel refuses to implement the UNGA resolution regarding “Persons displaced as a result of the June 1967 and subsequent hostilities”.… Read more

Canadian Hypocrisy and the UN Security Council Seat

By Marion Kawas

Recently, a strong movement has coalesced opposing the Canadian government’s attempt to gain a seat on the UN Security Council (UNSC). Although progressive groups and individuals have been laying the foundation for this issue since late 2019, it has been thrust into the national spotlight in the last month with various petitions, statements and media coverage in the #NoUNSC4Canada campaign.… Read more

Western hypocrisy is empowering Israeli annexation!

There is a recent surge of official voices in the West that are alarmed at the agenda of the new Israeli coalition government. Many western liberal governments are offering slightly more than their usual token objections to Israeli policy, including some European threats of sanctions if Israel implements its new annexation plans.

Is all of this because of concern for the human rights of Palestinians?… Read more

#PalestinianPrisonersDay: Ansar and the Israeli Jailer

Ansar: A Testament to the Ugly Brutality of the Israeli Jailer

By Marion Kawas

April 17^th marks a special day in the Palestinian calendar, that of Palestinian Prisoners Day. This year it takes on even more importance as the more than 5000 Palestinian political prisoners are incarcerated with the added threat of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Palestinian prisoners have long played a unique role in the fabric of Palestinian society and its collective resistance.… Read more