|
February 10, 2005
Do you want
Canadian Members of Parliament promoting the interests of ANY foreign
country?
We think most Canadians, whatever their background would answer NO to
this question.
Do you want Canadian Members of Parliament
promoting the interests of a country that is in violation of 70 United
Nations Resolutions?
Israel stands in violation of more than 70 UN resolutions. See
list of UN Resolutions (Jews Against the Occupation)
The conflict between the
Palestinians and Israelis could have ended some time ago if the
International Community had united to
enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 242. UNSC 242
passed in 1967 after the 6 day war, ordered Israel to cease its
occupation of East Jerusalem, Gaza Strip, West Bank and Golan Heights
in its entirety.
Shouldn't our MPs be supporting
International Law rather than the interests of any given nation?
Liberal Parliamentarians for Israel are more supportive of Israel than
many Jews and Israelis. This article by a
Canadian Jew explains the policies of the Israeli government and
the injustices committed against the Palestinian people. (Canadian
Jewish News)
The following are some of the
Israeli
groups that stand against Israeli government policies for an end to the
occupation and for human rights:
Israeli
Committee Against Home Demolitions
Gush
Shalom
Rabbis for
Human Rights
What are "Liberal Parliamentarians for
Israel" promoting?
On the surface, it appears that
they
simply defend Israel's Right to exist and to defend itself. They
claim that United Nations Resolutions against Israel are biased. But, let's examine the reality.
Israel's Right to Exist
No one is questioning Israel's
right to exist. The Palestinian
Authority recognized Israel's right to exist "in
peace and security" at the time of the Oslo Accords in 1993. (Jewish Virtual Library)
As part of the same accord, Israel agreed to stop building settlements
in the West Bank and Gaza. However, between 1993 and 1999 Israeli
continued to build settlements - the settler population was almost
doubled. Article 49 of the Fourth Geneva Convention states that
"The occupying power shall not deport or transfers [sic] parts of its
own civilian population
into the territory it occupies."
In 2001 and 2004 the Arab states agreed to recognize Israel and
normalize relations if Israel withdrew back to the 1967 borders from
the West Bank and Gaza.
Israel's Security Wall
Ninety percent of Israel's Security Wall is built on
Palestinian
territory from which Palestinian lands have been
expropriated without
compensation. Only six percent of
it is
built within 100 metres of the 1949 Armistice line which is the
international recognized border of Israel. In some areas it dips
40 kilometres into the West Bank.
Is this self-defence or a land grab?
Are the United
Nations Resolutions biased
against Israel?
Liberal Parliamentarians for Israel claim that the United
Nations is
biased against Israel and they want Canada to vote against UN
Resolutions regarding Israeli Human
Rights Violations.
In other words, they want Canada to vote with the United States and its
protectorates, the Philippines, Micronesia and the Marshall Islands,
rather than with the majority of nations around the world.
The efforts of the Liberals for Israel to alter Canada's votes in the
United Nations seem to have been
successful. The Mennonite
Central Committee website states: The Canadian government has been
ambiguous about the Wall. On October 21, 2003 Canada voted in favour of
a UN General Assembly resolution that: “Demands that Israel stop and
reverse the construction of the wall in the Occupied Palestinian
Territory, including in and around East Jerusalem, which is in
departure of the Armistice Line of 1949 and is in contradiction to
relevant provisions of international law;” However, Canada did not want
the issue to be taken to the ICJ; also, on July 20, 2004, after the ICJ
decision, Canada abstained when the UN General Assembly requested that
Israel comply with the ICJ’s opinion. Canada explained that it remained
deeply concerned about the Wall’s adverse effect on the prospects for
peace and on “the ever more dire humanitarian and socio-economic
situation of the Palestinian population...” but that the resolution did
not adequately take into account other aspects of the larger conflict.
Who are the Liberal Parliamentarians for
Israel?
Although they have a website, only the names of
the co-chairs, Anita Neville and Senator David Smith, are listed under "Who we are". One has to dig into the documents on the website to
see who are the
signatories.
A document written by LPFI, entitled Canada
and the Middle East (June 6th, 2003) shows a number of MPs and
Senators as signatories.
An article entitled "Liberal MPs vote
to change UN voting pattern on Israeli" (Canadian Jewish News,
January 27th 2005) reveals MPs who are
members of LPFI.
From these various
article and documents
we have been able to compile the list of members below:
Senator Jack Austin
Carolyn
Bennett, (Ontario - St. Paul's), Minister of State, Public
Health
Irwin Cotler, (Quebec, Mt. Royal), Minister of Justice and Attorney
General of Canada
Art Eggleton - former Minister of Industry and Commerce who
negotiated the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement.
Senator Isobel Finnerty
Raymonde Folco (Quebec, Laval-Les Iles)
Marlene Jennings, (Quebec - Notre-Dame-de-Grace/Lachine),
Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministers of International Cooperation,
to the Solicitor General for Canada and to the Prime Minister
Senator Leo Kolber
Senator Richard Kroft
Anita Neville (Manitoba, Winnipeg South Centre)
Bernard Patry (Quebec, Pierrefonds-Dollards) Chairman, Standing
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Jim Peterson, (Ontario, Willowdale), Minister of International Trade
Senator Marie-P. Poulin
Joe Volpe, (Ontario, Eglinton-Lawrence), Minister of Immigration
Bryon Wilfert, (Ontario, Richmond Hill), Parliamentary Secretary to the
Minister of Finance Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of the
Environment
A January
9th 2004 article from the Jewish Western Bulletin indicates that
Stephen Owen, Minister of State (Sports) and Minister of
Western Economic
Diversification, and Lucienne
Robillard, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, are also
members of the LPFI.
In December 2006 a list of members of a cross-party group called the Canada-Israel Friendship Group was obtained from Marlene Jenning's office. Some may since have been defeated in the election of January 3, 2006.
More article on the Liberal Parliamentarians for Israel:
http://www.gregfelton.com/recent/2004_01_22.htm
http://www.gregfelton.com/middle/2004_10_28.htm
http://www.jewsforajustpeace.com/pages/azzeh_01.html
Your
Comments
|