Thursday, August 11, 2022
No Result
View All Result
  • Media
Support Us
Macdonald-Laurier Institute
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Who Makes MLI Work
    • Tenth Anniversary
    • Jobs
  • Experts
  • Issues
    • Domestic Policy Program
      • Agriculture and Agri-Food
      • Canada’s Political Tradition
      • Economic policy
      • Energy
      • Health Care
      • Justice
      • Social issues
      • Telecoms
    • Foreign Policy Program
      • Foreign Affairs
      • National Defence
      • National Security
    • Indigenous Affairs Program
  • Projects
    • COVID and after: A mandate for recovery
    • COVID Misery Index
      • Beyond Lockdown
    • Provincial COVID Misery Index
    • Centre for Advancing Canada’s Interests Abroad
      • Dragon at the Door
      • The Eavesdropping Dragon: Huawei
    • An Intellectual Property Strategy for Canada
    • Speak for Ourselves
    • Canada and the Indo-Pacific Initiative
    • DisInfoWatch.org
    • The Transatlantic Program
    • Indigenous Prosperity at a Crossroads
      • Aboriginal Canada and Natural Resources
    • Talkin’ in the Free World with Mariam Memarsadeghi
    • Past Projects
      • Justice Report Card
      • Munk Senior Fellows
      • A Mandate for Canada
      • Confederation Series
      • Fiscal Reform
      • The Canadian Century project
      • Fixing Canadian health care
      • Internal trade
      • From a mandate for change
      • Size of government in Canada
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Past Events
      • MLI Dinners
      • Great Canadian Debates
  • Latest News
  • Libraries
    • Inside Policy Magazine
      • Inside Policy Back Issues
      • Inside Policy Blog
    • Papers
    • Columns
    • Books
    • Commentary
    • Straight Talk
    • Video
    • Multimedia
    • Podcasts
    • Leading Economic Indicator
    • Labour Market Report
    • MLI in the Media
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Who Makes MLI Work
    • Tenth Anniversary
    • Jobs
  • Experts
  • Issues
    • Domestic Policy Program
      • Agriculture and Agri-Food
      • Canada’s Political Tradition
      • Economic policy
      • Energy
      • Health Care
      • Justice
      • Social issues
      • Telecoms
    • Foreign Policy Program
      • Foreign Affairs
      • National Defence
      • National Security
    • Indigenous Affairs Program
  • Projects
    • COVID and after: A mandate for recovery
    • COVID Misery Index
      • Beyond Lockdown
    • Provincial COVID Misery Index
    • Centre for Advancing Canada’s Interests Abroad
      • Dragon at the Door
      • The Eavesdropping Dragon: Huawei
    • An Intellectual Property Strategy for Canada
    • Speak for Ourselves
    • Canada and the Indo-Pacific Initiative
    • DisInfoWatch.org
    • The Transatlantic Program
    • Indigenous Prosperity at a Crossroads
      • Aboriginal Canada and Natural Resources
    • Talkin’ in the Free World with Mariam Memarsadeghi
    • Past Projects
      • Justice Report Card
      • Munk Senior Fellows
      • A Mandate for Canada
      • Confederation Series
      • Fiscal Reform
      • The Canadian Century project
      • Fixing Canadian health care
      • Internal trade
      • From a mandate for change
      • Size of government in Canada
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Past Events
      • MLI Dinners
      • Great Canadian Debates
  • Latest News
  • Libraries
    • Inside Policy Magazine
      • Inside Policy Back Issues
      • Inside Policy Blog
    • Papers
    • Columns
    • Books
    • Commentary
    • Straight Talk
    • Video
    • Multimedia
    • Podcasts
    • Leading Economic Indicator
    • Labour Market Report
    • MLI in the Media
No Result
View All Result
Macdonald-Laurier Institute

The Moral Corruption of Canada’s Once Honourable Values: Becca Wertman for Inside Policy

May 20, 2021
in Columns, Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy Program, Inside Policy, Latest News, Middle East and North Africa
Reading Time: 3 mins read
A A

Canada must not fall for Hamas’ propaganda. The Palestinian people deserve better than to be categorized into the same group as Iran-backed terror organizations, and Israeli democracy deserves the support of its Western allies like Canada in its right to defend its diverse population, writes Becca Wertman. 

By Becca Wertman, May 20, 2021

Canada has carved a niche for itself in the global space as a country dedicated to peace, moral values, and human rights. Whether it was the Conservative government’s commitment to maternal health under the Millennium Development Goals and defending democracies, or the Liberal government’s leadership in human security and in creating the Responsibility to Protect human rights norm in 2001, Canada has been a leader in this vitally important space.

Yet the current government’s lack of condemnation of the overt violations of human rights and international humanitarian law by Palestinian terrorist groups like Hamas, and their Iranian sponsors, demonstrates moral corruption of our country’s once honourable values.

To begin, Global Affairs Canada may have released a statement on May 12, but this came days late and only after over 1500 rockets had been fired by terrorist organizations targeting innocent Israeli civilians – Jews, Muslims, and Christians alike. The Twitter feeds of top government officials have remained nearly empty of any condemnation of the terror groups, or of any support for Israeli civilians, including many Canadian-Israelis, who have been running in and out of bomb shelters for days. A sixteen-year-old Israeli-Arab girl, a six-year-old Israeli-Jewish boy, and at least four Palestinian children in Gaza have all been murdered by Hamas’ own rocket fire, along with numerous others.

The government statement itself, as well as remarks by officials in the media, are also highly problematic, as they make a moral equivalence between Palestinian terror groups and Israeli democracy. Would it have been so hard for Canada to have issued a statement clearly condemning extremism, e.g., the rocket attacks and the violence in the streets?

Instead, the government condemned the rockets in one breath, and in the next, stated it remains “gravely concerned by the continued expansion of settlements, and by the demolitions and evictions, including the ongoing cases in Sheikh Jarrah and Silwan.”

There is no moral equivalency between a terror group firing thousands of rockets targeting civilians and the complex, emotional, and ongoing tragedy of eviction notices, following nearly a century of highly complicated legal procedures, and a refusal to pay rent for nearly four decades. Can you imagine if shooting thousands of rockets at civilian communities across Canada was deemed a “proportional” response to an eviction notice after refusal to pay rent in Ottawa?

It is highly disturbing that Canada enables this simplistic narrative. A more nuanced analysis would note that perhaps the violence, as it often does, stemmed from internal Palestinian domestic turmoil, such as their repeated failure to hold elections after 16 years in power. Palestinian leaders profit politically by deflecting this internal power struggle back onto Israel.

An alternative analysis would argue that perhaps the violence was sparked by the near monumental occasion of an Arab party sitting in Israel’s governing coalition – a move that surely was against the ethos of any extremist groups promoting anti-normalization narratives. Canada’s statement failed to accommodate either of these important realities.

Extremism on all sides should and must be condemned. If Canada is to remain true to its established values, it must not fall for Hamas’ propaganda and the simplistic narrative that attempts to create two neatly divided sides in this conflict. The Palestinian people deserve better than to be categorized into the same group as an Iran-backed terror organization, and Israeli democracy deserves the support of its Western allies like Canada in its right to defend its diverse population.

If Canada is truly interested, as it states, in supporting efforts for “lasting peace in the Middle East,” Canadian leaders ought to start with internal reflection and promote the universal values they claim to hold so dear.

Becca Wertman was born and raised in Vancouver and lives in Jerusalem. She is a Chief of Staff in the Israeli venture capital sector, previously working as political aide to Member of Knesset Michal Cotler-Wunsh and as Managing Editor and Canada Liaison at NGO Monitor.

Tags: Foreign Affairshuman rightsIsrael
Previous Post

Abandoning Taiwan would create a far more dangerous world: J. Michael Cole for Inside Policy

Next Post

U.S. pipeline hack and concerns about Canadian cyber security: Marcus Kolga in the Star

Related Posts

NATO member countries are targets of Putin’s military aggression and must act accordingly in Ukraine: Eugene Czolij for Inside Policy
Europe and Russia

While Russia threatens the world with nuclear war, we might be well into it: Yevgeniya Gaber for Inside Policy

August 9, 2022
Wage growth will make it difficult for the Bank of Canada to squeeze out inflation: Philip Cross for BNN Bloomberg
Multimedia

Wage growth will make it difficult for the Bank of Canada to squeeze out inflation: Philip Cross for BNN Bloomberg

August 9, 2022
Canada is a country without a centre, without a purpose: Ken Coates in the National Post
Columns

Canada is a country without a centre, without a purpose: Ken Coates in the National Post

August 9, 2022
Next Post
U.S. pipeline hack and concerns about Canadian cyber security: Marcus Kolga in the Star

U.S. pipeline hack and concerns about Canadian cyber security: Marcus Kolga in the Star

Macdonald-Laurier Institute

323 Chapel Street, Suite #300
Ottawa, Ontario
K1N 7Z2 Canada

613.482.8327

info@macdonaldlaurier.ca
MLI directory

Follow us on

Newsletter Signup

First Name
Last Name
Email Address

Support Us

Support the Macdonald-Laurier Institute to help ensure that Canada is one of the best governed countries in the world. Click below to learn more or become a sponsor.

Support Us

Inside Policy Magazine

  • Current Issue
  • Back Issues
  • Advertising
  • Inside Policy Blog
  • Privacy Policy

© 2021 Macdonald-Laurier Institute. All Rights reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Who Makes MLI Work
    • Tenth Anniversary
    • Jobs
  • Experts
  • Issues
    • Domestic Policy Program
      • Agriculture and Agri-Food
      • Canada’s Political Tradition
      • Economic policy
      • Energy
      • Health Care
      • Justice
      • Social issues
      • Telecoms
    • Foreign Policy Program
      • Foreign Affairs
      • National Defence
      • National Security
    • Indigenous Affairs Program
  • Projects
    • COVID and after: A mandate for recovery
    • COVID Misery Index
      • Beyond Lockdown
    • Provincial COVID Misery Index
    • Centre for Advancing Canada’s Interests Abroad
      • Dragon at the Door
      • The Eavesdropping Dragon: Huawei
    • An Intellectual Property Strategy for Canada
    • Speak for Ourselves
    • Canada and the Indo-Pacific Initiative
    • DisInfoWatch.org
    • The Transatlantic Program
    • Indigenous Prosperity at a Crossroads
      • Aboriginal Canada and Natural Resources
    • Talkin’ in the Free World with Mariam Memarsadeghi
    • Past Projects
      • Justice Report Card
      • Munk Senior Fellows
      • A Mandate for Canada
      • Confederation Series
      • Fiscal Reform
      • The Canadian Century project
      • Fixing Canadian health care
      • Internal trade
      • From a mandate for change
      • Size of government in Canada
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Past Events
      • MLI Dinners
      • Great Canadian Debates
  • Latest News
  • Libraries
    • Inside Policy Magazine
      • Inside Policy Back Issues
      • Inside Policy Blog
    • Papers
    • Columns
    • Books
    • Commentary
    • Straight Talk
    • Video
    • Multimedia
    • Podcasts
    • Leading Economic Indicator
    • Labour Market Report
    • MLI in the Media

© 2021 Macdonald-Laurier Institute. All Rights reserved.

IDEAS CHANGE THE WORLD!Have the latest Canadian thought leadership delivered straight to your inbox.
First Name
Last Name
Email address

No thanks, I’m not interested.