To the editor:
The death and destruction that Hamas perpetrated against Israeli citizens is tragic and deserves to be condemned.
It is equally tragic and contemptible to now watch the destruction and death that Israel is visiting upon the people of Gaza.
We should be outraged at the weakness and hypocrisy of Canadian and other Western politicians in refusing to condemn Israel as it engages in industrial levels of destruction against the lives and hopes of the people of Gaza. What is happening goes far beyond Israel’s right to defend itself, and now seems to be aimed at driving people off the land.
If our leaders will not condemn the ongoing wanton and wholesale destruction of Gaza that is resulting in the death and maiming of untold numbers of innocent women and children, can they ever again be trusted to provide moral leadership on any issue as it relates to human rights or respect for international law?
Should we assume that our leaders think it’s appropriate to deliberately destroy the lives and homes of an entire population in retribution for the violence perpetrated by those in charge? Canada and other Western nations routinely decry the violation of human rights by other nations while staying silent as the human rights of Palestinians in Gaza are routinely violated and every aspect of their daily lives controlled.
While it seems right to condemn Hamas as a terrorist organization, we should also be able to understand that in desperate apartheid-like circumstances, people can be expected to engage in desperate measures to free themselves.
For decades, Canada has had a positive reputation for acting as a peacekeeper around the world. But as I think about our status as one of the world’s leading arms dealers, it seems we are now less committed to human rights and peace than we once were.
Consider our $15 billion sale of armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia, a country with one of the worst human rights records in the world. And when I think about Canada’s participation in NATO campaigns in Afghanistan, the Balkans, Libya, Ukraine, and other places it appears that our country is increasingly at risk of functioning as a vassal state, subservient to US foreign policy and US-led military campaigns.
Consistent with that political temperament, Canada is once again echoing the US position on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Rather than showing an unthinking and unproductive loyalty to one side while demonizing and ignoring the human rights of the other side, Canada needs to speak out much more forcefully in defense of the lives and human rights and needs of all innocents.
Canada could and should work to reclaim its reputation as an honest peacekeeper and provide much stronger leadership in advocating for a negotiated settlement that recognizes that both Jews and Palestinians have deep historic ties to the land, and finally delivers security for Israel and freedom and justice for the Palestinians.
Sincerely
Peter Ferris
