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The B’nai Brith Canada Institute for International Affairs has a mandate to protest the abuse of human rights throughout the world and advocate on behalf of worldwide Jewish communities in distress. The Institute has a special focus on pro-Israel advocacy and education. |
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Rochelle Wilner |
Frank Dimant |
Amos Sochaczevski |
Ruth Klein |
B’nai Brith Canada appreciates the Government’s supportive attitude towards the peace process and recognizes the efforts its representatives have made to advance the negotiations.
True peace in the Middle East requires normalization of relations between former adversaries, especially in the case of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, which all but literally share the same back yard. Such a peace cannot be built on the type of coolness that exists in relations with Egypt, the first Arab State to sign a peace treaty with Israel, where both the official and semi-official media regularly produce diatribes against Israel that are blatantly antisemitic. Nor is the Jordanian model, in which professional associations shun normal contacts with Israel, the option of choice. Just recently, for example, three Jordanian journalists were forced to apologise for visiting Israel to attend a seminar at the University of Haifa. They were threatened with expulsion from the Jordanian Press Association, which would have cost them their right to work.21
Peace negotiations with Syria are a case in point. In the midst of delicate talks with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, Syrian Foreign Minister Farouk Shara publicly refused to shake hands with his negotiating partner. Furthermore, Syria reportedly refuses to accept an accord that will establish “normalization”, preferring instead the term “normal relations” which limits the parameters of the relationship to termination of a state of war, rather than the more positive establishment of a lasting and meaningful peace. The official government-controlled newspaper Tishrin entered the fray with an outrageous editorial comparing Israel to the Nazis and claiming that Zionism “created the Holocaust myth to blackmail and terrorize the world’s intellectuals and politicians”.22
Unfortunately, this latest attack cannot be seen as merely an aberration caused by frustration with the pace of the peace talks. Holocaust denial is commonplace in the Arab world. Arabic-language editions of Hilter’s Mein Kampf emanate from Syria and Lebanon and the infamous Protocols of the Elders of Zion was published in Arabic by a Syrian publishing house owned by the Syrian Defence Minister.
What is lacking in the West is a true appreciation of what this lack of normalization really means in terms of the risks Israel faces in its search for a true peace.
º B’nai Brith Canada urges the Government to support Israel in its quest for normalization as an integral part of the peace process.
º B’nai Brith Canada asks the Government - through the good offices of Canadian diplomats stationed in the area - to condemn vigorously expressions of antisemitism and Holocaust denial in the Arab press.
The cornerstone of the United Nations ethos is surely the enjoinder that “Since war begins in the hearts of men, it is in the minds of men that the defence of peace must be constructed.”23 That is why educating for peace is such a crucial foundation of a lasting peace in the Middle East. However, The Palestine Authority (PA) uses its educational system to indoctrinate youngsters with the messages of the PLO Covenant - supposedly revoked as part of Palestinian obligations under the peace process - which calls for the destruction of Israel as the ultimate aim. Schoolbooks are rife with references to anti-Israeli and anti-Jewish prejudices that are often reminiscent of age-old antisemitic stereotypes. These messages of hatred and contempt, which glorify violence and bloodshed against Israel as the only solution to conflict in the area, demonstrate a lack of commitment to the ideal of building any meaningful structures that will support and sustain peace.
The abuse of the PA educational system as a vehicle for propagating hatred and incitement has been precisely documented by the Center for Monitoring the Impact of Peace, which has undertaken the review of 140 texts. The PA Ministry of Education, which has the sole responsibility for selection, content and editing, published all but one of these texts officially. The Centre’s report looks at PA controlled television as well as school books, documenting numerous attempts to delegitimize Israel, deny any Jewish religious or historical links to the land, denigrate Jews as “evil”, and advocate jihad. The following examples are merely illustrations of a pervasive and dangerous trend:
* “One must beware of the Jews, for they are treacherous and disloyal.”24
* “Racism: Mankind has suffered from this evil both in ancient as well as in modern times, for, indeed, Satan has, in the eyes of many people, made their evil actions appear beautiful... Such a people are the Jews…”25
According to the Center, The United Nations Works and Relief Agency for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNWRA) was asked by the US State Department for corroboration of these findings. UNWRA confirmed that 156 of the 173 quotes examined were indeed objectionable, though the Agency demonstrated a somewhat questionable tolerance level to the remaining 16 quotes, which included a reference, for example, to Israelis as “robbers and locusts”.
Canada holds the gavel of the multilateral Working Group on Middle East Refugees, so it could conceivably be expected to have some knowledge of the issue. Certainly, with such a comprehensive survey readily available on the Internet, it is surprising that whenever B’nai Brith Canada has directed enquiries on the subject to Canadian authorities, they have seemed to be unaware of the problem or even sceptical. It would seem to be entirely appropriate for officials based at the Canadian Representative Office in Ramallah to undertake an extensive investigation of this issue.
These themes of rejectionism and calls for jihad run concurrently through the press, state television and sermons delivered at mosques by PA appointees, in direct contravention of Palestinian obligations under the 1995 Oslo Accords. In this agreement the PA pledged to “abstain from incitement, including hostile propaganda” and even to “take legal measures to prevent such incitement by any organizations, groups or individuals within their jurisdiction”.26 The Palestinians reaffirmed this commitment in the Hebron protocol of January 15, 1997 and again in the Wye River Memorandum of October 23, 1998.
º B’nai Brith Canada asks the Government to use the resources available at its Representative Office in Ramallah to carry out a thorough investigation of the use of schoolbooks to incite hatred and violence.
º B’nai Brith Canada urges the Government to monitor closely the dissemination of rejectionist propaganda throughout Palestinian society in contravention of the Peace Accords.
The agonizing issue of Israeli soldiers missing in action, some of them since 1982, remains unresolved. Provisions of the 1949 Geneva Convention assign precise responsibility to the “Detaining Power” in terms of protecting prisoners of war.27 The fact that families still wait in vain for news of their loved ones is particularly saddening in light of the ongoing peace process, which should have brought full disclosure about the whereabouts and welfare of these men, and their speedy release. This is an area where the Palestinian and Arab world could make substantial gains in demonstrating a genuine desire to work towards a spirit of reconciliation and trust. The Palestinians have given their solemn undertaking to do just that:
“The PLO undertakes to co-operate with Israel, and to assist it, in its efforts to locate and to return to Israel Israeli soldiers who are missing in action and the bodies of killed soldiers which have not been recovered.”28
In June 1982 Israeli soldiers Zachary Baumel, Zvi Feldman and Yehuda Katz were captured in a battle with Syrian and Palestinian forces near the Lebanese village of Sultan Yaqub. Shortly afterwards they were paraded through Damascus, Syria, as reported in the Western press. The PLO had custody of them for 18 months and it is believed today that they are being held in Syrian-controlled Lebanon. Over the years, many reports have confirmed that they are alive.29 Amnesty International, for example, stated: “Reports were received in mid-1987 suggesting that three Israeli soldiers who ’disappeared’ in 1982, following their capture after a battle in eastern Lebanon, were alive and in Syrian custody.”30 On December 6, 1993 Yasser Arafat turned over half of Baumel ’s military dogtag, claiming to have more information. As the families await in prolonged agony, this information has not been forthcoming in flagrant violation of Article XIX of the Cairo Agreement.
Ron Arad was captured on October 16, 1986 by Amal, a Lebanese Shiite militia led by Nabuh Berri who today is the speaker of the Lebanese Parliament. It is believed that Arad is alive and in Iranian hands, yet no official information has been forthcoming. This situation is totally unconscionable. Canada maintains political and commercial relations with these regimes and can therefore play an important role in facilitating their return.
º B’nai Brith Canada asks the Government to press for information on the whereabouts and welfare of these MIA’s in all bilateral meetings with representatives of the Palestinian Authority, Iran, Lebanon and Syria.
º B’nai Brith Canada asks the Government to press for the safe return of these men as a matter of urgent humanitarian concern and to bring this matter forward in all international human rights fora.
The cornerstone of Canadian foreign policy in the Middle East is that “Canada is a strong advocate of moderation.”31 This desire for moderation is presumably reflected in CIDA’s mandate to establish development assistance programs in the region. Obviously, support to the disadvantaged is warranted, yet there are concerns about the lack of accountability regarding funds flowing in to the Palestinian Authority.
According to the CIDA Programme, “Socio-economic conditions in the West Bank and Gaza are deteriorating”.32 This gloomy picture contradicts economic data provided recently by the UN Office of the United Nations Special Co-ordinator which stated that “The Palestinian economy witnessed significant and promising growth in 1999 …A preview of a report from the United Nations indicates the Palestinian economy, building on strong performance in 1998, continued to generate employment opportunities at a robust pace in 1999, with more than 47,000 new jobs created.”33 Whatever the true picture, and that seems to be a matter of conjecture based on the lack of accountability procedures, reports of corruption in the Palestinian Authority abound. In November 1999, 63% of Palestinians polled by the Centre for Palestine Research and Studies (CPRS) believed that corruption exists in the PA system,34 a number that had risen to 68% by December 1999.35
According to the CIDA Overview, “Canada is a serious development partner of the West Bank and Gaza”. Since 1993 it has contributed over $130 million in support of Palestinian development and the humanitarian needs of the Palestinian refugees. In accordance with its mandate, CIDA naturally contributes to projects that address basic human needs, such as job creation, water and waste management and shelter. However, what mechanisms are in place to ensure that these monies do go directly to those in need? What are the criteria, for example, for the Canada Funds for Local Initiatives ($1million per year) or the regional Canadian Dialogue and Development Fund, totalling $2.2 million in 1999? Can we be sure that such funding streams are not being diverted to, for example, outwardly innocuous educational or cultural enterprises that are being utilized as a vehicle for the dissemination of propaganda and incitement?
Another area of concern relates to the project “Capacity Building of Palestinian Coastal Police” ($225,000 in 1999). Is the coastal guard not one of the organizations under the umbrella of the Palestinian Security Services (PSS)? This issue is especially serious given reports that the budget committee of the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC) has allocated the largest proportion of the PA budget for the year 2000 (35.14%) to the Palestinian police and other overblown security forces, while education gets 18.36%, health 6.8%, and social services just 5.5%. Chairman Arafat’s office has apparently been allocated 6.1% of the current budget of $640 million.36
Since its establishment, the PA has received $1.8 billion in foreign aid.37 According to extensive research by the Washington-based Middle East Media and Research Institute (MEMRI), this money has been invested in an economy characterized by a system of powerful monopolies closely associated with the regime. Public criticism of the PA’s corrupt practices is being voiced more openly, even within the ranks of the Palestinians, as the impoverished masses are ignored.
Nine dissident members of the Palestinian legislature, who recently dared to highlight the corruption endemic in the PA system, were condemned and almost lost their parliamentary indemnity, while one was wounded in an apparent retaliation for his part in the protest document. The parliamentary response was: “We condemn the way the document was written and everything contained in it.”38
It is not surprising therefore that in CPRS opinion polls undertaken in November 1999, 56% of the Palestinian sample believed that people “cannot criticize the PA without fear”.39 Only one month later, the figure was up to 61%.40 However, the Canadian Government and the Canadian public, which are major contributors to the Palestinian Authority, need not hesitate to ask for an accounting of how donations are spent and whether aid is reaching its legitimate destination. In a climate characterized by a total absence of accountability, how can we be sure that that Canadian funding is reaching legitimate causes that will foster peace and prosperity?
º B’nai Brith Canada urges to Government to demand a comprehensive accounting of funding directed to development programs in the West Bank and Gaza.
º B’nai Brith Canada asks that a full review be made available to the public, to assure taxpayers that funding under these programs is reaching those in need.
Table Of Contents
| Introduction & The UN
| The Peace Process
| International Terrorism
Jews In Iran
| Discrimination In Canada
| Footnotes
Institute For International Affairs