Canada's repression against Palestinians, supporters, growing: CPA
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A statement by the Canada Palestine Association criticizes the double standards of Canadian politicians and media regarding how they treat pro-Palestine activists and groups versus how they treat Zionists.
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A pro-Palestine protest in Canada in support of Gaza on April 28, 2024. ( X / @Fopnetwork_en)
A statement titled "Stop Harassing anti-Genocide Advocates for Palestine!" by the Canada Palestine Association discusses how the repression against Palestinians and their supporters has been increasing in Canada in recent months.
According to the statement, every major city in the country has witnessed politically motivated cases claiming fraudulent charges against activists who stand against Zionism and its narrative.
One of those cases took place a few days ago in Vancouver BC, as the international coordinator of Samidoun, Charlotte Kates, was shortly detained and charged with "hate speech" offenses.
The condition for her release was for her not to take part in any "protests, rallies or assemblies" until her court date of October 8, which was triggered by her stance of supporting the right of Palestinians to resist their Zionist oppressor and for saying "Long Live October 7" during a rally speech on April 26, the statement wrote.
According to the statement, Kates, Samidoun and her husband Khaled Barakat have been the center of a "witch-hunt" by the Zionist lobby for multiple years now, as this lobby has been pushing the federal government to add Samidoun to the country's "terrorist" list with CIJA, even adding this demand to their last election campaign.
'Double standards'
The statement then touched down on the "double standards" in Canada as Zionist groups can get actual Israeli occupation forces troops to campuses to give their "insights from the ground", and pro-Zionists are publicly announcing that they are "arming themselves."
On the other hand, any person expressing a slight show of verbal support for the Palestinian right to resist foreign occupation and aggression is legally slammed with a "hate speech" charge, it added.
The statement then criticized politicians for how they "line up to pile on" and attack those whom dominant pro-"Israel" groups label as current "persona non grata," and how quick they are to take such actions.
It stressed that these politicians, and a huge part of mainstream media, seem to "have no shame when it comes to proving their loyalty to the Zionist project."
Pro-Palestinian group took legal action against Canada over 'Israel'
Canadian pro-Palestinian and human rights activists initiated legal action against the federal government on March 6, seeking to halt the permission granted to companies for exporting military goods and technology to the Israeli occupation.
In a federal court filing, the lawsuit contended that existing Canadian laws prohibit military exports to "Israel" due to a "substantial risk" that such exports could be utilized to breach international law and engage in severe acts of violence against women and children. This information came from a statement released by the applicants.
Since October 7, Ottawa has granted approvals for military exports to "Israel" totaling at least C$28.5 million ($21.0 million), surpassing the value of permits issued in the preceding year, as per the applicants.
"Our policy on export permits has not changed. Canada has one of the strongest export controls systems in the world, and respect for human rights is enshrined in our export controls legislation," a spokesperson for the Global Affairs Canada department said in a written statement.
"In recent years, the government has not received, and therefore not approved, any export permits for weapons to Israel. The permits issued since October 7th, and in fact all permits that are currently open, are for non-lethal equipment," the spokesperson added.
