Hamas is a horrific butcher of Jews. But the death of thousands of innocent Palestinians serves to promote these antisemitic militants. Heaven forbid a Member of Parliament should speak his mind.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on February 19, 2024.

OTTAWA—If you want to know why politicians are loathe to speak out, just ask Rob Oliphant.

The CBC reported last week that the parliamentary secretary to the foreign minister was having a private telephone conversation with a constituent when he “ripped into” his own government’s position on the war in Gaza.

In a telephone call recorded without his consent or knowledge, Oliphant was particularly critical of the government’s decision to defund the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees after it was alleged that 12 of its employees participated in the massacre of Jewish civilians on Oct. 7, 2023, that prompted the current conflict.

Oliphant also ruminated openly about quitting his job, telling the person on the other end of the line: “I’ve come many times thinking, ‘Do I quit that job? Do I just go on being an MP?’ “

The constituent declined to be identified publicly for fear of job repercussions, and Oliphant explained his comments, saying he was dealing with a constituent in crisis, and hoped the comments would remain private.

No one would expect a private conversation to go viral but, unfortunately, in this day and age, there is no such thing as privacy.

That is why politicians are so loathe to air their own feelings in public, whether on the phone, in an email, or in ordinary conversation.

Of course, there is no unanimity in the Liberal caucus over all the actions that have been taken following the Oct. 7 massacre.

The constituent who released the telephone recording said they were pushing for a ceasefire, but I am not sure how the Oliphant exposure promotes their position.

Instead, it simply underscores the divisions that exist within the government on this issue.

And that should come as no surprise. Just as Jewish and Palestinian supporters in caucus have been outspoken in their views, so it would be ludicrous to assume that Oliphant is in favour of every aspect of his party’s foreign policy.

Oliphant also said he was willing to defend his statements in public, including his opposition to the defunding of UNRWA.

He told the CBC: “You don’t stop aid to Gaza because of 12 or 13 employees out of 13,000. It drives me crazy. … It is opportunistic, unfair, and it is maligning the operation of a UN organization that is doing, not perfect work… .But it is the best we have for education, medical care, for food, all of those things.”

Oliphant is a United Church minister as well as a Member of Parliament, and he has travelled to refugee camps managed by UNRWA in multiple countries, including Lebanon and Jordan. He told the constituent that even if the aid were cancelled directly, there should have been an immediate indirect method to secure food and medicine for those trapped in Gaza through no fault of their own.

History is proving Oliphant right. The death toll of women and children in Gaza rises daily with no end in sight.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has made it very clear that his goal is to annihilate Hamas and push all Palestinians out of the region.

He has the support of the majority of Israelis traumatized by the murderous, orchestrated attack on civilians Oct. 7.

But the enormity of the Israeli response has drawn criticism from around the world, including from those Israelis hoping their family members who are currently in Hamas’ clutches are returned home alive.

The United States and United Kingdom have both recently spoken about the full recognition of Palestine once the war ends.

NDP foreign affairs critic Heather McPherson is moving a motion that will ask the Canadian government to do the same thing.

Her motion was to be tabled last week, but would likely not come to a House vote anytime soon. However, the pressure will mount on the government to bridge the caucus gap between those on either side of this challenging issue.

Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly will have to navigate this mess all the while trying to keep Canadians on both sides of the issue on board.

As she is a potential future leadership candidate, her international decisions will also be weighed against domestic political considerations.

With the NDP on one side and the Conservatives on the other, it is not surprising that the centrist Liberals have divided views on the war.

Hamas is a horrific butcher of Jews. But the death of thousands of Palestinian innocents serves to promote these antisemitic militants.

Heaven forbid a Member of Parliament should speak his mind.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

By Sheila Copps
First published in The Hill Times on October 13, 2023.

OTTAWA—In politics, timing is everything. Members of the New Democratic Party are finding that out as they meet in Hamilton, Ont., this weekend for their first in-person national convention in five years.

One hot-button resolution presented for consideration was a motion by the “Socialist Caucus” calling on the party to “strengthen its defence of Palestinian human rights by actively campaigning for boycott, divestment and sanctions against the Israeli State until Israel ends its illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories.”

According to party officials, that resolution did not make the cut allocated to those deemed a priority in a party ranking system. However, given the nature of unfolding events in Gaza and Israel, it is expected that someone will table an emergency resolution crafted for convention support.

The convention happens to be in the riding of newly-elected Hamilton Centre MPP Sarah Jama who was already in hot water before her election to the provincial legislature because of anti-Jewish comments.

In a 2021 video, Jama spouted conspiracy theories about the local police, claiming they were protecting Naziism and Jews. She accused successive Israeli leaders of funding the killing of people locally and globally.

On the eve of the March 16, 2023, byelection to replace outgoing NDP leader Andrea Horwath as MPP in Queen’s Park, Jama’s video was widely circulated, prompting new leader Marit Stiles to distance her party from the comments.

“We’ve all ended up at rallies and stuff, where maybe she didn’t use the right choice of words.”

Last week, Stiles was again apologizing for Jama, but resisting calls for the Hamilton Centre MPP’s expulsion from caucus. Jama also apologized for a tweet she sent out immediately following the horrific Hamas attack on innocent Jewish civilians in their homes or attending a music festival.

In the tweet, Jama called for “an end to all occupation of Palestinian land,” claiming the attacks were prompted by “violence and retaliation rooted in settler colonialism that has taken the lives of far too many innocent people.”

She failed to mention the more than 1,000 Jews killed in the attacks, and the taking of more than 150 hostages by Hamas.

Stiles immediately distanced herself from Jama’s viewpoint, saying it didn’t align with party policy. It did, however, align with multiple statements Jama made before she ran for political office.

Ontario Premier Doug Ford and interim Liberal Leader John Fraser have both called for Jama’s ejection from the NDP provincial caucus, a demand that Stiles has rebuffed. She said Jama’s statement stemmed from a “personal impact … as someone with Palestinian family members.”

Stiles may withstand calls for Jama’s ouster, but with the national convention taking place in Jama’s Hamilton riding this weekend, the controversy shines a bright light into crevices of the party that remain divided.

Middle Eastern politics always plays a global role. New Democrats are not the first Canadian politicians splintering on the issue.

The beginning of the end of Annamie Paul as the short-lived leader of the federal Green Party was largely predicated on internal struggles over Israeli-Palestinian politics.

She lost a caucus member to the Liberals because of internal party differences on the Middle East.

The NDP has long been seen on one side of the issue, with multiple resolutions supporting the Palestinians. Under normal circumstances, a resolution to strengthen support for Palestine could be a giant convention yawn, not unexpected but not too newsworthy, either.

But the timing of this convention, on the heels of horrific massacre of hundreds of innocent civilians by a group of terrorists, means whatever happens will make international headlines.

With barbaric images of beheaded children, and brutalized elderly victims, Hamas has managed to forfeit any semblance of a legitimate political movement.

Instead, it has reinforced its reputation as a terrorist organization that has no intention of supporting the existence of the state of Israel.

Multiple observers have focused on the toxic leadership of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Paradoxically, the events of the past week may result in his ouster as the obvious breach of vaunted Israeli security efforts is still unexplained.

How could Hamas carry out such a well-financed and orchestrated attack without anyone in Israeli intelligence getting wind of what was being planned?

It is a security faux pas equivalent to the horrific wakeup call sent to the world on Sept. 11, 2001, with the downing of the twin towers in New York.

No finger-pointing can explain away the utter atrocities that were visited upon innocent civilians while they went about enjoying their normal daily lives.

Supporting Hamas in this disaster would be a huge mistake for Jama and the New Democrats.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.

By SHEILA COPPS
First published in The Hill Times on May 21, 2018.

OTTAWA—Thank you Donald Trump. A Middle East powder keg erupted last week with a split-screen shot that said it all.

The juxtaposition was so glaring that the Economist cover story had this to say: “In a surreal split-screen moment, the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, was exulting over the opening of America’s embassy in Jerusalem, calling it a “great day for peace.” The other television split screen shot involved an up-close view of many shots. Israeli military snipers picked off specific targets including personnel from Doctors Without Borders, who had gathered to provide medical support at an expected massive Gaza protest.

Trump’s on-screen triumph included his daughter and son-in-law, accompanied by a motley group of administration officials, Trump fundraisers and Christian zealots, all applauding his decision to move the embassy to west Jerusalem. Missing were most diplomats from other countries, some of whom boycotted, while others were simply not invited.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of protesters had gathered at the frontier to protest the embassy move and mark the 70th anniversary of what they call Nakba, or day of catastrophe, when the creation of the State of Israel displaced more than 700,000 Palestinians.

News reports say that more than 60 people were killed, incuding a baby overcome by tear gas. The New York Times later reported the baby who died had also suffered from a congenital heart disease and The Associated Press quoted an unnamed doctor who believed the cause of her death was a heart ailment, not Israeli tear gas. London, Ont., physician, Dr. Tarek Loubani, was shot in both legs. More than 2,700 Palestinians were injured, including 1,359 hit by live ammunition.

Israel blamed the deaths on Hamas, suggesting it was only defending its borders from terrorist attacks. The White House backed that viewpoint. Principal deputy press secretary Raj Shah called the demonstrations “a propaganda attempt” orchestrated by Hamas.” “I think the Israeli government has spent weeks trying to handle this without violence, and we find it very unfortunate.”

Most of the world community used much stronger language, condemning the unwarranted use of excessive violence by the Israeli military. United Kingdom Prime Minister Theresa May, usually a staunch defender of Israel, has called for an independent inquiry into the use of live ammunition against civilians.

Meanwhile, Canada’s prime minister added his voice to those calling for a probe, characterizing the use of “excessive violence” as “inexcusable.”

Even the Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson admitted the images were a public relations “knockout” for the Palestinians. “It was a graphic image,” Lt.-Col. Jonathan Conricus, a senior officer in the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit, was reported to have said Wednesday. “The amount of people hit did us an immense wrong. It was a difficult story to tell.”

The longest-running Israeli newspaper, left-leaning Haaretz, published an opinion piece that pulled no punches. Anyone who isn’t ashamed of what should already be called the “Trump Massacre” should be. Let anyone who is not ashamed be ashamed at the wanton firing at unarmed demonstrators while the VIPs, the leaders, the lords and masters and the rabbis attend a vacuous and tasteless celebration.”

The celebration guest list highlighted a bizarre mix of movers and shakers in the Trump coalition. Invitees included an evangelical Christian pastor who once claimed Jews “can’t be saved.”

Fox News reported in advance of the ceremony that Rev. Robert Jeffress’s prayer would include “thanking God for our President Donald Trump, who had the courage to do what no other U.S. president has done, and that is to officially recognize Jerusalem and to move the embassy.”

In the past, Jeffress has labelled Mormonism and Islam “a heresy from the pit of Hell” and claimed that Islam “promotes pedophilia.” Mitt Romney, a Mormon and Republican 2012 presidential candidate, criticized the inclusion of Jeffress in the ceremony. “Such a religious bigot should not be giving the prayer that opens the United States Embassy in Jerusalem,” he tweeted.

Guest Rev. John Hagee, founder of Christians United for Israel, has characterized Adolf Hitler as a “hunter” sent to help Jews return to Israel. Hagee and Jeffress believe last week’s return to Jerusalem sets the stage for the Apocalypse.

The bizarre juxtaposition of death and celebration was no accident. Israeli Minister of Public Security, Strategic Affairs and Information Gilad Erdan defended the deaths, telling Ynet News: “We need to go back to targeted killings, and they need to go back to hiding underground and fearing for their lives, not organizing the masses to carry out terror attacks.”

Erdan added, “It’s time for the heads of Hamas to pay a personal price for organizing these terror attacks.”

That may have been his intention. At this juncture it appears that innocent civilians and first responders were the ones who paid the price.

The Hill Times Editor’s note: This column had originally reported the U.S. embassy moved to East Jerusalem, but it was moved to west Jerusalem. As well, The New York Times reported the baby who died had also suffered from a congenital heart disease.

Sheila Copps is a former Jean Chrétien-era cabinet minister and a former deputy prime minister. Follow her on Twitter at @Sheila_Copps.