JSpaceCanada made the following statement in response to Canada’s Foreign Affairs and International Development (FAAE) Committee’s adoption of a motion to conduct a study on “the actions Canada should take to foster peace, protect civilians, combat terrorism and uphold respect for human rights” in Israel, the West Bank and Gaza:
JSpaceCanada is pleased to see a broad multi-partisan agreement from the Foreign Affairs Committee to undertake a study into Canada’s role in fostering peace and protecting the human rights of all Israelis and Palestinians. As a major funder of peacebuilding activities in the region, Canada has a responsibility to study the impact of those efforts.
This is the first study of Canada’s role in the peace process in nearly two decades and is made necessary by the changing approach of the Netanyahu administration and its extremist coalition partners to Palestinian and Israeli human rights alike.
This change in Israel’s direction is opposed by the vast majority of Canada’s Jewish community, with a recent study commissioned by JSpaceCanada and the New Israel Fund of Canada (NIFC) showing that over half of Canadian Jews oppose the coalition’s policy proposals concerning Palestinian human rights, such as barring Palestinians from serving in the Knesset (69% opposed) and expanding Israeli settlement construction in the West Bank (54% opposed).
We are grateful to all MPs who will thoughtfully engaged in this study across party lines. We are encouraged to see that the committee adopted thoughtful amendments from Liberal MP Rob Oliphant to ensure that the motion will respect the security of both Israelis and Palestinians and the goal of a just, negotiated two-state solution.