Unions, members of civil society, including the organization Voix Judaiennes Indépendants Montréal, and Québec Solidaire demanded on Friday that the Canadian and Quebec governments demand a ceasefire in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and ask for Israel to withdraw its troops from around the Gaza Strip in order to protect civilians on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides.
Of Palestinian origin, the member for Québec solidaire in Mercier, Ruba Ghazal, recalled that her family had been forced into exile in 1948. “The non-respect of the human rights of Palestinians has lasted for decades and at this moment, we know, the response of the government of Israel is increasing the number of innocent victims,” she indicated Friday during a press conference alongside Niall Clapham Ricardo, spokesperson for Independent Jewish Voices Montreal. “There is a peaceful history of Quebec and we must make an appeal to humanism. It is not a question of choosing a camp, the Palestinian camp, the Israeli camp. It is about choosing the side of humans and human dignity and respect for international law. »
According to Niall Clapham Ricardo, this division in this conflict must end and the media has a role to play in this regard. “I think that there is a responsibility of the media to stop creating this artificial division because this artificial division does a lot of harm,” he maintained, emphasizing that, on the ground, there existed in Quebec a solidarity between Jews and Palestinians.
The situation in the Gaza Strip is dramatic, said Anne Latendresse, co-president of Alternatives, a non-governmental international solidarity and development organization. “I’m very worried — I can’t sleep at night. There are approximately a million people who have been displaced or who have been displaced in Gaza. […] It’s serious what’s happening right now. Young people from Gaza who are 16 and 17 years old have never left the Gaza Strip. They didn’t see anything else. I think there’s going to be a breakup. What are we offering these young people? And what are we offering to Israeli youth who are enlisted and who find themselves mobilized on the front while many would undoubtedly prefer not to serve. »
Marc-Édouard Joubert, president of the FTQ Metropolitan Montreal regional council, was outraged that the right to demonstrate in Quebec could be called into question. “We must not conflate that it is active support that we are giving to Hamas and their actions perpetrated on October 7. We support the Palestinian nation against Israeli apartheid and we want to reaffirm the right of the Palestinian nation to self-determination and to a free, full and complete existence. »
Several demonstrations in support of the Palestinians are also planned for the end of the week. The first will be held on Saturday in Quebec and the other on Sunday in Montreal.
For his part, Niall Clapham Ricardo believes that the Canadian government should not support the government of the Israeli Prime Minister. “Benjamin Netanyahu has been in power in Israel since 2008-2009. This is his failure today. […] The majority of the Israeli community wants them to leave. It is time for Canada and the United States and the international community to tell Mr. Benjamin Netanyahu that it is time to go. »