Gaza Strip same size as Montreal: Canada condones human rights violations Toronto, January 12, 2009 The United Nations Human Rights Council condemned Israel on Monday for its grave violations of human rights in Gaza. The resolution called for an international mission to be dispatched to Gaza. Canada was the only country to vote against the resolution with 33 others countries voting in favour and 13 abstaining. Canada voted against the resolution which called for an immediate withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Gaza strip because it felt it did not make clear that Israel had attacked in response to rockets launched from Gaza into Southern Israel. However the resolution did specify that the launching of the crude rockets against Israeli civilians that resulted in the loss of 4 civilian lives should end, while noting that more than 900 Palestinian had been killed and 4,000 injured as a result of Israel's strikes. Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) finds that Canada's position during the War on Gaza has been wholly unsatisfactory and that Canada is complicit in the Gaza massacres by its failure to call for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire and to hold Israel responsible for its illegal actions in the Strip. The Canadian 'No' vote comes as no surprise considering Canada's recent record of voting at the UN concerning Israel, said CJPME Director, Thomas Woodley. Canada has become one of just a few countries in the world to blindly support Israel regardless of its violations of international law. Canada does this despite the consensus in the international community to condemn Israel for its continued occupation and contraventions of international law. In the last four years the Canadian vote at the UN regarding Israel has largely moved away from support for Palestinian human and humanitarian rights and self-determination. Canada has shifted from Yes votes to Abstentions and No votes, placing Canada firmly in the minority of the international community supporting of Israel and its brutal policies regarding the Occupied Palestinian Territories. CJPME believes that ending the occupation of both the West Bank and Gaza through a negotiated and just solution is the only means by which both peoples can hope to live in peace and with dignity.

About CJPME Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is a non-profit and secular organization bringing together men and women of all backgrounds who labour to see justice and peace take root again in the Middle East. Its mission is to empower decision-makers to view all sides with fairness and to promote the equitable and sustainable development of the region. For more information, please contact Grace Batchoun, 514-745-8491. Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East http://ww.cjpme.org The whole or parts of this press release can be reproduced without permission. http://www.cjpme.org/DisplayDocument.aspx?DocumentID=289&SaveMode=0 Spotlight on Israeli carnage in Gaza

January 2009

• Position Paper - Israel’s unacceptable war on Gaza
• Harper position on UN school bombing unacceptable
• Quick Facts on recent Israeli Violence in Gaza
• Express your frustration with the Conservative position on Israel-Gaza
• Express your frustration with the Liberal position on Israel-Gaza
• Call the NDP to go further in their statement on Israel-Gaza
• Express your frustration with the Bloc Quebecois statement on Israel-Gaza

MP: "Israel must end Blockade" MP Storseth, Western Standard: "Israel must also end their Eighteen month long Blockade of Gaza." YES!!! http://westernstandard.blogs.com/shotgun/2009/01/a-voice-of-reason-on-gaza.html

And ...

Obama Breaks Silence, Vows To Work for Peace in Gaza

washingtonpost YES!!! If the Canadian government drags its feet, you miss the wave, you become the 'problem' to be buried with Bush. I'm not entirely opposed to that. But Canadian politics is anathema to me, and I'm much more concerned about the children and families of Gaza, and I will put pressure anywhere there is power to

DO THE RIGHT THING RIGHT NOW!!!

Just as your courageous MP Brian Storseth has done. Catch the wave. ck Aid Appeal - MP calls for Gaza ceasefire 6:43pm Click here to email Jeremy Lye 1/5/2009 It may be half a world away - but the conflict in Gaza hasn't gone unnoticed by one Local MP. Westlock-St. Paul MP Brian Storseth is echoing the federal government's call for Israel and Hamas to agree to an immediate ceasefire. But where the government says Hamas must first end their attacks on Israeli civillians, Storseth has gone one step beyond the Government's official line saying Israel must also end their Eighteen month long Blockade of Gaza. Unofficial estimates put the death toll from the incursion at over 500.

..... Posted by Janet Neilson on January 6, 2009 | Permalink Note: CBC ran a tidbit on Storseth, then pulled it. (chicken spits!)

A Jewish Canadian Sees Gaza ---"It's Like another Planet"

Physicians for Human Rights -- Israel ... will soon release a report on "medical extortion." Some sick Palestinians are interrogated at the Erez crossing and asked to become informants or collaborators as a condition of permission to leave Gaza for medical treatment.

Gaza's shocking devastation TheSpec.com - Opinions - A Canadian Jew's visit to the territory left him ashamed by what he saw <http://www.thespec.com/default> http://www.thespec.com/printArticle/418302 Harry Shannon The Hamilton Spectator(Aug 14, 2008) I had expected conditions in Gaza to be bad, but I was still shocked at the devastation when I went there in July. Last month my companion and I entered Gaza at the Erez crossing through a modern building reminiscent of an airport terminal. After questioning by the Israeli border police, we left the building and had a kilometre walk to pick up transportation. It was as if we had travelled to another planet. The sandy track is surrounded by the blown-up remnants of Gaza 's former industrial district. Rubble stretching for hundreds of metres lines the route. Even on the main road through Gaza, driving is a slalom course around potholes. The air reeks of burnt oil and stale food from exhaust fumes (cars rely on used cooking oil for fuel.) There are not many cars on the road, anyway. Donkey carts are common. Despite the 35 C temperatures, drivers don't use air conditioning in cars so they can save fuel. Every so often, the smell of sewage fills the air. Lack of treatment facilities means that much of it is dumped raw into the Mediterranean. We went first to a children's hospital on the edge of Gaza City. The hospital director and doctors described the conditions. Of 100 beds, 40 were occupied by children with bacterial meningitis, an extremely serious disease. There's a shortage of basic medicines and supplies, even simple things such as alcohol swabs. The hospital has three ventilators; only one is working. Israel won't let in spare parts for the others. The working machine is for a "hopeless case" who can't be taken off. Meanwhile, patients who could benefit have no working machine. There are many cases of malnutrition -- for example, children nearly a year old weighing 3 kilograms (6.6 pounds). Their families can't afford the special formula they need to improve. Because of lack of equipment and qualified personnel, there is no radiotherapy and limited chemotherapy in Gaza. Treatment for many conditions can only be obtained in Israel. Physicians for Human Rights -- Israel reports that, despite the ceasefire in the last few weeks, emergency medical cases are still refused entry into Israel, where they could have life-saving treatment. PHR has documented many cases of people dying before they are treated. Indeed the proportion of patients denied exit from Gaza for treatment has increased since last year. PHR will soon release a report on "medical extortion." Some sick Palestinians are interrogated at the Erez crossing and asked to become informants or collaborators as a condition of permission to leave Gaza for medical treatment. After leaving the hospital, we travelled to the southern end of Gaza . We stopped at the Rafah crossing, the border with Egypt . It was closed, as it is most of the time. A cluster of people were waiting, hoping against hope that they would be allowed to cross. Egypt is under pressure from both Israel and the U.S. not to open the border, and in any event, they do not want large numbers of refugees to flood in. We drove into the city of Rafah, which has come under bombardment by the Israeli military. A huge number of buildings have been severely damaged or completely destroyed. For street after street, barely any building is untouched. Makeshift shacks of corrugated metal and cloth sheets are now homes for those who have lost their housing. We returned north along the coast road. The beauty of the sea view contrasted sharply with the rest of what we had seen. After passing the Ash-Shati refugee camp, we went by modern hotels. They wait in vain for customers. The Gazan economy, devastated by Israel 's border controls, continues to languish. My sister and her husband are Orthodox Jews living near Tel Aviv. They are outraged at Israel 's behaviour, especially the restrictions on sick patients needing to leave Gaza . My brother-in-law, a former chair of family medicine at Tel Aviv University and a specialist in medical ethics, has complained publicly about this. As a Jew, I, too, am ashamed and disgusted at what is happening. Yes, Israel needs security. But what is happening goes far beyond security needs. Israel 's actions amount to collective punishment, forbidden under international law. I am ashamed that the Harper government has tilted toward unconditional support for Israel against the Palestinians. The current policy is unconscionable, as anyone who visits Gaza can see only too well. Harry Shannon is a professor of clinical epidemiology and bio- statistics at McMaster University , and a member of Independent Jewish Voices. He lives in Dundas.