Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is shocked and upset by Canada’s decision to abstain on Norway’s resolution at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), which requested the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to render an urgent advisory opinion on Israel’s starvation policies in Gaza. The resolution, which was adopted this afternoon by a vote of 137 to 12, requests an ICJ opinion on Israel’s obligations as an occupying power and UN member to facilitate humanitarian access in Gaza. CJPME is incensed that Canada has failed to hold Israel accountable for its genocidal policies of starvation.
“For decades, Canada has opposed or abstained on all attempts to use the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or International Criminal Court (ICC) as an avenue for justice in Palestine. Canada has repeatedly rejected the right of Palestinians to access mechanisms of international law, upholding Israeli impunity. Today’s abstention continues that shameful legacy,” said Michael Bueckert, Vice President of CJPME.
Norway’s resolution asked the ICJ for an opinion on “the obligations of Israel, as an occupying Power and as a member of the United Nations […] to ensure and facilitate the unhindered provision of urgently needed supplies essential to the survival of the Palestinian civilian population as well as of basic services and humanitarian and development assistance[.]” The resolution is an urgent response to Israel’s latest legislative measures which threaten to dismantle UNRWA, often described as the backbone of the humanitarian response in Gaza. Earlier today, Human Rights Watch (HRW) issued a report concluding that Israel’s deprivation of water to Gaza’s civilian population is an “act of genocide,” following similar conclusions from Amnesty International.
Prior to today’s vote, Canada has taken a more justice-oriented approach in voting on UN resolutions related to Palestine-Israel this year. Whereas since 2011 Canada has been voting “No” on nearly every resolution related to Palestinian human rights, this year Canada has finally shifted in approach by voting “Yes” on a majority of relevant resolutions. “Canada’s renewed support for most resolutions on Palestinian human rights at the UN has been a welcome and long-overdue shift. Regrettably, when it came to the resolution for an ICJ opinion – an initiative with actual teeth to hold Israel accountable – Canada simply folded. This exposes the limits of Trudeau’s supposed change of heart,” Bueckert added. (more...)
Canada’s Abstention on Norway’s UN Motion is Disgraceful
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