To the Editor:
While I am concerned for her sake about the level of rage expressed by Reverend Margaret Sager in her opinion piece published on November 13th, I was relieved to read that she is neither antisemitic nor opposed to the existence of the State of Israel. Presumably then, she is open to an honest discussion about the reality of the current international campaign to delegitimize and demonize Israel.
Whether it is the annual falsehood of Israel Apartheid Week, the various Boycott/Divestment/Sanction programs initiated against Israel by groups as diverse as Canada’s very own CUPW, and the British Association of University Teachers, the vile antisemitic hatred that emanates daily from Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran – surely even Reverend Sager would admit that Israel’s very legitimacy is under attack like no other nation in the world.
Why is Israel such a target? Is it because (in the Reverend’s view), Israel denies human rights to the Palestinians or does not adhere to the rule of law?
Space does not permit me to address in detail the serious fallacies in the Reverend’s apparent assumptions. However, my response is simple - on the human rights front, if honestly examined, Israel’s record stands as a beacon not only within the Middle East, but to all of the nations of the world. As for the rule of law, in what other country in the Middle East, let alone throughout much of the world, is there truly an independent judiciary?
But perhaps there is a better contrast that sums everything up quite succinctly. The parents of Rachel Corrie, who was killed in Gaza while trying to block an Israeli military bulldozer from filling in subterranean tunnels used for arms smuggling, have sued the State of Israel and the Israel Defence Forces in an Israeli court alleging wrongful death. The parents of Israeli soldier Gilad Schalit, who was kidnapped from Israeli territory in 2006 have not even been allowed to contact him – Hamas has even denied the International Red Cross the right to visit him. That speaks volumes to me.
The real issue is not that Israel asserts some sort of special exemption from international law. Israel demands no special status – it simply asks to be treated in the same manner as other nations – something that is clearly not the case. Look at the obscene record of the UNHRC and its corrupt predecessor – which obsessively criticized Israel while ignoring egregious human rights violations around the world. Criticism of Israel by the United Nations and various NGOs is, much more often than not, simply a flimsy front for the enemies of Israel. How can one take the United Nations seriously when Saudi Arabia is granted membership on the new UN Women organization, or when countries like Syria and Libya have been members of the United Nations Security Council. Now there is something to be outraged about!
Reverend Sager can engage in free speech and criticize the policies of the Israeli government all she wants, provided she does so in an honest and civil manner. Israel can take it and is not afraid of it. However, I hope that the Reverend has studied antisemitism enough to know that antisemitism today is not the same as in the past – much of today’s antisemitism is deceitfully cloaked in anti-Israel statements and actions.
I also expect that in coming weeks on these pages and in her sermons to her parishioners, the Reverend will vigorously exercise her rights of free speech (not available in many countries of the world but clearly available in Canada, the United States and Israel) to criticize similar issues in other countries. However, she would be wise to remember that in the words of the late American diplomat Dean Acheson, “[f]ree speech is a restraint on the government, not an incitement for the citizens”.
In the meantime, the plain fact is that in general there is a mob mentality regarding “getting Israel”. I have great admiration for Prime Minister Harper for his principled stand in standing up for Israel – it takes guts and integrity to speak out in support of someone who is being bullied.
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