FACE TO FACE: Is the Harper government's stance on Israel the right one?
All previous Canadian governments have supported Israel's legitimacy, security and right to self-defence. Prime minister after prime minister has touted a two-state system and has consistently denounced the terrorist activities of Hamas.
The difference with the Stephen Harper government, however, is that it's not just talking the talk, it's walking the walk.
At the United Nations in particular, Canada has been one of the few countries to oppose a number of unbalanced resolutions that portray Israel as the root cause of the conflict with Palestine. Many of these resolutions come with anti-Semitic undertones and conveniently fail to condemn acts of terror.
If my colleague were prime minister, he would sit on the fence and not pick sides.
But let's look at the other side in this conflict: the Palestinian Authority (PA).
You'll recall that Hamas, which runs the Gaza, has struck a reconciliation accord with Fatah, which controls the PA.
Hamas is an organization that has terrorized the people of Israel with suicide bombs, fire bombings and even missile attacks for the past two decades. This is an organization that refuses to formally recognize Israel and has broken truce pacts.
That's reason enough for Canada to support Israel. But we support Israel also because it embodies principles that Canadians value and respect. It's the only free and democratic country in the Middle East where its minorities live with complete religious and individual freedom. We need to support and promote that - especially in that part of the world.
And to be fair, we haven't completely shunned the Palestinians.
What the left-wing media fails to report is that Canada is also a supporter of Palestinian people, having committed $300 million over the past five years to assist the Palestinian Authority to build capacity in the key areas of justice sector reform, security and sustainable economic growth. The Harper government has also provided humanitarian assistance to Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, including refugees.
We continue to be a fair and just nation but under the Harper government, Canada no longer panders to bodies like the UN.
When given a choice, we take a principled stand and come to the defence of those who believe in the same freedoms we do.
Andy Radia is a Coquitlam resident and political columnist who writes for Yahoo! Canada News and Vancouver View Magazine. He has been politically active in the Tri-Cities, having been involved with election campaigns at all three levels of government, including running for Coquitlam city council in 2005.
