Resolved to Remain Bigoted

"If we hold strong, we will be leaders amongst Canadian political parties."
"Let's stand up for social justice [by supporting Palestinians affected by Israeli occupation]."
Lisa Barrett, Green Party of Canada foreign affairs critic

"[The] party will allow these discussions to come and we will respect the decision of the membership. We;'re committed to democracy."
"We're more worried about staying true to our principles [as opposed to being concerned about being elected]."
Ken Melamed, Green Party president

"It [adopting controversial resolutions targeting Israel at the Green biennial convention] may attract people to us to know that we're the only political party that doesn't shut down debate and doesn't run top-down. Clearly."
Elizabeth May, MP, leader, Green Party of Canada

Photo: Canada Israel Friendship Association

"Greens have chosen to embrace the policy position of shills for 9/11 conspiracy theories and terror apologists rather than side with the democratic and environmentally friendly state of Israel."
"This clearly reflects how out of touch the Green party has become with Canadian culture and values and it has made itself less relevant after its convention this weekend by voting for the politics of division and demonization."
"[By] unfairly singling out the world's only Jewish state for contempt, it has firmly entrenched itself beyond the fringe of mainstream Canadian politics."
Michael Mostyn, chief executive, B'nai Brith Canada

"A vote for BDS is a vote by those who seek for the de-legitimization of Israel, and ultimately seeks to have it, and its population, wiped off the map, preying on Israel's ability to defend itself."
Paul Estrin (former) president, Green Party of Canada

During its conference, a majority of Green Party members decided to vote to adopt the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement into their own party platform. The BDS movement which was initiated by Palestinians and spread through student and union and academic groups throughout Europe and North America on campuses with boisterously noisy condemnation of Israel has, over the years, attempted to achieve the complete ostracism of the state.

The now-global campaign lobbies corporations, artists and academic institutions to convince them to sever all business, academic and artistic ties with Israel. Their purpose, claim the boycott supporters is to advance the independence and human rights of Palestinians. The Israeli Ambassador to Canada's response was that Rafael Barak "deeply regret(s)" the decision. It "prejudicially singles out Israel, and is totally unhelpful to those who support the pursuit of a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians."

There is emotion and passion on both sides, understandably. And loathing hatred lurks deep within the consciousness of those who take up the BDS embrace with such gusto. Without taking note of all circumstances involved in the issue, making oneself familiar with the complexity of the ongoing conflict, none of these 'progressive' who pursue justice have any idea of what justice represents. But they are useful foils for the cause seeking to degrade and slander the Jewish state, mostly because it is a Jewish state.

According to a United Nations report, the BDS movement has expressed an impact on Israel where foreign direct investment was seen to have dropped 46 percent between 2013 and 2014, clearly a worrying sign for Israel. Yet its total impact eludes, particularly since the 25th World Investment Report concluded the decline was due to the fragility of the global economy which has led to "political uncertainty for investors and elevated geopolitical risks".

And then again, there is the quite salient examination of foreign capital flow into Israel undertaken by Bloomberg and published in June, which highlighted a completely contrary trend. A record high investment was hit in 2015 with a near-tripling from 2005 when the BDS campaign was launched. According to Bloomberg, foreign investments in Israeli assets amounted to $285.12 billion last year.

BE IT RESOLVED that the GPC supports the use of divestment, boycott and sanctions (“BDS”) that are targeted to those sectors of Israel’s economy and society which profit from the ongoing occupation of the OPT;
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the GPC will support such a form of BDS until such time as Israel implements a permanent ban on further settlement construction in the OPT, and enters into good faith negotiations with representatives of the Palestinian people for the purpose of establishing a viable, contiguous and truly sovereign Palestinian state.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the GPC opposes all efforts to prohibit, punish or otherwise deter expressions of support for BDS.