Montreal, March 28th, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) strongly condemns the Quebec government's new "secularism" bill – bill 21 – for being discriminatory and unconstitutional.  Entitled “An act respecting the laicity of the state,” the bill states that public servants in positions of authority, including judges, prosecutors, police officers, prison guards, court security, peace officers, school principals and elementary and high school teachers, will not be allowed to wear religious symbols while on the job.  A secular organization, CJPME opposes the bill as an infringement on the rights of Canadians of Middle East origin, especially Muslim-Canadians.  The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms prevents the government from passing laws which prevent or inhibit Canadians from practicing their religion. Continue reading

Montreal, March 22nd, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) strongly condemns Trump’s tweet yesterday regarding the Golan Heights.  In that tweet, Trump signalled his readiness to accept Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights, Syrian territory militarily occupied by Israel since 1967. CJPME calls on the Canadian government to join its international allies in unequivocally condemning Trump’s statement - a statement which violates international law and numerous United Nations resolutions, setting a dangerous precedent moving forward.    Continue reading

Montreal, March 15th, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is devastated and deeply upset by today’s horrific attack on two New Zealand mosques, where 49 people were senselessly killed and dozens more injured. In the wake of this terrible tragedy, CJPME renews its call for the Canadian government to stand up for Muslims in all communities by designating January 29th as a National Day of Remembrance and Action on Islamophobia. Continue reading

Montreal, March 5th, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) joined eleven other human rights organizations to send a letter calling the Canadian government to immediately suspend arms sales to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The letter pointed out that three months have passed since the government said it was looking at cancelling sales to the Kingdom, but nothing has happened. In the interim, Saudi Arabia maintains a military campaign in Yemen which commits war crimes and imposes abject suffering. Continue reading

Montreal, February 19th, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) welcomes the results of a national survey co-sponsored by Independent Jewish Voices Canada (IJV) and United Jewish People’s Order (UJPO) on Jewish Canadians opinion toward Israel-Palestine. The survey, conducted by EKOS Research from June to September 2018, reveals that contrary to public opinion, Jewish Canadians have a broad range of opinions on Israel-Palestine. It also reveals that a significant number of Jewish Canadians are critical of the Israeli government and its human rights abuses against Palestinians. Continue reading

Montreal, February 4th, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) rejects Quebec Premier François Legault’s remarks last week, in which he effectively denied the existence of Islamophobia in Quebec. Last Thursday, in response to questions from reporters about designating January 29th as a national day against Islamophobia, Legault stated: “I don’t think there is Islamophobia in Quebec, so I don’t see why there would be a day devoted to Islamophobia.” CJPME points out that there is no empirical support for Legault’s comments and calls on Legault’s government to take concrete measures to combat the growing problem of Islamophobia in the province.  Continue reading

Montreal, January 29th, 2019 — On the second anniversary of the Quebec City Mosque Massacre, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) commemorates and remembers the tragic events at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Quebec City which left 6 dead and 19 injured.  The victims included Azzeddine Soufiane, 57, father of three; Khaled Belkacemi, 60; Aboubaker Thabti; Mamadou Tanou, 42, father of two; Ibrahima Barry, 39, father of four; Abdelkrim Hassane, 41, father of three.  CJPME also calls on the Federal government to designate January 29th as a national day of remembrance and action on Islamophobia and other forms of religious discrimination.  In October, CJPME and the Canadian Muslim Forum (FMC-CMF) launched the “I Remember January 29” campaign (http://january29.ca) which enables Canadians to add their voice in support of this campaign.  Continue reading

Montreal, January 17th, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) applauds the New Democrat Party of Canada’s (NDP) support for the January 29th campaign (http://january29.ca) against Islamophobia in Canada. The campaign, initiated by CJPME and the Canadian Muslim Forum (FMC-CMF), calls on the government to designate January 29th – the anniversary of the Quebec City Mosque Massacre – as a National Day of Remembrance and Action on Islamophobia and other forms of religious discrimination, as per recommendation #30 of the M-103 report from Parliament's Heritage Committee. Continue reading

Montreal, January 4th, 2019 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) applauds the Canadian media’s scrutiny of the Jewish National Fund (JNF) – Canada. On Friday, the CBC’s Evan Dyer published a thorough article exposing how the JNF-Canada is in contravention of both Canadian and international law through its financial support of the Israeli military and projects that dispossess Palestinians of their land. The JNF-Canada’s illicit activities have been an open secret for years, and CJPME is pleased to see mainstream Canadian media discussing the problem. Continue reading

Montreal, December 17, 2018 — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is encouraged to hear that the Trudeau government is looking for ways to stop exporting armoured vehicles to Saudi Arabia.  However, this news comes on the heels of last week’s passage of bill C-47, a highly flawed piece of legislation which purportedly has Canada accede to the international arms trade treaty (ATT.)  For almost two years, CJPME, Amnesty International, Oxfam, Project Ploughshares, the Rideau Institute, and other civil society organizations criticized bill C-47 as falling short of the letter and spirit of the ATT.  Yet when C-47 got Royal Consent last week, the concerns of civil society had been virtually ignored.  Continue reading