Montreal, October 5, 2023 — Products originating in the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT) must be properly labelled as such, argued Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) in a submission to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA). CJPME submitted its opinion as part of the CFIA’s public consultation into the labelling of “food products from contested territories,” which was launched to resolve the problem of ‘Product of Israel’ labels on goods from illegal Israeli settlements. CJPME argues that any future labels must clearly indicate that such goods are from territories which are occupied, and distinguish between trade with the occupying power and the occupied population

Montreal, September 27, 2023 — A new report by Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) warns that Canada’s trade policy with Israel operates as if Israel had already annexed the occupied Palestinian territories (OPT), bolstering Israel’s attempts to annex the territory. Titled “Annexing Palestine Through Trade,” the report shows that through the Canada-Israel Free Trade Agreement (CIFTA), Canada has been treating all trade with the OPT as if it were “Israeli,” thus violating international law and rewarding Israel’s illegal settlement activity. CJPME’s report demonstrates that CIFTA’s benefits to Palestinians are grossly outweighed by its harms, and urges that the trade deal be suspended until Israel complies with international law.

Montreal, August 14, 2023 — Quebeckers are expressing their outrage over a recent announcement that the Quebec government will be opening a trade office in Israel, despite credible accusations that the Israeli government is imposing a regime of apartheid on Palestinians. Quebec Minister of International Relations and La Francophonie, Martine Biron, made the announcement on August 3 that Quebec would be opening an office in Tel Aviv to build trade relations with Israel, and that it would cost half a million dollars in its first year. Montreal-based Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is urging the Quebec government to reverse its decision to open a trade office, which suggests that the province is indifferent to Israel’s abysmal human rights record.

Montreal, August 3, 2023 - CJPME Statement: Today’s announcement that Quebec will establish an office in Tel Aviv is deeply out of touch with events on the ground and significantly undermines Quebec’s stated support for Palestinian self-determination.

Montreal, February 8, 2023 - Below is a letter to Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade of Canada, Mary Ng, requesting an explanation for her meeting with Ofir Akunis, a minister in Israel's far-right government. "This meeting raises troubling human rights concerns given the Israeli government’s espousal of supremacist views, its intentions to illegally annex the occupied West Bank, and the growing recognition that Israel’s practices amount to the crime of apartheid under international law." Click here to download the letter as a PDF.

Montreal, May 16, 2022  — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) welcomes a new ruling by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) confirming that “Product of Israel” labels on wine from illegal Israeli settlements are “false,” and that they therefore violate Canadian consumer protection law. This outcome follows a multiple-year legal battle led by David Kattenburg and Dimitri Lascaris, after an original CFIA determination against the labels in 2017 was overturned in an act of political interference by the Canadian government. CJPME urges the Canadian agency to take action against the unlawful products, and for Parliament to move towards ending all trade with illegal settlements.

January 31, 2022 - Legislators from Europe and North America met today to discuss various legislative options that lawmakers can pursue to end the import of goods produced in illegal settlements in occupied territory, including by Israeli settlers in the occupied Palestinian territories (oPt). 

** UPDATE MAY 17: Today we learned that Green MP Paul Manly made two attempts to call for an emergency debate in Parliament last week. We greatly appreciate these efforts, and hope that the Bloc will join the Greens and NDP in their call for a debate. We continue to urge the party leadership of both the Greens and Bloc to endorse an arms embargo on Israel **

Montreal, May 17, 2021  — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) is urging the leadership of the Bloc Québécois (BQ) and Green Party of Canada (GPC) to match the recent commitments of the New Democratic Party (NDP) by endorsing an arms embargo on Israel, and by calling for an emergency Parliamentary debate on Israeli violence. While individual BQ and GPC MPs have made positive statements in support of Palestinian human rights, CJPME notes that the party leadership must do more to push the government for concrete action.

Montreal, April 10, 2021  — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) applauds the New Democratic Party of Canada (NDP) for adopting a bold new policy in support of sanctions against Israel. This evening at the NDP policy convention, party members passed a popular, grassroots resolution in support of a ban on trade with illegal Israeli settlements and an arms embargo on the State of Israel. This vote is a major win for party activists, including Palestinian and Jewish members, who have organized for years to get the NDP take action to support Palestinian human rights. A statement from the main organizers behind the resolution can be found here. 

Yesterday, Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) launched a campaign urging the Canadian government to cancel its 36 million dollar drone contract with Israeli weapons company Elbit Systems. Announced in December 2020, the stated purpose for this “civilian” drone is environmental surveillance in the arctic. However, Palestinian civil society and anti-war groups have raised concerns about the harmful role of Elbit Systems and its products in Israeli violations of human rights and international law in the occupied Palestinian territory.