Montreal, October 24, 2013  — Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) intends to appeal the Toronto Transit Commission’s (TTC) rejection of ads about various aspects of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.  CJPME learned Monday, Oct. 21, that its ads had been rejected by TTC staff. The centerpiece of the ads is a series of four maps depicting Palestinian loss of land over the past six decades, ultimately obstructing the creation of a viable Palestinian state.  In its rejection, TTC staff asserted that CJPME’s ads did not comply with the guidelines of the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards, but did not specify what aspects of the ads were non-compliant.  

CJPME Factsheet 40, published June 2008: In June of 2002 the Israeli government decided to build a Wall with the stated goal of “providing security” to Israeli citizens. In reality, 80% of the Wall is built onWest Bank land and successfully encircles and/or isolates numerous Palestinian population centers. This results in dozens of enclaves caught between the Wall on the East, andIsrael and the Green Line on the West – the “Seam Zone.” 

This position paper first summarizes the numerous and devastating impacts of Israel’s wall on the Palestinian population, before displaying the Canadian policy on the subject and its loopholes. This paper comes to the conclusion that Israel has the right to protect its citizens but that it should remain in conformity with international law.