CIJA Head On Section 13

Looks like Shimon Fogel has plumped for a repeal:

Shimon Fogel, CEO of the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, said that he believed that “there has been an acknowledgement that changes to the Criminal Code would be necessary in addition to passage of the (private member’s ) bill.” While Fogel said he supports repealing Section 13, he believed Storseth’s bill was “not entirely adequate as an alternative to Section 13.

This is not eontirely surprising.  The rumour is that the criminal code changes Fogel wants will involve removing the requirement that the AG approve charges.  That has been one of the impediments that have made using the code in such circumstances problematic.

Sorry for the link to Lemire's site, incidentally.  The original piece from the Cold Lake Sun appears to be unreachable.

CIJA Goes Soft On Section 13!

Asked if the Jewish community would benefit from the retention of Section 13, [CIJA CEO Shimon] Fogel stated: “What was intended as a shield against hate has become a sword. Certainly in its day, it was helpful in confronting the challenges related to the likes of [Holocaust denier] Ernst Zundel… What it has really done is create difficulties for those who might legitimately want to raise questions about groups or ideas that in fact are a threat to the Jewish community or Israel. In effect, the act has become an instrument to chill critical debate about important issues like radical Islam.”

CIJA, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs, is not yet advocating a repeal.  Instead they will hold "consultations" with the Jewish community in order to help determine their position going forward.

In a personal communication, JDL-Canada's Meir Weinstein tells me that he supports Fogel's position on Section 13; I would assume then that this is the official position of the JDL.

In more JDL-related news, that alleged bomb plot of a couple of months back, in which several JDL members were accused of trying to plant a bomb near Palestine House, turns out to be been based on a hoax phone call to the RCMP.  So says the JDL wiki page, at least.

PS. CIJA, as WK intimates, is the group that the old Canadian  Jewish Congress was "folded into".  They are a...bit different...than the old CJC, however.

Should Shimon Fogel Head Up The CIJA?

A rather oblique post at WK's this morning got me wondering.

It turns out that the Canadian Council for Israel and Jewish Advocacy (CIJA) is undergoing a reorg, and part of the reorg involves bringing in new leadership, possibly in the form of Shimon Fogel, currently CEO of the Canada-Israel Committee (CIC).

But how suitable is Mr. Fogel for this position?

Well, as part of the CIC's PR efforts, they've organized several blogger excursions to Israel. The bloggers they have chosen have come from various points on the political spectrum: for example, Jeff Jedras went on one such trip back in May. The problem is, the CIC have also been willing to cavort with the Canadian blogosphere's far-right lunatic fringe: Five Foot, her husband, and Kate from Delisle.

Five Foot (Kathy Shaidle), for example, has been the proud author of such remarks as:

[Sikhs are]Backward foreigners [who] shit on hand that feeds them...Unable to invent their own iconic product due to too much time spent worshipping monkeys and cows, setting women on fire and obsessing over imperceptible differences in each other's skin colour...

And the weird thing is, it seems as though the CIC were a little bit ashamed of being connected with these clearly very zealous supporters of Israel. For one thing, their trip was organized "semi-secretly". For another, while in a personal communication to me it was explained that the CIC was not an official sponsor of the event, Sara Saber-Freedman, their Montreal EVP, went along. Even more mysteriously, a picture of her on the flight over, appeared, and then disappeared, from the website of Shaidle's hubby. In fact, it was buried so deep that it can't even be found on google-cache anymore. (Here's a tip: you want something to disappear from google cache? It only archives the previous version. Keep overwriting with new text and the old stuff eventually falls off). It was as though the CIC wanted to court the fringe right of the Canadian blogosphere, but at the same time wanted to keep it on the down-low.

And now their leader wants to move on to bigger and better things. I suppose the issue is: once he's installed in his new position, will the CIJA begin courting the nation's lunatic fringe on the grounds that, although they hate everyone else, they're solidly behind Israel?