COPE stands for free expression and against attempts to silence critics of war crimes and genocide
VANCOUVER - BC - City Councillor Sean Orr is calling on Mayor Ken Sim to finally condemn war crimes and genocide against Palestinians.
“I’m not the story here, and we won’t let smears distract us from our work,” said Councillor Orr. “When will Mayor Sim finally join me in condemning all war crimes in the Middle East, and speak out against what UN agencies, the International Court of Justice, and Amnesty International have all condemned as genocide in Gaza.”
The smear by Sim was posted on X on Sunday, Oct. 5th, following a speech Orr delivered at an Oct. 4th peace rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery. Those remarks can be read in full here.
Canadians have Charter-protected rights to free conscience, free expression, and free association.
This week’s smears by Mayor Ken Sim and the right-wing lobby group CIJA are an attack on the fundamental freedoms of Canadian citizens under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Over 2000 Vancouver residents attended the Oct. 4th peace rally, which was organized by more than 30 groups. One affiliate of the group was Apartheid Free Communities, a campaign which the City of Burnaby became a signatory to last month by unanimous vote of Burnaby City Council.
“Sean Orr’s speech at the rally speaks for itself, and we encourage the Mayor to actually read it,” said COPE co-chair Shawn Vulliez. “He should also retract his appalling smear of Councillor Orr, and apologize for amplifying disinformation from an account known for promoting residential school denialism.”
The event at which Councillor Orr was invited to speak was not sponsored by or affiliated with Samidoun, contrary to Ken Sim’s claims. Over 30 local groups and 2000 local residents came together to speak out against violence, and for a just peace in the Middle East.
On Thursday CIJA repeated the disinformation amplified by Mayor Sim and made outrageous false assertions about Councillor Orr and the thousands of people present at the rally based on the fact an individual, who is accused of no crimes, was spotted there as an attendee. This is a repulsive guilt-by-association smear.
CIJA is a far-right organization that has refused to criticize Israel’s brutal war on civilians, and spends their time instead trying to intimidate people into silence. They have also criticized David Eby, Mark Carney, Amnesty International, and the International Criminal Court. (See attached for examples of CIJA’s spokesperson attacking the International Criminal Court and Amnesty International in similar terms as the smear against Councillor Orr and the attendees at the Vancouver rally.)
It’s not controversial to speak out about the violence in Gaza, and Sean Orr’s comments at the peace rally speak for themselves. We know that a majority of Canadians and Vancouver residents call the situation a “moral outrage”, with over twice as many polled Canadians (52%) saying Israel is conducting Genocide than say they are not (25%).
Kosher wines are produced around the world, including in Canada. Boycotting Israeli wines to protest a genocide is a valid political stance. The provincial government stopped importing Russian liquor following the invasion of Ukraine. Amnesty International has concluded that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Human Rights Watch has condemned Israel’s “war of extermination”, saying they are “intentionally depriving Palestinian civilians there of adequate access to water, most likely resulting in thousands of deaths.” The United Nations has demanded an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, with the UN Deputy Secretary-General calling the situation “appalling and apocalyptic.” The International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu and former Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant.
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