Court Proceedings Launched Against Canada's Violations of the Genocide Convention and Charter of Rights and Freedoms
On November 5, the Legal Centre for Palestine (LCP), together with other members of the Coalition for Canadian Accountability in Gaza, filed a claim in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice against the Attorney General of Canada on behalf of two Canadians. The two plaintiffs have suffered and continue to suffer horrendous consequences as a result of Canada's continuing support for the U.S./Zionist genocide in Gaza as well as violations of their rights under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Speaking at a press conference on November 6 at the West Block, Parliament Hill, criminal defence and human rights lawyer Shane Martinez, a member of the legal team, called this a "historic milestone to hold Canada accountable for not taking reasonable measures to prevent Israel's genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people. This refusal to act, in combination with Canada's bolstering of Israel's military capabilities has had devastating consequences on Palestinian Canadians including our clients. These consequences engage two important legal instruments, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms."
There are two plaintiffs in the case. Hany el Batnigi was born in Gaza and fled Palestine with his family during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. He and his family subsequently moved to Canada. He first returned to Gaza in September 2023, where he was trapped when the U.S./Zionist siege of Gaza began on October 8, and was forcefully displaced several times. During the time that he was trapped in Gaza, he made four attempts to cross the border into Egypt. During one of the attempts he was injured in a bomb blast. He was finally able to leave around November 7, 2023. Since his return to Canada he has unsuccessfully pleaded with the federal government to evacuate his family members from Gaza while Canada has been sending military aircraft to evacuate Israeli-Canadians from Israel. Many of his family members remain in Gaza. Many have been killed or injured by the Israeli attacks. Hany was also denied the right to sponsor family members in Gaza to Canada under the Gaza Special Measures temporary visa program because of his inability as a pensioner to shoulder the costs.
The other plaintiff, Tamer Jarada, was born in Gaza in 1986 and has resided in Canada since 2011. When Israel's bombardments commenced, Tamer's parents, sisters, uncle, aunt, and other family members sought shelter in an empty apartment that he owned in Gaza City. The apartment was destroyed by an Israeli airstrike on October 25, 2023, taking the lives of his father, uncle, aunt, two sisters, nephews, cousins and other extended family members. Other members of his family have been killed in the weeks and months since by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF). Those that remain are facing starvation and medical complications. Some members of Tamer's family have escaped to Egypt but his attempts to sponsor his relatives to Canada under the Gaza Special Measures program have been extremely challenging due to hurdles such as the stringent security imposed on refugees from Gaza that are not imposed on others fleeing conflicts, such as those from Syria and Ukraine.
The 112-page Statement of Claim filed with the Court provides evidence for the claims that Canada has failed in its duty to prevent genocide by continuing to supply armaments to Israel, by refusing to impose sanctions against Israel in the face of genocide, by failing to prevent Canadian citizens from serving in Israel's armed forces, by allowing Canadian charities to raise funds to support Israel's illegal acts and by failing to suspend the Canada-Israel Strategic Partnership, Canada-Israel military cooperation and through other actions.
The case also details how the Gaza Special Measures program has failed to assist persons fleeing the genocide in Gaza.
On its website The Legal Centre for Palestine, under the title "Hold the Canadian Government to Account Over Gaza" outlines the remedies that they are seeking, which are:
1. A declaration that Canada has a common law duty to take all measures within its power to prevent genocide;
2. A declaration that Canada has violated the Plaintiffs' rights to security of the person, contrary to section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms ("the Charter"), by failing to take all measures within its power to prevent Israel from committing genocide against the Palestinian people of Gaza;
3. A declaration that Canada has violated the Plaintiffs' rights to equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination, contrary to section 15 of the Charter, by subjecting them to differential and discriminatory treatment on the basis of their national or ethnic origin as Palestinian people seeking safety for themselves and their loved ones in the face of a plausible case of genocide; and
4. A declaration that the Respondent's violations of the Plaintiff's rights under sections 7 and 15 of the Charter do not accord with principles of fundamental justice and are not saved by section 1 of the Charter.
The plaintiffs are represented by the Coalition for Canadian Accountability in Gaza, which consists of lawyers from the Legal Centre for Palestine (LCP), the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) -- Canada, Hameed Law and Dimitri Lascaris. To read the Statement of Claim or contribute financially to support the case see the LCP website here.
(With files from the LCP,
ICJP)
This article was published in
Friday,
November 15, 2024
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/ITN2024/Articles/TI54513.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca