Call to Action Concerning the Humanitarian Crisis in Palestine

– Open Letter from Waterloo & Wellington Region Physicians –

The following letter was issued April 28 and is addressed to Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs,) Members of Parliament (MPs), Senators and hospital CEOs in the Waterloo & Wellington Region. It has been signed by more than 100 physicians. For the full list of addressees and signatories, click here.

We are a local group of physicians in Wellington and Waterloo Regions who are greatly concerned with the catastrophic and growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Palestine. We feel immense moral distress over the violence and lack of humanitarian aid that has resulted in over 30,000 deaths, severe food insecurity nearing famine, and the spread of devastating preventable disease. The situation in Gaza has now transcended into a deep humanitarian crisis (1) and we stand together as physicians from multiple backgrounds demanding that Canada not turn its back on the suffering of Palestinians.[1]

Arms Sales

Canada has a moral responsibility to respect the Fourth Geneva Convention (articles 18 & 20), ratified by both Israel and Canada, which states that civilian hospitals and staff must be protected during times of international armed conflict.[2] The International Criminal Court under the Rome Statute decries that deliberately attacking "hospitals and places where the sick and the wounded are collected" in international armed conflicts is a war crime.[3] As physicians, we stand against this violation of international law by Israel.

Canada became a signatory to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) in June 2019. Under Bill C-47, the amendment to the Export and Import Permits Act (EIPA), "... the Minister of Foreign Affairs must deny export permits applications if he or she has determined that there is a substantial risk that the export would result in a serious violation of international humanitarian law or human rights."[4] On March 18, 2024, a non-binding NDP-led motion was passed by the Canadian Government to stop approving more arms permits to Israel. We ask that Canada stay bound by the motion passed in parliament, and that permits previously approved prior to March 18 are also cancelled.

Humanitarian Aid

We offer our support to our brave and compassionate physician colleagues, who continue to provide medical care despite the risk of being killed. We offer our grief to the hundreds of Palestinian health care workers killed by Israeli forces during this conflict.[5, 6, 7] We express deep concern over the numerous health care workers that have been kidnapped or arrested, as well as our outrage over the destroyed civilian and health care infrastructure in Gaza.[5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15]

On January 26, 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel to "take immediate and effective measures to enable the provision of urgently needed basic services and humanitarian assistance to address the adverse conditions of life faced by Palestinians in the Gaza Strip."[16]  Despite this order, according to Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, the number of aid trucks allowed into Gaza decreased after the ICJ ruling on January 26, 2024.[17, 18] Sally Abi Khalil, Middle East and North Africa Director of Oxfam, said on March 17, 2024: "Israeli authorities are not only failing to facilitate the international aid effort but are actively hindering it."[19]

Even when aid gets into Gaza, it cannot necessarily be accessed safely because of violence.[20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29] As of March 14, 2024, hundreds of Palestinians have been killed trying to reach humanitarian aid.[22] On February 27, 2024, Carl Skau, the Executive Director of the United Nations World Food program warned "there is a real prospect of famine by May, with over 500,000 people at risk if the threat is allowed to materialize."[30] On March 18, 2024, a report from the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) stated that "Famine is imminent as 1.1 million people, half of Gaza, experience catastrophic food insecurity."[31, 32]

Canada must urge Israel to uphold its responsibility under international law to provide aid as an occupying force.[33] We ask the Canadian Government to immediately take action to push for unobstructed humanitarian aid to enter into Gaza, and to strongly encourage our allies to do the same.

The Silencing of Health Care Workers in Canada

As medical professionals, advocacy for human rights is at the core of our values. The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada has a framework to identify the key roles a physician must perform to "effectively meet the health care needs of the people we [physicians] serve".[34] One of these seven roles is the role of Health Advocate. Physicians understand that the social determinants of health immensely influence the health of patient populations. During this humanitarian crisis in Gaza all the social determinants of health are being disrupted at an alarming rate. The physical and mental impacts of this war will reverberate onto the people of Palestine for generations to come.

As physicians, staying silent goes against every principle ingrained into our ethical framework as medical professionals. Further, being forced into silence by our peers and the organizations in which we work contributes to our moral distress, grief, and disenfranchisement.[35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40] We reject the claim that criticism of the State of Israel's actions is anti-Semitic. The Jerusalem Declaration on Anti-Semitism (specifically Point 13c) clearly rejects the notion that criticisms of the State of Israel constitute anti-Semitism.[41] Further, we stand in solidarity with physicians across the country who have faced professional repercussions and slandering for upholding their principles of respect for human life. We ask that the Canadian Government and Canadian medical institutions (e.g. hospitals, medical schools) cease this willful silencing, intimidation and slander faced by physicians and trainees who are speaking up for Palestinians during this humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Canada is reckoning with its colonial legacy of genocide of the Indigenous Peoples of Turtle Island and needs to repair the immense damage and generational trauma to Indigenous Peoples through Truth and Reconciliation calls to action.[42] We should not forget the uncomfortable and important lessons learned from our own colonial history. We need to use these lessons to inform our current foreign affairs policies in support of Indigenous populations across the world, which include the people of Palestine. We must be mindful of the political, social, and power structures that perpetuate conflict across decades.

The Vision statement of Global Affairs Canada's Action Plan on Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples -- 2021-2025, says "In partnership with Indigenous Peoples in Canada and abroad, Global Affairs Canada will advance the rights, perspectives and prosperity of Indigenous Peoples in Canada and around the world".[43]

In summary, we are pleading with our Canadian Government and our local medical institutions to address this catastrophic humanitarian situation and the silencing of our views. Therefore, to the above mentioned individuals in levels of government and medical institutions:

1) We ask that Canada stay bound by the motion passed in Parliament to cease all arms sales to Israel, and that permits previously approved prior to March 18 are also cancelled. We ask Canada to urge our allies to do the same.

2) We strongly advocate for the unobstructed flow of aid into Gaza and encourage our allies to do the same.

3) We ask you to support health care workers who are standing in solidarity with Palestinians during this humanitarian crisis, and oppose efforts to stifle advocacy.

Thank you, and we look forward to your response. Please send your response to: wwdocsforpalestine@gmail.com


This article was published in
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Volume 54 Number 32 - May 9, 2024

Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2024/Articles/MS543214.HTM


    

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