Tales of a Solitary Soul

Dear Mr. Prime Minister (pm@pm.gc.ca):

I write to you as a concerned citizen in regards to the situation unfolding in the Middle East. Not only was I deeply saddened by the indiscriminate death of 8 Canadians but also of the 300 or so dead Lebanese civilians that have fallen victim. The right of self defense does not allow a country a free pass when it comes to civilian casualties.

Another disconcerting point of the conflict was Canada's decision, nay, Canadian government's decision to take Israel's unconditional side by calling the offensive 'measured.' We have broken away from our traditional role of neutrality, a proud heritage started by a great Canadian - Lester B. Pearson - during the Suez Canal crisis of 1956. The world, including the Israelis and the Palestinians, since then have come to see us as impartial mediators and rightly so.

But in breaking away from that stance, we have jeopardized our reputation on the international stage. I do not believe this is the direction that the Canadian public wants to head. Rather it wants to be an active participant in working towards a lasting peace acceptable and fair to both sides instead of providing a stamp of approval for whole scale bombings as is the case now.

I request that you get in touch with the views of Canadians, coast to coast, to realize that not many stand by the stance that has been taken, which is certainly not an enviable position for a minority government to be in.

Yours Sincerely,
Faraz Ahmed

Assuming the worst case scenario that they don't read it, I made sure that the email header in itself clearly states the opposition to Canada's stance. So even a single glance at it will get the point across and insha Allah add to mounting pressure.

To the Globe&Mail editorial section:

In response to the editorial in July 20 edition (Proud to be a Canadian) I would like to ask if the author that if he truly believes that Canada should take the 'morally correct' side by supporting Israel in its offensive, then do we also expect Stephen Harper to condemn illegal Israeli settlements in Gaza and the West Bank, constant demolition of Palestinian homes, and illegal detention of thousands of Palestinians and Lebanese without a trial?

And if Stephen Harper will not do that, it's best for Canada to stay neutral rather than compromise its position at the world stage at the expense of a few bonus points with the Bush administration.

If you follow the Middle East conflict on a regular basis, you'd realize that there is no such thing as an initial attack because the cyclical violence has gone on for so long that trying to keep track of who did what over the last six decades is nearly impossible.

2 Comments:

 Faraz Ahmed, at Wednesday, July 26, 2006  

 Faraz Ahmed, at Thursday, July 27, 2006  

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