WARMINGTON: Liberal MP apologizes for handing out dubious honours
Joe Warmington
Published:
August 16, 2018
Updated:
August 16, 2018 10:21 PM EDT
Amin El-Maoued, left, poses with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Laurier Club Summer Reception and Garden Party (Facebook photo)
First it was Liberal MP Iqra Khalid being called out by B’nai Brith Canada for honouring a person they feel has pushed anti-semitism.
Then pictures surface of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shaking hands with Amin El-Maoued, making people wonder what in the heck is going on with this government.
Liberal MP Iqra Khalid on Feb. 15, 2017. (Patrick Doyle/The Canadian Press)
That’s followed by Canadian Senator Linda Frum getting involved — and suddenly some common sense starts to show up in the story.
Just 45 minutes after I posted my column on this very topic, word comes down that not only will the Liberal government rescind its honour of the controversial figure from Palestine House — but an apology from Khalid herself on the controversy.
“I was not aware of some of Amin El-Maoued’s past views, and only he can speak to them, but we all must stand against anti-Semitism and discrimination in all its forms,” Khalid said in a statement.
“As a representative of the government especially I must condemn them, and rescind the volunteer certificate given to Amin El Maoued.”
Of course, all of this came about thanks to B’nai Brith Canada’s strong condemnation on the award even being given out in the first place.
“A Member of Parliament with a checkered history has added to her list of controversies by presenting a Certificate of Appreciation to an activist who led a rally laden with hate-filled and anti-semitic slogans,” B’nai Brith Canada wrote in its earlier statement.
“Consequently, B’nai Brith is launching a petition demanding that Mississauga-Erin Mills MP Iqra Khalid rescind the certificate and apologize to Canadians for her insensitive and dangerous actions.”
Palestine House, located at 3195 Erindale Station Rd. in Mississauga Stan Behal/Toronto Sun)
At issue was El-Maoued being feted after being accused of leading a 2017 rally “laden with hate-filled and anti-Semitic slogans” where chants including “Israel and Hitler are the same” were recorded.
B’nai Brith CEO Michael Mostyn told The Sun he personally had spoken with Khalid about El-Maoued — a man associated with the controversial Palestine House whose extremist views resulted in the loss of their federal funding in 2012.
Khalid went ahead anyway with honouring El-Maoued’s volunteer work.
Now she has apologized for that.
“We are satisfied with what we must consider a victory for human rights in Canada and only hope we do not see a recurrence of this kind of behaviour from MP Khalid or any other representative of the government,” said Mostyn.
“Canadians must never stand by idly while our political leaders support those who engage in racist, divisive actions.”
Amin El-Maoued, left, shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Laurier Club Summer Reception and Garden Party (Facebook photo)
El-Maoued on Facebook said he “condemned anti-semitism” and does “condemn” some of the “statements” made at “rallies.”
But Conservative Senator Linda Frum tweeted “Prime Minister: when you embrace individuals who are known Jew haters, who equate Jews to Nazis, and you invite them to your private garden parties, you stoke the politics of division.”
The pressure on Trudeau seemed to work, hence his 180-degree turn on this by Thursday evening.
Khalid, the MP behind the M-103 motion which essentially restricts criticism of Islam, said “I will have more thorough due diligence in the future in the allocation of these certificates and I apologize for this mistake.”
Senator Frum kept up the pressure on Trudeau, tweeting “before PM Trudeau issues an apology for the anti-Semitic acts of a long dead former PM, he’d do better to apologize for the anti-Semitic acts of this sitting MP who speaks in Trudeau’s name.”
http://torontosun.com/news/local-ne...liberal-mp-prime-minister-for-dubious-honours
Joe Warmington
Published:
August 16, 2018
Updated:
August 16, 2018 10:21 PM EDT
Amin El-Maoued, left, poses with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Laurier Club Summer Reception and Garden Party (Facebook photo)
First it was Liberal MP Iqra Khalid being called out by B’nai Brith Canada for honouring a person they feel has pushed anti-semitism.
Then pictures surface of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shaking hands with Amin El-Maoued, making people wonder what in the heck is going on with this government.
Liberal MP Iqra Khalid on Feb. 15, 2017. (Patrick Doyle/The Canadian Press)
That’s followed by Canadian Senator Linda Frum getting involved — and suddenly some common sense starts to show up in the story.
Just 45 minutes after I posted my column on this very topic, word comes down that not only will the Liberal government rescind its honour of the controversial figure from Palestine House — but an apology from Khalid herself on the controversy.
“I was not aware of some of Amin El-Maoued’s past views, and only he can speak to them, but we all must stand against anti-Semitism and discrimination in all its forms,” Khalid said in a statement.
“As a representative of the government especially I must condemn them, and rescind the volunteer certificate given to Amin El Maoued.”
Of course, all of this came about thanks to B’nai Brith Canada’s strong condemnation on the award even being given out in the first place.
“A Member of Parliament with a checkered history has added to her list of controversies by presenting a Certificate of Appreciation to an activist who led a rally laden with hate-filled and anti-semitic slogans,” B’nai Brith Canada wrote in its earlier statement.
“Consequently, B’nai Brith is launching a petition demanding that Mississauga-Erin Mills MP Iqra Khalid rescind the certificate and apologize to Canadians for her insensitive and dangerous actions.”
Palestine House, located at 3195 Erindale Station Rd. in Mississauga Stan Behal/Toronto Sun)
At issue was El-Maoued being feted after being accused of leading a 2017 rally “laden with hate-filled and anti-Semitic slogans” where chants including “Israel and Hitler are the same” were recorded.
B’nai Brith CEO Michael Mostyn told The Sun he personally had spoken with Khalid about El-Maoued — a man associated with the controversial Palestine House whose extremist views resulted in the loss of their federal funding in 2012.
Khalid went ahead anyway with honouring El-Maoued’s volunteer work.
Now she has apologized for that.
“We are satisfied with what we must consider a victory for human rights in Canada and only hope we do not see a recurrence of this kind of behaviour from MP Khalid or any other representative of the government,” said Mostyn.
“Canadians must never stand by idly while our political leaders support those who engage in racist, divisive actions.”
Amin El-Maoued, left, shakes hands with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Laurier Club Summer Reception and Garden Party (Facebook photo)
El-Maoued on Facebook said he “condemned anti-semitism” and does “condemn” some of the “statements” made at “rallies.”
But Conservative Senator Linda Frum tweeted “Prime Minister: when you embrace individuals who are known Jew haters, who equate Jews to Nazis, and you invite them to your private garden parties, you stoke the politics of division.”
The pressure on Trudeau seemed to work, hence his 180-degree turn on this by Thursday evening.
Khalid, the MP behind the M-103 motion which essentially restricts criticism of Islam, said “I will have more thorough due diligence in the future in the allocation of these certificates and I apologize for this mistake.”
Senator Frum kept up the pressure on Trudeau, tweeting “before PM Trudeau issues an apology for the anti-Semitic acts of a long dead former PM, he’d do better to apologize for the anti-Semitic acts of this sitting MP who speaks in Trudeau’s name.”
http://torontosun.com/news/local-ne...liberal-mp-prime-minister-for-dubious-honours
