ROTHENBURGER: Council motion on Gaza would be a waste of time and effort

Councillors asked no questions, made no comment, and didn’t tell her to stop talking despite the topic not being on the meeting agenda (usually, there’s at least a point of order or two from councillors when that happens during the public inquiries section).

Despite the lack of engagement, Coun. Nancy Bepple filed a notice of motion later in the meeting to do pretty much what Hammond asked for: if approved, the mayor would be directed to write to Trudeau calling for the federal government to demand an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and unrestricted flow of humanitarian aid.

At the same time, the letter would condemn both Islamophobia and anti-Semitism. Bepple said her motion, which will be debated later this month, is based on “community requests” and her “own feelings.”

Pressuring municipal councils to enter the Gaza fray has become a thing. Municipal councils across the country, in an organized campaign, are being goaded into taking positions on impacts of the war between Israel and Hamas, often to the accompaniment of large crowds in the public galleries.

Burnaby, Mississauga, Maple Ridge, Nelson and Port Alberni have passed such resolutions without incident. The mayors of Hamilton, Toronto and Edmonton have added their individual support for a ceasefire.

At times, the process hasn’t been so orderly. Disruption has become a tactic rather than a consequence. The council in Sackville, in New Brunswick, faced chants of “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” That commonly heard slogan is either an innocent call for freedom for Palestinians, or for the annihilation of Israel, depending on the source.

New Westminster council passed a resolution on the matter this week but not before two councillors walked out of the meeting and refused to participate. At that one, a group of pro-Palestinian protesters was in attendance demanding action. At an earlier meeting, in December, they demanded council display slides of Palestinian corpses. There were shouted confrontations; police were called in, the meeting was adjourned.

This week, council chambers were again filled as the notice of motion that was presented in December came up for debate. This time, while some tense moments were reported, police weren’t needed.

Coun. Daniel Fontaine, one of the two councillors who later walked out, told his colleagues that municipal councils aren’t about nuclear disarmament, global space treaties or international conflicts.

“If my colleagues wanted to champion these types of national and international issues, I would highly encourage them to step aside from their posts on council and to campaign to become a member of parliament or to seek a post at the United Nations or similar agencies,” he said.

Also this week, the National Post published a piece making note of the fact anti-Israeli demonstrators convinced Brantford’s council to withdraw a statement denouncing the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas. (Condemnation of that attack seems to be largely absent from the entreaties to councils to pass resolutions. There’s no mention of it in Bepple’s motion.)

It also noted that the council in Surrey was forced to evacuate its meeting chambers after an anti-Israeli delegation began screaming at councillors, accusing them of being “murderers.” This, after Mayor Brenda Locke opened the session with a condemnation of both antisemitism and Islamophobia, and calling for peace.

Even school boards aren’t immune. Ontario’s Peel school board was beset with protesters demanding the board accuse Israel of genocide. When the board moved to a side room, protesters stormed into the meeting there.

One can hope the Kamloops council debate on Bepple’s motion doesn’t get hijacked the way others have but, regardless, it’s all wasted breath. Stopping the terrible death toll is, of course, an admirable goal but municipal council meetings have been turned into arenas for protest, sometimes nasty protest.

Since municipal councils have zero jurisdiction over international issues, and since Trudeau has already issued a statement calling for “a sustainable ceasefire” in Gaza, and Canada voted with a United Nations resolution for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire,” the drama is all a bit of stuff and nonsense.

Some of the resolutions from councils came before Canada came out in support of a ceasefire, some have come after. Why these groups keep directing calls for a ceasefire through municipal councils to Trudeau is a question mark — maybe they just find them a convenient venue in which to vent and to promote their own political views.

Bepple’s motion is obviously well-intentioned but it would be better for Kamloops council to stay clear of the whole thing.

Mel Rothenburger is a regular contributor to CFJC Today, publishes the ArmchairMayor.ca opinion website, and is a recipient of the Jack Webster Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. He has served as mayor of Kamloops, school board chair and TNRD director, and is a retired daily newspaper editor. He can be reached at mrothenburger@armchairmayor.ca.

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Editor’s Note: This opinion piece reflects the views of its author, and does not necessarily represent the views of CFJC Today or Pattison Media.

by Mel Rothenburger

ROTHENBURGER: Council motion on Gaza would be a waste of time and effort

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