It's Jerusalem, Israel

Editorial

The Federal Court of Canada ruled last week that Canada should not add "Israel" after "Jerusalem" on the passports of Canadians born in that city. The decision emerged from the case of 18-year-old Eliyahu Veffer, who argued that refusing to acknowledge "Jerusalem, Israel" as his birthplace on his Canadian passport is an infringement of his religious and cultural rights as a Jew.

Canada's passport-issuing agency, reflecting government policy, does not recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and considers the sovereignty of the holy city to be in dispute. The court concluded that "passports do not deal with, nor are they a reflection of, a person's roots, heritage or belief."

The case was interesting because it addresses one of the few instances when the Canadian government's attitude to Jerusalem has any practical application. Suffice to say, Israeli leaders are not lying awake kvetching over Ottawa's refusal to acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital. But the issue reminds us that Canada has taken a side in this dispute. By refusing to acknowledge the sovereignty of Israel over even part of Jerusalem, Canada takes a surprisingly strong diplomatic stand.

Some people say that the fate of Jerusalem, like all the variables in final status negotiations – precise borders, the right of return and other difficult matters – will be determined through future talks. It's tough not to note that those final status negotiations would probably be complete and the fate of Jerusalem determined by now had Yasser Arafat not initiated the intifada at the very moment when these most crucial discussions were about to take place.

Nevertheless, Canada's attitude toward the sovereignty of Jerusalem is inconsistent with both reality and history. Israel won control over all of Jerusalem while defending itself against unprovoked and genocidal attack by neighboring Arab states in 1967. That makes it Israel. If future negotiations alter that status, we would expect Canada to acknowledge it. For now, though, Canada is acting in error. Of course, most of the world community is acting in agreement with it. But, as our mothers taught us way back when, just because everyone's doing it, doesn't make it right.

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