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October 23, 2009
Cozy question period
Ignatieff weighs in on Israel, Iran and H1N1.
BAILA LAZARUS
Amid an air that a dignitary would soon be arriving, dozens of people jostled for position, straining to be within spitting distance of the expected honoree.
"Michael's in the room," one guest whispered to another, as though he was announcing the reappearance of the Gloved One rather than the leader of the Opposition.
And so began the one-hour Q and A with Michael Ignatieff who, completing a whirlwind tour of Vancouver, dropped into his "good friend" Mindy Kaufman's home Oct. 13 to chat with supporters.
"I think the right thing to do is for you to have at me," he announced quickly, opening the floor to the first question about university campuses in Canada where episodes of intimidation were seen stymieing discussion on the Middle East and creating a toxic, unsafe environment.
"I've always felt, having been an academic, that free speech is a rough old business," Ignatieff said. "In an academic environment, you're going to hear a lot of rubbish.... You're sometimes going to hear things that hurt your feelings, hurt your allegiances hurt your views.... I objected publicly to Israel Apartheid Week because I thought the comparison between Israel and apartheid South Africa was a category mistake."
It's OK to criticize Israel, Ignatieff said, but it's not appropriate to equate it with a state that has been officially described as a crime against humanity.
"Whatever else is true about Israel, it's not an apartheid state," said Ignatieff, who has traveled and lived in Israel. "And to lump the two together, you have a frame in which no true things can be said about the state of Israel."
As far as having a national initiative, however, Ignatieff said he believed it is "very important to leave universities to sort this out. I'm very wary about stepping in with the heavy hand of the law ... but I think it's important as a person in public life to stand up and say there are just certain things that aren't true."
Eventually the discussion turned to the question of an election, prompting chuckles from the attendees. Ignatieff, joking about his "timing," said he did not want to bring down the government "by any means" but did not want to "prop them up" either. He attacked the deficit, unemployment rate, bankruptcies, the Conservatives' plan (or lack thereof) for the environment and for H1N1 (swine flu).
Questions followed on Iran and Afghanistan and what Ignatieff thought of the critique that Stephen Harper is more favorable to the state of Israel than he is.
Lamenting that Israel had become a partisan issue, Igantieff said, "We've only very recently, in my view, had a conscious attempt by the Conservative party to wedge and split on this issue and I think it's regrettable.
"There are certain issues that should not be wedge issues and one of them is fundamental faith, confidence and support for the state of Israel as a democratic state entitled to the full recognition by its neighbors and to live in peace and security, period.
"As far as it relates to me personally, the irony, if I can just dwell on it, is that I've been to Israel, lived in Israel, taught in Israel," Ignatieff said, defensively. "I count some of my deepest friends, people who fought and risked their lives for the state of Israel.... If it comes down to a question of whether you know this place, I know this place."
Further questions led to discussions about security for religious institutions in Canada, federal contributions to university research funding and Canada's role internationally. Those who have followed Ignatieff's discussions on his website or in his blog postings would not have heard much new at the Kaufman residence. And one disgruntled attendee said, "He's getting off easy," but when asked later, refused to comment on the record.
Other MPs who joined the fray at the Kerrisdale gathering were Joyce Murray, Ujjal Dosanjh, Hedy Fry and Sukh Dhaliwal.
Baila Lazarus is a freelance writer, painter and photographer. Her work can be seen at orchiddesigns.net.
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