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Jewish Charity Challenges Canadian Policy on Israel in Court
by Faisal Kutty
Members of the Canadian Jewish
community are anxiously awaiting a decision by the Federal Court of Canada
regarding a tax appeal launched by a Jewish charity. The decision,
expected in the next few weeks, could mean that the Canadian Magen David
Adom for Israel (CMDA) loses its charitable status for financing
activities beyond Israel’s pre-1967 boundaries, in contravention of
Canadian policy.
Jewish settlements in the West
Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem are considered "contrary to
international law and unhelpful to the peace process," according to the
Canada Customs and Revenue Agency (CCRA). Canada’s Department of External
Affairs considers the settlements an obstacle to peace in the Middle East.
About two years ago, the CCRA
notified the CMDA that its charity registration was being revoked for
operating in the occupied territories. Canadian tax laws permit donors to
claim a tax deduction for contributions to registered charities.
Provisions of the Income Tax Act allow donors to write off part of their
charitable contributions and thereby reduce their taxable income by as
much as 20 percent.
The deduction provisions of
the Income Tax Act, aimed at encouraging private contributions to
charities, appear to have been used quite successfully by supporters of
Israeli settlement activity, considered illegal under international law.
According to the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem, the settler
population in the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) numbers 380,000. In
its report Land Grab, released earlier this year, the rights group
also noted that, between 1993 and 2000, the number of settlers in the West
Bank increased almost 100 percent.
Under Canadian law, it is not
illegal to send money to Israeli settlements. It is unlawful, however, to
claim a charitable tax deduction for the contribution, which is exactly
what many CMDA contributors are doing. A 1997 investigative report by the
Toronto Star revealed that a number of Jewish organizations were
using their charitable status to issue receipts for such contributions. Despite the negative publicity raised
by the story and promises by the government to act, the practice still
appears to be widespread.
In 1997 the government revoked
the charitable status of the Toronto Zionist Council after it was revealed
that the Council channeled funds to the settlements. Unlike the Council,
however, the CMDA appealed the CCRA decision to the Federal Court.
At a hearing in June of this
year, government lawyers argued that ambulances donated by Canadians
through the CMDA were operating in West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem
settlements. The government also alleged that the ambulances were used for
non-medical purposes as well. These "activities which lend support to
Israeli settlements beyond its pre-1967 borders," the CCRA argued,
undermine Canadian public policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The CMDA is the Canadian
branch of Magen David Adom (MDA), which was established in 1931 to collect
and dispense blood and equipment to medical institutions and to operate
ambulances. Although it is not recognized as such by the International Red
Cross Societies, the MDA touts itself as Israel’s equivalent of the Red
Cross. The organization openly proclaims itself
as a humanitarian group, yet unabashedly and wholeheartedly supports the
Israel Defense Forces. Under "11 Excellent Reasons Why You Should Support
Magen David Adom," for instance, the MDA’s Web site proudly proclaims that
its High Frequency FM Radio Network is available to the Israel Defense
Forces. Moreover, the CMDA’s own Web site provides a link to the Israel Defense Forces Web site, along with links
to other humanitarian groups.
The Federal Court’s decision
could have serious consequences for Canadian charities raising money for
Israel. Some Jewish leaders, in fact, are crying double standard and
unfair targeting of the Jewish community. Interestingly, these were some
of the same people calling for tougher anti-terrorist fund-raising laws a
few months earlier, when the government passed a law
which many observers believe unfairly targets Arab and Muslim
fund-raising activities.
Canada’s Jewish community
contributes more on a per capita basis than even their American
counterparts. "There’s a cartel of Canadian millionaires who give massive
amounts of money,’ says David Drache, a prominent Canadian charities
lawyer representing the CMDA. Claims Judy Grossman, overseas fund-raiser
for the Hebron Fund in the West Bank, "Toronto Jews are one of our biggest supporters‹they¹re tremendous." The
Toronto-based Press Foundation, which has been linked with fund-raising
activities for Jewish settlements, raises millions of dollars, though it
is unclear how much of this goes to the settlements.
These are not the only
Canadian groups breaking the law. Conservative estimates put the number of
registered Canadian charities connected to Israel at more than 300. And,
according to Drache, "there are hundreds of organizations that are
supporting organizations directly or indirectly
beyond the Green Line [in the West Bank]." These "are all technically in
breach of this [Canadian government] policy," he added. Drache claims that
the CCRA policy has no basis and that it was "invented" by tax officials
in 1991. "Public policy is infinitely harder to establish than government policy; [it] is not a matter of law,"
he told the Canadian Jewish News.
Apparently Drache does not
consider contributing to the continuation of illegal occupation in
contravention of Canada’s stated foreign policy a sufficient legal basis
for government policy. Or perhaps he is forgetting that charities are not
allowed to promote political activity.
Reaction from Muslim and Arab
quarters is muted. The case has attracted no attention most people
approached for this story, in fact, had no comment, as they were not even
aware of the case. Clearly, Canadians concerned about bringing peace to
the region must pay close attention to the decision, expected before fall.
If the pattern of questioning
is any indication, however, the panel of three judges appears to be buying
Drache’s arguments. Hopefully, the judges will eventually cut through the
sophistry and recognize it for the political issue it is.
Faisal Kutty is a Toronto-based lawyer and
writer. He is also a columnist for the
Washington Report on
Middle East Affairs. He contributed above article
to Media Monitors Network (MMN).
Source:
by courtesy & © 2002 Faisal Kutty
by the same
author:
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