OTTAWA, 29 May 2005 — Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin announced $9.7 million in aid for Palestinians following a meeting Friday with leader Mahmoud Abbas that aimed to re-energize the Middle East peace process.
The money will be used for judicial reform, border management, to build houses for Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip and to help Palestinian women in Lebanon pursue university education.
As well, Canada will deploy 50 observers for the upcoming Palestinian Legislative Council elections and add four officers to the team of 28 Canadians already patrolling Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula as part of a multinational force.
“This is an important and growing relationship,” Martin said.
Abbas already secured $50 million in direct aid from the United States during a White House summit with US President George W. Bush on Thursday. Bush said the money would be used for new housing and other infrastructure in the Gaza Strip.
Before the meeting in Ottawa, Martin played up a possible role for Canada as peace broker between Israelis and Palestinians, noting that he had spoken with Abbas often in recent months and maintained a strong relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.
“I think that there is an enormous amount that we can do to help the Palestinian Authority and we intend to play that role... (including) the role of intermediary between the various parties,” Martin said prior to the meeting, signaling his intention to “eventually” travel to the Middle East.
But those hopes were dashed. Instead, Martin took baby steps that he said would lead to further involvement in the peace process down the road, calling Friday’s financial commitment “a down payment.”
In the meantime, Canada will continue its bilateral approach to the peace process, he said.
Abbas too left the door open for greater Canadian involvement in the future: “I believe that Canada has an important role to play with respect to refugees. This is will be dealt with at the final stage and we hope that Canada will play a major role in those negotiations.”
“Canada has a very good reputation in the Middle East and has a balanced approach in the region and that would allow Canada to play an honest broker in the peace process,” he said.
Martin also reiterated the need for both sides to implement their commitments under the roadmap, which was brokered by the United States, the European Union, Russia and the United Nations but has become deadlocked.
Meanwhile, Palestinian-Canadians protested this week against Israeli pilots joining some 5,000 military personnel from 11 Allied countries in combat flight training exercises in western Canada for the first time.
Israeli fighter jets have been used to destroy Palestinian homes in Gaza and the West Bank, said Elias Hazineh of the Toronto-based Palestine House, and inviting them to participate in war games here will tarnish Canada’s reputation.
Two Arab countries, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, were also invited as observers.
And comments in a local newspaper by Canadian Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew about taking a “wait and see” attitude towards the possibility of Hamas winning seats in upcoming elections sparked outrage from local Jewish groups.
Martin dismissed those concerns Friday, saying firmly: “Hamas are terrorists. And you’re not going to have a multparty system that’s going to function unless people are prepared to lay down their arms. Terrorism and democracy are simply incompatible.”
